Orlando City at Charlotte FC: Five Takeaways

Orlando City traveled to North Carolina to take on Eastern Conference foe Charlotte FC. Points on the road are hard to come by especially in mid-week matches sandwiched between two weekend matches. Regardless, the Lions were able to score late to secure a 1-1 draw against Charlotte FC.

El Pulpo’s Eventful Evening

In the 36th minute, Pedro Gallese made a massive reaction save one on one against Derrick Jones. Honestly, it probably should have been a goal, but Gallese got the better of the encounter. The goal that was scored on him in the second half was not stoppable. Facing Enzo Copetti from the penalty spot, Gallese picked the correct side and dove fully extended, but Copetti put it in the bottom right corner with pace. Sometimes you can guess correctly and there is still nothing a keeper can do.

Idalia Still a Factor

Given that Hurricane Idalia was making its way towards Florida, I thought it was a good thing that Orlando City was playing on the road. Instead, Idalia blew past my house in Tallahassee, and made its way north. It moved fast enough that some of the outer bands of what was left of the storm made an appearance at the match at Bank of America Stadium. The wet conditions meant that some passes were slower than desired, some touches were off, and the wet ball was difficult to handle. There were a few from Facundo Torres that were not typical for the DP. As such, there were some opportunities for both sides that came to nothing due to the conditions.

Jansson’s Absence Felt

Robin Jansson led Orlando City’s defense with the back line doing a good job of dealing with crosses and set pieces put into the box by Charlotte FC. The one time that the defense didn’t head the ball out, Ben Bender put it in the back of the net. Fortunately, he came from an offside position and the goal was correctly disallowed. Jansson had a terrific game until he picked up a late knock and had to come off. Mere minutes after Jansson was subbed off for Abdi Salim, Rodrigo Schlegel fouled Copetti in the box to give Charlotte a penalty kick and ultimately the lead.

Schlegel vs. Copetti

There was a battle between Schlegel and Copetti that got a bit chippy. It was Schlegel that committed the foul on Copetti to give Charlotte the lead, although Copetti came in from behind and it’s doubtful the defender knew he was even there. In the waning minutes of the match, Copetti threw a forearm into Schlegel’s neck and throat area. The forward was ultimately only given a yellow for the foul. The review could have gone either way for forcible contact with the head and neck area but the referee did not see enough on replay to change his initial call. It was a proper battle between the two, even if Copetti got the better of it.

Ojeda’s Miracle

Martin Ojeda has not done as much as most Orlando City supporters would like. All of that was forgotten in the 88th minute when Ojeda’s free kick went over every defender’s and attacker’s head and off the hand of Kristijan Kahlina into the back of the goal. Whether it was intentional or not, it was exactly what Orlando City needed. The kick was an in-swinger that fell perfectly. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good.

That is what I saw in Orlando City’s draw against Charlotte FC. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.