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Orlando City vs. Nashville SC: Final Score 1-0 as Lions Sweep First-Round Series

Ivan Angulo’s early goal was just enough as the Lions squeaked past Nashville into the Eastern Conference semifinals.

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1 year ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Ivan Angulo’s early goal was just enough as Orlando City turned in another defensive masterclass to nip Nashville SC 1-0 at Geodis Park. In earning their first-ever road MLS playoff win, the Lions swept Nashville and are through to the Eastern Conference semifinals.

“We’d like to start by congratulating the players and a squad that has been very responsible, very professional representing our community and our fans,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “I think we’re all very proud of what they do on the field. I thought we played a very complete match, because we were solid in both areas and probably could have scored a couple goals more, but against Nashville it’s not an easy task to do it, defending all those crosses and when they were throwing bodies up front. But we controlled the game. We’re happy. We looked more mature today.”

Pareja’s lineup was unchanged from Game 1. Pedro Gallese lined up in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena played in the central midfield behind an attacking line of Angulo, Mauricio Pereyra, and Facundo Torres, with Duncan McGuire up top.

The Lions started brightly with some early possession. Pereyra fired a shot three minutes in that deflected out for a corner, but Orlando could do nothing with the set piece. Two minutes later, Torres had a go on the break from outside the box but couldn’t get his shot to dip under the bar.

Orlando grabbed the lead in the sixth minute. A poorly weighted back pass by Dax McCarty was closed down quickly by Angulo. He won a 50/50 challenge, survived a tug from behind by McCarty and then sent a shot off the Nashville midfielder that beat Joe Willis over the top to make it 1-0.

“We came out today with the with the intention to run and to really press them high and try to pin them back,” Angulo said through a club interpreter. “And so I just kind of pressed into that area in between the center backs and the holding midfielders that I really like to get in between and forced them to kind of make a bad pass. And thankfully I was able to take the ball off their foot and find myself into a nice spot in their box, and I just figured, ‘Have a hit and see where it goes,’ and thankfully it went in the back of the net.”

“Opening the (scoring) are obviously something we’ll desire, especially when you’re going away,” Pareja said. “We were waiting on reactions from Nashville and surely they were going to give us spaces in the back. We could have been probably more lethal there. But opening the game at that time, early in the game, was very important for us.”

Nashville nearly pulled the goal back in the eighth minute. A bouncing ball kept eluding Orlando’s control and it ended up on Sam Surridge’s foot. The forward turned and fired just wide of the left post. A minute later, there was a lengthy delay for Walker Zimmerman to get treated as he hit his mouth on the back of McGuire’s head and was bleeding. The defender was able to continue.

Alex Muyl fouled Gallese with heavy contact in the box after Thorhallsson’s wayward clearance attempt popped up in the air. Gallese needed treatment, but he too continued.

The game got extremely chippy in the middle stages of the first half. Nashville’s Surridge and Anibal Godoy were booked for challenges on Jansson and Araujo, respectively. Cartagena was booked moments after Godoy, and Pereyra picked one up minutes later, although his was easily the harshest of the four.

The Lions had a penalty appeal in the 30th minute when the ball came off Lukas MacNaughton’s arm, but it was his supporting arm underneath him and no penalty was given as a result.

Shaq Moore headed wide in the 34th minute after sneaking in behind an inattentive Torres at the back post.

The Lions had a golden opportunity to double their lead in the 37th minute when McGuire played Torres down the right. The Designated Player opted not to shoot with his right foot — as we’ve become accustomed to. He tried to clear his left for a shot but it was closed down, so he laid it off for Angulo. The speedy winger fired but his shot was saved by Willis.

A minute later, Mukhtar scored but the flag came up immediately. The forward was offside when Daniel Lovitz sent in the initial shot. The offside call saved Gallese, who had uncharacteristically spilled a fairly routine-looking ball in.

Nashville started creating some danger with crosses down the first half stretch run. Mukhtar headed just wide in the 41st minute off one such cross.

Pereyra went for the far right corner from the left in the third of nine minutes of first-half stoppage time but couldn’t curl it on frame.

Nashville sent a handful of crosses into Orlando’s area and the Lions did just enough to clear.

The last opportunity fell to Torres in the eighth minute of stoppage time but he missed his shot badly off target.

Orlando held halftime advantages in possesson (58.2%-41.8%), shots (7-6), shots on goal (2-1), and corners (2-0). Nashville passed more accurately (79.8%-75.9%).

Torres had a chance to double the lead just moments after the restart. He fired a shot with his right foot but hit it right at Willis.

A minute later, it was Nashville getting an early chance. Muyl got to a cross and headed it on frame but Gallese was able to range over and grab it.

Cartagena tried a volley shot in the 54th minute but his swerving effort stayed just over the bar.

