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Orlando City vs. Nashville SC: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions rate in Orlando City’s 1-0 win over Nashville SC up in the Music City?

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2 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City is on to the Eastern Conference semifinals! Another 1-0 win over Nashville SC was enough to get the job done, as Ivan Angulo scored early and the Lions controlled the game the rest of the way. The game won’t win any awards for being high octane, but no one will be complaining about a professional performance against a very difficult team. What follows are my player ratings for OCSC’s Game 2 win up in Tennessee.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 6.5 — It was a relatively calm night for El Pulpo, as he recorded his third shutout against Nashville in his last three tries. He made four saves, controlled his box well, and drew a couple of fouls that helped slow the game down, preventing Nashville from getting into a good rhythm. He completed nine of his 27 long balls, and while his 50% overall passing accuracy wasn’t great, for much of the game he was just lumping the ball down the field to help the defense clear its lines.

D, Rafael Santos, 5.5 — The left back didn’t find himself as involved offensively as he’s been at times this year, but that’s not altogether surprising, given that the Lions took an early lead and didn’t necessarily need to bomb forward. Still, he completed the one dribble that he attempted, although his 65% passing accuracy left a lot to be desired, and then some. Defensively, he chipped in a whopping six clearances, which were the second most on the team, and did a very good job of containing Fafa Picault down the left hand side. He picked up a yellow card which was a blemish on his night, but it was a solid outing overall.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 7.5 (MotM) — Rodrigo was immense in this game, as he has been for much of the year when deputizing for Antonio Carlos. His 41% passing accuracy was downright ugly but that just wasn’t what he was on the field to do. He is there to be a rock defensively and that’s exactly what happened. He had a tackle, an interception, won a team-high five aerials, and had an absurd 11 clearances. He seemed to find his way to every ball and even won two fouls, although he also picked up a yellow card, which was basically the only thing he did wrong all night. He also got under several Nashville players’ skin, making them think about him rather than the game.

D, Robin Jansson, 6.5 — Jansson was his typically steady self during this one. He had one shaky moment in the first half when he and Gallese had a mixup that resulted in Hany Mukhtar putting the ball in the back of the net, but the offside flag saved any potential blushes. He won two aerial duels, had three clearances, and drew two fouls while passing with 78% accuracy and connecting on four long balls. He and the rest of the defense will be very satisfied with yet another clean sheet.

D, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, 6 — Thorhallsson found himself getting forward a little more than Santos on the other side of the back line. He completed a dribble, put one shot on target that was blocked, and had an 83% passing rate. He did the work defensively too, as he won two aerial duels, made one tackle, and had two clearances. He did commit two fouls, but kept his nose clean and avoided picking up any bookings for them.

MF, Wilder Cartagena, 6.5 — Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but Cartagena had a very good game. He was a constant and reliably tough presence in the midfield, something that we’ve long since become accustomed to seeing. The stats back that up, as he won an aerial duel, had a team-high six tackles, one clearance, and one interception. He passed with 78% accuracy, and took one shot from the top of the box on the volley, which he missed, but not by a lot. He also committed two fouls and picked up a yellow card. Still, it was a night that he should be plenty proud of.

MF, Cesar Araujo, 7 — Araujo and Cartagena are just plain formidable. As good of a game as Cartagena had, Araujo’s may have been a touch above. He also played a great defensive game with four tackles, a clearance, a block, and two won aerial duels. He carried more of a threat going forward than we’re often used to seeing, and that’s what gets him a slightly higher rating. Cesar passed the ball with 90% accuracy, and played two key passes and four successful long balls on four attempts. He also drew three fouls while not committing any of his own, something that was very good to see from a player who’s struggled with bookings at times.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 7.5 — Aside from the obvious point of scoring a goal, Angulo had a very good game. He took four shots, putting three on target and having the remaining one blocked, and it took a strong save from Joe Willis to deny him a brace in the first half. Aside from that, he passed with 91% accuracy, provided two key passes and completed a dribble when it came to attacking contributions. He also popped up on defense several times, and had an interception and a tackle.

