Lion Links: 10/4/23

Hello, Mane Landers. It’s another Orlando City matchday tonight as the Lions are on the road in the Music City to battle Nashville SC. There is plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Takes on Nashville SC Tonight

Orlando City takes on Nashville tonight at 8:30 p.m. in midweek MLS action. This will be the first time the Lions will be visiting Geodis Park. The Lions shut out CF Montreal 3-0 this past Saturday as they go for another win to inch a step closer to locking up a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Lions’ leading scorer, Facundo Torres, put on another solid performance and scored his 13th goal of the season. Nashville battled the Seattle Sounders to a scoreless draw this past weekend. The last time these two sides met was back on April 1, when Nashville beat the Lions 2-0 at Exploria Stadium. Hany Mukhtar has scored seven goals and added five assists against the Lions in nine appearances.

Facundo Torres Fined for Embellishment

Facundo Torres received an undisclosed fine from the MLS Disciplinary Committee for embellishment in the Lions’ recent match against Montreal. On the play, Torres tried to dribble past Montreal’s George Campbell but went down, with the referee showing Campbell a yellow card in the 24th minute. Despite the replay showing Torres was caught by Campbell’s arm to his face, the committee determined Torres embellished the contact.

Orlando City Moves Up In Power Rankings

The latest MLS power rankings have been released and Orlando City moved up one spot to third. The Lions shut out Montreal this past weekend to set new club records in points (54) and wins (15) in an MLS regular season. The Lions remain in second place in the Eastern Conference ahead of the Philadelphia Union, New England Revolution, and Columbus Crew. The Lions also kept their 13-match unbeaten streak at Exploria Stadium alive. Orlando City will be back at home this Saturday against the New England Revolution before closing out its regular season on the road against Toronto FC on Oct. 21.

UEFA Champions League Roundup

The UEFA Champions League was back in action on Tuesday and there were some surprising results. Manchester United lost its second straight Champions League match, falling 3-2 at home to Galatasaray. It is the first time United has lost back-to-back Champions League matches in the same campaign. Also in Group A action, Bayern Munich was trailing 1-0 to FC Copenhagen on the road but rallied back to escape with a 2-1 win. Arsenal lost 2-1 at Lens and Bukayo Saka left the match with a non-contact injury. Real Madrid, Real Sociedad, Braga, and Inter Milan all won their matches, while PSV Eindhoven and Sevilla played to a 2-2 draw. Today’s notable matches will see Christian Pulisic’s AC Milan side take on his former club, Borussia Dortmund. Manchester City will battle RB Leipzig and Newcastle United faces Paris Saint-Germain.

Free Kicks

• Orlando City academy forward Jackson Platts has been called up to the U-16 U.S. National Team’s camp.

• UCF Knights goalkeeper Juanvi Munoz was named the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week.

• The Chicago Fire are offering fans who purchase tickets for tonight’s match against Inter Miami a $250 credit towards a 2024 season ticket purchase or a $50 credit towards a future match.
• The U.S. Women’s Deaf National Team defeated England 10-1 in the semifinals of the 2023 DIFA Women’s World Deaf Football Championship. The U.S. will face Turkey in the final this Friday as it goes for a third consecutive World Cup title.
• Meanwhile, the U.S. Men’s Deaf National Team lost 5-4 in penalty kicks after a 2-2 draw with Iran and will take on France in the seventh-place match tomorrow.

That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Wednesday and I’ll see you next time.