The back-and-forth play continued moments later as Araujo did well to cover defensively, successfully winning a vital challenge in his own penalty area against Mukhtar and earning a foul on the Nashville Designated Player.

Angulo had a good look at a brace in the 61st minute when he cut inside from the left onto his right foot. However, he fired his shot right at Willis.

Again the next chance fell for Nashville. MacNaughton got forward into the attack and appeared to foul Pereyra but Allen Chapman allowed play to continue. MacNaughton picked up the loose ball and fired from outside the box. Gallese got over to make a solid save to preserve the lead. Gallese then made a good stop to deny a Jacob Shaffelburg effort in the 69th minute.

Second-half sub Martin Ojeda had a hit from outside the box in the 71st and got all of it, but Willis fought it off and the defense arrived to clear it before a teammate could pick up the loose change. Junior Urso tried his luck three minutes later but his effort was nowhere near goal.

Urso had a chance to put the game to bed in the 79th minute when he slipped in past the defense. Left 1-v-1 against Willis, he started his shot but a sliding Sean Davis got a piece of it and it deflected over the goal.

Nashville’s last gasp was a header wide from Zimmerman in the 90th minute. Neither team got a scoring chance in the four-plus minutes of injury time and the Lions did well to keep winning fouls and throws to see out most of that time. The whistle finally blew to end the series.

Orlando finished the match with the advantage in shots (16-10), shots on target (5-4), and corners (5-0). Nashville turned around the possession to finish with more of the ball (53.3%-46.7%) and passed more accurately (79.7%-78.8%).

“It’s important to know how to play these kind of games where they’re very tight, very intense,” Pareja said. “There is a lot of emotions during the game. The way we handled it today was good. Learning how to play these kinds of games made us a better team. And the boys have shown that we’re ready, but this doesn’t stop here. We’ve got to keep getting better. We have to prepare ourselves for the next one and keep learning from those moments, those games.”

[Editor’s note: the following paragraph has been edited from the original to correct an error created by Major League Soccer’s complete lack of logic.]

The game scheduled for Sunday is off. There’s no need for it. The Lions will await their next playoff opponent as the first round continues to play out. Because MLS makes zero sense whatsoever, Orlando will get the Columbus/Atlanta winner and FC Cincinnati will get either the No. 4 or No. 5 seed, even if No. 6 seed Atlanta advances.

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Orlando City

2024 Orlando City Season in Review: Jack Lynn

The young striker played a career high in minutes for Orlando City and played in all four
competitions.

Published

10 hours ago

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December 11, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Jack Lynn joined Orlando City through the 2022 MLS SuperDraft, when he was selected in the first round by the Lions with the No. 18 overall pick out of Notre Dame. He primarily played with OCB during the 2022 and 2023 seasons, scoring 15 goals in 2022 and 19 in 2023 while earning the MLS NEXT Pro MVP for that season. He was a depth player for most of the 2024 season with Orlando City, but late in the season he returned to playing more frequently with OCB, and quickly found his goal-scoring form once again with the Young Lions.

Let’s take a look back at Lynn’s 2024 season.

Statistical Breakdown

After two seasons of double-digit goal scoring in MLS NEXT Pro, the young forward looked to be a leading candidate to serve as the backup to Duncan McGuire, and in the opening few months he was frequently in the game day squad. However, the signing of Luis Muriel meant that he often was an unused substitute as the Lions used McGuire and Muriel as their strikers. Ramiro Enrique then returned from a prolonged absence and took over the starting spot with McGuire as the primary sub off the bench, and in the second half of the season, Lynn did not dress for Orlando City as frequently. He got some starts for OCB and scored four goals and had one assist in his eight games played with the Young Lions.

For Orlando City, Lynn appeared primarily in MLS regular-season games, making 11 appearances with two starts, playing 253 minutes. He took six shots, putting three on target and scoring two goals. He passed at a 66.7% completion percentage but did not have any key passes or assists. On the defensive side deuces were wild, as he won two tackles, made two blocks and had two clearances. He committed five fouls, drew two on the opposition, and was not booked.

Lynn also made one appearance late in the Lions’ final MLS playoff match, coming in for two minutes and recording just one touch of the ball, with no shots, passes attempted or defensive actions, and he did not receive a booking.

During Concacaf Champions Cup play, the Notre Dame product came off the bench in both games against Cavalry FC, playing 21 total minutes without a goal contribution, recording one shot that was off target, completing all three of his passes, and suffering one foul. He did not contribute any defensive actions or get booked.

Lynn participated in one Leagues Cup match, subbing in against CF Montréal. He played 12 minutes and did not have a goal contribution or take any shots, but he completed both of his passes, with one being a key pass. On the defensive side, he made two recoveries and committed one foul, but he wasn’t booked.