MF, Mauricio Pereyra, 6 — The captain was involved in a lot of Orlando’s play during the time that he was on the field. He did a particularly good job of finding the spaces of the Nashville defense and getting onto the ball to orchestrate things in the attacking half. He took two shots, one of which was blocked and the other off target. He passed the ball with 86% accuracy, contributed two key passes, and completed a successful dribble. He wasn’t quite able to find the pass to fully break open the home side, but that’s been the case for more than one player against Nashville over the years. If there was a knock on his evening it was that he was caught from behind in possession a couple of times when he had plenty of time and space to release the ball to an open teammate.

MF, Facundo Torres, 6 — Facu didn’t have his best game in an Orlando shirt, but it wasn’t a horrible night from him. The good things include 90% passing accuracy, a completed cross, a completed long ball (on two attempts), four key passes, and three shots. He only put one of those three on target though, and his reluctance to use his right foot remains a sticky wicket in his game offensively — although he did take one of his shots with his right. Still, had Angulo’s finishing been better, he likely would have picked up an assist and he still found ways to be involved when he wasn’t at his best.

F, Duncan McGuire, 6 — Like Facu, Duncan didn’t have his most potent offensive game. He only took one shot on the night and had it blocked, and also committed one foul. That being said, he made two tackles, drew two fouls, and played three key passes, while passing with 83% accuracy and winning one aerial duel. He hasn’t been as offensively involved as he’s capable of in the playoffs to this point, but that just means that he’s due for a big game.

Substitutes

MF, Junior Urso (68’), 6 — Urso entered the fray to replace Angulo with just over 20 minutes left in the game. He didn’t record any defensive stats but was pretty active on offense during his short time on the field. He passed with 95% accuracy, took two shots, both of which were off target, and completed a pair of dribbles. One of those dribbles was a fantastic run through the Nashville defense, and only a last-gasp challenge by Sean Davis prevented what almost certainly would have been a goal for The Bear. Overall, it was a nice body of work in a brief appearance.

MF, Martin Ojeda (68’), 6 — Ojeda subbed on for Mauricio Pereyra and helped to close the game out while still giving Orlando some threat going forward. He took two shots, one of which was a positively wicked drive from distance that Joe Willis was able to fight off, but he didn’t record any other stats besides his 84% passing accuracy.

D, Kyle Smith (72′), 6 — Smith is so often Mr. Reliable for this team, and that’s what he was in a brief substitute appearance. He passed at an 80% clip and chipped in with one tackle, but a lot of the work that he did to help close the game down and run out the clock won’t show up on the box score, and he didn’t put a foot wrong.

D, Antonio Carlos (80′), N/A — Carlos was brought on with 10 minutes left to play as Oscar Pareja moved to a back five to shut up shop and secure the result. He won two aerial duels but didn’t record any other stats as he helped provide a steady presence at the back to see out the game. His presence also allowed Schlegel to range out and provide help in the defensive midfield or out wide to the left, preventing Nashville from creating much in the dying minutes.

F, Ramiro Enrique (80′), N/A — Ramiro came on for Duncan McGuire to provide a speedy release valve up front as the Lions went more defensive to end the game. He connected on two of his three passes for 66% accuracy, provided a key pass, won an aerial duel, and drew a foul while committing one of his own.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in this game. It might not have been the flashiest win either statistically or on the scoreboard, but it was a game that Orlando was in pretty comfortable control of from start to finish. How did you see the performances in this one? Be sure to let us know in the comments below and to vote for your Man of the Match. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 6/23/25

Pride fall to Racing Louisville, Seb Hines and Giles Barnes share insight on path to success in Orlando, USMNT defeats Haiti, and more.

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7 hours ago

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June 23, 2025

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been busy working and catching up with friends over the past week. Before we get started, let’s wish a belated happy birthday to Orlando Pride Vice President of Soccer Operations and Sporting Director Haley Carter, who turned 41 on Saturday. The Pride was the lone team in action over the weekend, while the Lions and OCB were off. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Pride Fall at Racing Louisville

The Orlando Pride fell to Racing Louisville 2-0 Friday at Lynn Family Stadium. Arin Wright scored the opening goal in the first half, and former Pride midfielder Taylor Flint converted a penalty kick for Racing Louisville. The Pride struggled offensively and failed to capitalize on their scoring chances. Orlando’s struggles in Louisville continue, as the club is winless in five matches at Lynn Family Stadium. The Pride will be on a long break, and their next match will be Aug. 3, taking on the Utah Royals at Inter&Co Stadium.

Seb Hines, Giles Barnes Share Insight on Path to Success in Orlando

Orlando Pride Head Coach Seb Hines and Assistant Coach Giles Barnes were featured in an interview in The Guardian. Both Hines and Barnes shared insight into their longtime friendship, which began with playing in English youth international camps, their different paths to playing in Major League Soccer, and how they became involved in coaching. Hines discussed his time as interim manager of the Pride in 2022 and how he brought in Barnes to help change the club’s culture. Hines and Barnes helped change the perception of the club and led the Pride to winning both the NWSL Shield and NWSL Championship last season.

USMNT Defeats Haiti to Win Group D in Gold Cup

The U.S. Men’s National Team defeated Haiti 2-1 Sunday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, in their final match in the group stage of the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup. The USMNT finished atop its group with three wins and nine points. Orlando City defender Alex Freeman made his third consecutive start and played 90 minutes.

Malik Tillman scored the opening goal 10 minutes into the match to give the USMNT the early lead. Haiti tied the match not long after Tillman’s goal. In the second half, Patrick Agyemang pulled the USMNT back in front. The USMNT advances to the quarterfinals as the group winner and will play its next match Sunday against the Group A runner-up which was the late game Sunday night and had yet to conclude as of this writing.

Club World Cup Weekend Recap

Another weekend of matches from the FIFA Club World Cup is in the books. On Friday, Benfica crushed Auckland City FC 6-0, while Flamengo beat Chelsea 3-1. LAFC was eliminated from advancing to the knockout round after a 1-0 defeat to ES Tunis. Bayern Munich edged Boca Juniors 2-1. On Saturday, Borussia Dortmund defeated Mamelodi Sundowns 4-3. Inter Milan needed a late stoppage-time winning goal from Valentin Carboni to edge Urawa Red Diamonds 2-1. Fluminense beat Ulsan HD 4-2, and River Plate and Monterrey ended in a scoreless draw. On Sunday, Juventus cruised to a 4-1 win over Wydad Casablanca. Xabi Alonso secured his first win as manager of Real Madrid with a 3-1 victory against Pachuca. Red Bull Salzburg and Al-Hilal played to a scoreless draw, with Manchester City playing Al-Ain in the late match Sunday. Today’s matches feature Atletico Madrid facing Botafogo, the Seattle Sounders hosting Paris Saint-Germain, FC Porto vs. Al Ahly, and Inter Miami taking on Palmeiras.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando Pride midfielder Ally Lemos and forward Simone Jackson have been called-up to the U-23 U.S. Women’s National Team. The U-23 camp will be led by Orlando Pride Assistant Coach Yolanda Thomas.

USL Championship side San Antonio FC has signed former Orlando City defender Abdi Salim to a 25-day contract.

San Diego Wave winger Maria Sanchez has reportedly reach an agreement to return to her former club, Tigres of Liga MX Femenil, on a four-year contract.

Paul Pogba is reportedly set to return to playing soccer and has signed a two-year contract with Ligue 1 side AS Monaco.

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

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Opinion

Orlando City Has Been Better than Expected Halfway Through the Season

While there was plenty to worry about at the start of the season, Orlando has had a good first half of 2025.