Best Game

The 24-year-old striker earned his first-ever starting nod for Orlando City on March 23 against Austin FC, and in the 42nd minute, he scored his first MLS goal. He timed his run perfectly to get wide open at the back post and finished with a powerful header off a cross from Dagur Dan Thórhallsson to give the Lions a 1-0 lead.

Lynn went on to play 73 minutes, completing 10 of his 13 passes (76.9%) and adding one additional off-target shot. He contributed a tackle and a clearance on defense. Orlando City won the game 2-0, making Lynn’s goal in the opening half the game-winner. Head Coach Óscar Pareja said he was pleased with Lynn’s performance, praising him in the post-game press conference:

“(Jack) is a player who patiently has been waiting (for) his opportunity,” Pareja said. “I could say that maybe he should have more games at this point with the way he has performed in the second group and what he has achieved as an individual. He’s very lethal and he has goals. Today, he opened the game. Jack’s discipline and constant effort has paid off and we’re happy.”

2024 Final Grade

With only 288 minutes on the field across all competitions in 2024, Lynn did not play enough minutes to get a grade for the season, receiving an incomplete from The Mane Land staff. Still, he showed that he was capable of contributing when called upon to play first-team minutes.

2025 Outlook

After watching how prolific Lynn was in MLS NEXT Pro in 2023, and then once again this season when he returned to play a few matches with OCB, Lynn has clearly proven that he is above the level of play in that league. In limited minutes at the MLS level, he has shown flashes, but based on the substitution patterns as the season went along, it was clear that he was at best the third option at striker. Orlando City appears to be bringing back both Enrique and McGuire, so while they picked up Lynn’s option for 2025 season, I expect that it will be another season similar to 2024, where he is a depth player who primarily comes in off the bench, if he comes in at all.

I believe that Lynn is an MLS-caliber player, as he is an excellent finisher of the “fox in the box” ilk, but my projection is that 2025 will look similar to 2024 and he will be fighting for minutes off the bench at the MLS level.

Previous Season in Review Articles (Date Posted)

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Lion Links: 12/11/24

Orlando City’s protected players, Orlando Pride roster update, the USMNT is returning to Inter&Co Stadium, and more.

Published

13 hours ago

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December 11, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Mark Thor

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. The season might be over, but there’s still plenty of news to be found. I’m glad that we have all the movies and specials to watch since there are no MLS or NWSL matches. There are quite a few that my family watch each year including Elf, Scrooged, and of course, Die Hard. Let me know your favorites in the comments below. Let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Protected List Released

The addition of San Diego SC to MLS means another expansion draft this off-season. Yesterday, Orlando City released its protected players list. There are a total of 19 players on the list, though seven of those are automatically protected due to either Homegrown or Generation Adidas status. San Diego will be able to pick up to five players from across the league, but only one from any given club. There aren’t many surprises in which players Orlando City chose to protect.

Pride End-of-Season Roster Update

Following a historic season that saw the club win both the NWSL Shield and the 2024 NWSL Cup, the Pride have released their end of season roster update. We already knew that Celia, Carrie Lawrence, and Megan Montefusco retired. Given how the club works its contracts, often re-signing players during the season, there weren’t a lot of surprises. Marta and Evelina Duljan were the two players out of contract, and we now know that Duljan won’t be returning, while the club is negotiating a deal that would keep Marta in Orlando.

USMNT Returning to Inter&Co Stadium

The USMNT is heading back to the City Beautiful, as the team will play Costa Rica Jan. 22 at Inter&Co Stadium. Kickoff for the match will be 7 p.m., allowing fans in the Orlando area to make it after work. It will be the second match in Florida, as the Americans will take on Venezuela Jan. 18 at Chase Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale. Pre-sale tickets went on sale Tuesday, and ticket sales for the general public start Friday.

USWNT vs. Brazil

If you were hoping for a rematch of the 2024 Women’s World Cup final between the USWNT and the Brazilian Women’s National Team, you are in luck. The two teams will square off on April 5 and April 8, 2025 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles and at PayPal Park in San Jose, respectively. The match at SoFi Stadium will be the first soccer match played in the venue, which will also host matches for the 2026 World Cup.

Free Kicks

  • It’s no surprise to those of us who work with the Pride regularly that Jackie Maynard, Lucas Medeiros, and the rest of Orlando’s comms staff was named the first-ever NWSL Communications Team of the Year winner. We congratulate Jackie and her team and look forward to continuing to work with a great group of professionals.
  • Take a trip down memory lane with this compilation of Facundo Torres’ goals from 2024.
  • Today, FIFA will award the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia. The circumstances leading up to this “decision” are exactly as forthright, transparent, and without any hint of shenanigans as one expects from FIFA. Give me a minute, my eyes got stuck in the back of my head because of how hard I rolled them.
  • In related news, Norway plans to protest the decision to award the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia and will abstain on the basis that not enough has been done to protect human rights at the event.
  • Orlando City wasn’t the only team to drop its list of protected rosters. Here are the lists for every MLS club.
  • Plenty of teams were in action in the UEFA Champions League Tuesday. Liverpool won its sixth consecutive first round match 1-0 over Girona, and Mbappe scored and got injured in Real Madrid’s 3-2 victory over Atalanta.