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3 days ago

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June 20, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

With 18 matches in the books, we’ve moved just past the halfway point of the 2025 Major League Soccer season, and based off my feelings before Orlando City played its opening game of the season, the Lions have performed above expectations so far. There were plenty of valid reasons to be concerned heading into the year. Orlando had sold its all-time leading goal scorer, and there were questions about whether he’d been adequately replaced. There were worries about depth at multiple positions, and the defense was coming off an uncharacteristically poor year. Here we are though, with the Lions sitting fifth in the Eastern Conference, just three points out of second place and seven points out of first. So how did we get to this point?

For one thing, Marco Pasalic has been much better than I (and I think a lot of other people) expected him to be. The Croatian has six goals and four assists across 18 matches, and is second on the team in both categories. He scored 10 goals in 49 appearances in the Croatian first division before coming to Orlando and was extremely one-footed, which was enough evidence to sow real doubt about whether he could adequately replace the impact of Facundo Torres.

So far, it’s mostly been so good. His direct style of play is a good complement to the styles of Martin Ojeda and Luis Muriel, and he’s largely hit the ground running in a league that can be difficult to adapt to. It hasn’t been perfect, as he’s still very one-footed, and can sometimes disappear if he’s stringently man marked, but on the whole there’s been much more good than bad.

Speaking of Ojeda and Muriel, they’ve also had strong years. Ojeda in particular has continued his great second half of the 2024 season and has nine goals and five assists in 18 games to show for it. He looks fast, confident, and decisive and is a far cry from the player who struggled frequently during his first year as a Lion. Muriel has cooled off a little after a scorching start to 2025, but he still has six goals and three assists in 18 matches. He looks vastly improved from last year, when he looked a little off the pace of play and quickly lost the starting striker role. He still has a tendency to not be as selfish as he needs to be in front of goal, but he’s been much better than 2024.

I mentioned depth being a big concern, and not just at one position. At the beginning of the season Orlando City was, and arguably still is, thin at striker, center back, defensive midfield, and fullback. Duncan McGuire was injured to start the year and is now injured again, leaving Orlando with two true strikers in Muriel and Ramiro Enrique. There was no true backup left back, only one reliable backup center back, and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson starting at right back meant that defensive midfield depth consisted of rookie Joran Gerbet and the Swiss army knife that is Kyle Smith.

Things have mostly worked out though. David Brekalo has supplanted Rafael Santos, meaning the Brazilian is now a proven backup option at the position, and Smith has filled in there as well. That means that in games in which Rodrigo Schlegel or Robin Jansson are unavailable, Brekalo fills in at center back, Santos starts at left back, and Smith is the backup for both positions, so it isn’t a flawless system. Gerbet has been playing better and better and got some valuable minutes when Eduard Atuesta and Cesar Araujo were unavailable. His emergence has been a crucial piece of the puzzle this year. So too has the rise of Alex Freeman, as his locking down the right back role has allowed Thorhallsson to fill in at defensive midfield, attacking midfield, and right back. The situation isn’t perfect, as a couple untimely injuries to the wrong guys would leave the Lions looking pretty threadbare, but so far it’s just about worked.

Another big concern was the defense. The Lions conceded 50 goals in the regular season last year, which was tied for the second-most of any Eastern Conference playoff team and fourth-most of any playoff team. With no defensive signings and the aforementioned depth concerns, there were plenty of reasons to worry about Orlando’s ability to keep the ball out of the back of the net.

Things have looked much better in 2025, though. The 22 goals OCSC has conceded are the fifth-fewest in the league, and Pedro Gallese’s eight clean sheets are tied for most in the league. Aside from a few egregious defensive performances against the Philadelphia Union, Atlanta United, and the Chicago Fire, things have mostly been tidy at the back, and when they haven’t been, El Pulpo has been around to pick up the slack. Again, things haven’t been perfect, as there have been moments where individual and collective errors have hurt the team, but it’s been better.

I thought the Lions would struggle this year. Going into the start of the season, we were talking about a team that lost Torres, arguably didn’t do enough to strengthen the team across the board, was facing depth issues, and was dealing with a leaky defense — all while pretty much every other contender in the East got stronger on paper. Instead, OCSC tied a club-best unbeaten streak and is just three points out of second place.