That will do it for today. Keep checking in for our Season in Review pieces for both Orlando City and the Orlando Pride. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links: 12/10/24

Facundo Torres linked with move to Palmeiras, Pride players in FIFPRO Women’s World 11, Amanda Allen suffers injury, and more.

Published

2 days ago

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December 10, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Happy Tuesday, everyone. I hope your week is getting off to a good start and that you’re on top of any Christmas shopping that you still need to do, because I’m just now realizing that I’ve done exactly zero of mine. Alas, the only way out is through. As usual, we have a lot to talk through this morning, so let’s get into the links.

Facundo Torres Linked With Palmeiras

Tom Bogert reported on Monday evening that Orlando City has agreed to a deal with Brazilian club Palmeiras for the transfer of Facundo Torres. While Bogert says the two clubs have reached an agreement, the transfer is still pending as Torres and Palmeiras still need to agree on personal terms. While no price tag was given, the fee would reportedly eclipse the $9.5 million fee that West Bromwich Albion paid for Daryl Dike, which is OCSC’s current outbound transfer record. Torres is the club’s record signing, as he joined from Penarol for roughly $7.5 million, and has been central to the team’s success ever since. We will bring you more from this story as it develops.

Familiar Faces in FIFPRO Women’s World 11

FIFA announced the 2024 FIFPRO Women’s World 11 on Monday and there are two familiar faces in the lineup, as Marta and Barbra Banda were named to the team. This is the third time in Marta’s career that she has been chosen for the award, which is the only global player award decided exclusively by the players themselves. Banda is included in the team for the first time, with this also being the very first time that an African player has made the team. Both players had incredible seasons for the Orlando Pride and were instrumental in the team winning its first two pieces of silverware. Congratulations to both for all their hard work and justified recognition!

Amanda Allen Suffers Injury

The Orlando Pride announced on Monday that forward Amanda Allen has suffered a torn labrum in her right shoulder and will undergo surgery to repair it. As a result, Allen’s loan with USL Super League team Lexington Sporting Club has been terminated, and she has been placed on the season-ending injury list. It’s a tough break for Allen, who became the youngest player to debut for the team back during the 2023 season, as she was getting good minutes and experience on loan. We wish her all the best and hope to see her back on the field soon!

Christian Pulisic Injury News

AC Milan announced on Monday that United States Men’s National Team forward Christian Pulisic has torn a muscle in his right calf, and will spend time on the sideline. The winger went off injured during the team’s game on Friday, and Milan has said that he could be on the shelf until January. While the USMNT won’t play a competitive game until March’s Concacaf Nations League semifinals, the timing is a tough blow for Pulisic, who has had an excellent start to the season with eight goal contributions in Serie A and three UEFA Champions League goals. Here’s hoping that he makes a speedy recovery.

Americans in Midweek Action

There are a number of Americans who will take part in games this week, so make sure you get everything marked down on your calendar. Things get started later today as Auston Trusty, Cameron Carter-Vickers, and Celtic take on Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League, while Ricardo Pepi, Richy Ledezma, Malik Tillman, and PSV Eindhoven face Brest in the same competition. Tomorrow has Yunus Musah and AC Milan hosting Crvena Zvezda in the Champions League, while Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, and Juventus welcome Manchester City to Allianz Stadium. Things then finish up on Friday as Mark McKenzie and Toulouse host St-Etienne in Ligue 1 play.

MLS Transfer Happenings

We have a lot of MLS transfer moves and roster changes to cover this morning. Cruzeiro has declined the purchase option on FC Cincinnati winger Alvaro Barreal, meaning he has returned to the club following the conclusion of his loan. Expansion side San Diego FC has acquired Tomas Angel and a second-round pick in the 2025 MLS SuperDraft from LAFC in exchange for $200,000 in 2025 General Allocation Money (GAM). Austin FC also bought out Gyasi Zardes’ contract, making the 10th-highest scorer in MLS history a free agent.

The Colorado Rapids signed center backs Ian Murphy and Chidozie Awaziem from FC Cincinnati in exchange for $1 million in General Allocation Money. Tom Bogert is also reporting that Bournemouth is finalizing a deal to sign American center back Matai Akinmboni from D.C. United in a deal worth up to $2.5 million. Finally, in the wildest piece of MLS transfer news I’ve seen in awhile, I simply present the following tweet.

Free Kicks

That’s all I have for this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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