That being said, the East is so tight that Orlando is only five points above the playoff line, and injuries to the wrong guys could easily topple the fragile ecosystem that is the depth chart, but so far things are going better than I thought they would be. There are still a lot of matches to play, but this isn’t a bad position to be in at the halfway mark.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 6/20/25

Orlando Pride take on Racing Louisville FC tonight, Orlando Pride players called up by Zambia, USMNT beats Saudi Arabia, and more.

Published

3 days ago

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June 20, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Happy Friday! June continues to fly by as we enjoy the buffet of soccer here in the U.S. this month. I’ll be spending most of the weekend working, but I am hoping to get some reading done after being gifted some books for my birthday. But enough about me, let’s jump right into today’s links!

Orlando Pride Face Racing Louisville Tonight

The Orlando Pride are on the road tonight for a match against Racing Louisville FC at 8 p.m. in the final game before a league break until August. Going into the break with four straight wins would be nice for the Pride, but they’ve struggled at Lynn Family Stadium over the years. Louisville enters this match following a 4-2 loss to the league-leading Kansas City Current and has scored eight goals over the past three games. Orlando’s defense has been phenomenal this year, conceding just eight goals this season and only one during this win streak. Midfielder Cori Dyke spoke on how the team is finding its groove and shutting out opponents.

Zambia Calls Up Orlando Pride Trio

Barbra Banda, Grace Chanda, and Prisca Chilufya were all called up for Zambia’s CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations roster ahead of this summer’s tournament. Banda has eight goals this season with the Pride and had four goals at last year’s Olympics, including a hat trick against Australia. The Copper Queens claimed third place in the 2022 edition of this tournament, and they’ll need to be at their best to win this summer against tough opponents like South Africa and Nigeria. Zambia’s tournament campaign will kick off on July 5 against the host nation, Morocco.

USMNT Beats Saudi Arabia to Qualify for Quarterfinals

The United States Men’s National Team won 1-0 against Saudi Arabia to clinch a spot in the quarterfinals of this year’s Concacaf Gold Cup. After a scoreless first half, the Yanks broke through in the 63rd minute thanks to a free kick. Sebastian Berhalter served the ball on a silver platter to Chris Richards, who buried it for the crucial goal. The defense did well to secure its second shutout of the tournament, with Orlando City’s Alex Freeman starting at right back yet again. The USMNT will play Haiti on Sunday and should be able to win the group for a smoother path in the knockout stage.

FIFA Club World Cup Roundup

An MLS club finally won a game during this year’s FIFA Club World Cup, with Inter Miami beating Porto 2-1 in Atlanta. Lionel Messi scored the winner from a free kick to complete the comeback after conceding an early goal. The Seattle Sounders had a rougher day, falling 3-1 to Atletico Madrid, with Pablo Barrios scoring a brace. Former Lion Facundo Torres started for Palmeiras in the Brazilian club’s 2-0 win over Egypt’s Al Ahly.

Today’s action features more soccer at Inter&Co Stadium, with Benfica and Auckland City squaring off in the City Beautiful. Our Michael Citro will be on hand to report on it. Elsewhere in the U.S., Chelsea will take on Flamengo, LAFC will face ES Tunis, and Bayern Munich will play Boca Juniors.

Free Kicks

  • Canada Head Coach Jesse Marsch, who is already serving a suspension for misconduct during the Nations League, is under investigation by Concacaf for incidents during this Gold Cup. Reports detail that Marsch disregarded regulations and used offensive language toward match officials.
  • Kylian Mbappe was discharged from the hospital after suffering from a case of gastroenteritis. It’s unclear if or when he’ll play for Real Madrid during the Club World Cup.
  • Carlos Cuesta was hired as Parma’s next head coach after five years with Arsenal as an assistant coach. The 29-year-old becomes the second-youngest coach in Serie A history.
  • Manchester City was fined over $1 million by the English Premier League for repeated delays regarding kickoff times.

That’s all I have for you all today. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!

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