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TML Staff Roundtable: 2023 Orlando City Preseason Thoughts

The staff weighs in on the season to come in advance of Oscar Pareja’s fourth season in charge of the Lions.

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1 year ago

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As we head into the 2023 MLS season this weekend, it’s time to once again get a feel for the hopes and expectations for the campaign that awaits. Orlando City enters the season with more questions on the back end than the front this season after last year’s team entered the season with the exact opposite outlook.

I reached out to The Mane Land staff to find out what everyone is thinking ahead of the Lions’ eighth season in Major League Soccer. Big thanks to the entire staff for submitting their thoughts.

1. What part of Orlando City gives you the most confidence entering the new season?

Nic Josey: Bringing back Pedro Gallese is what gives me the most confidence entering the start of the season for Orlando City. Having El Pulpo in net means that Orlando will always have a chance to wind up with a result at the end of the day.

Ben Miller: Easy one here, it has to be the attack. While the Lions only got one goal on Saturday against the Revolution, the first half was full of free flowing soccer that resulted in a number of chances, and if not for some stellar saves from Djorjde Petrovic, Orlando surely would have had more than one. This team is not short of attacking firepower, and it should make for some entertaining games.

David Rohe: For the first time in a long time, the attack. With the addition of Martin Ojeda, Gaston Gonzalez being healthy, and Ercan Kara and Facundo Torres having a season under their belts, I think the Lions should increase their goal total significantly in 2023.

Sean Rollins: I think the Orlando City attack will improve with the addition of Ojeda. Additionally, Jack Lynn and Duncan McGuire have both looked good during the preseason, so I expect more goals this year.

Ryan Smith: I’m confident in the direction ownership and Luiz Muzzi have taken the club. I believe in the player investments and acquisitions made this past off-season.

Marcus Mitchell: Goalkeeping. I have plenty of confidence in Pedro Gallese and the Peruvian shouldn’t miss too much time for international duty.

Joshua Taylor: I would have to say the Lions did a great job adding depth to their roster during the off-season, especially at midfield. Hopefully, Gonzalez can stay healthy this time, and we get to see what he can do in purple.

My Take: I’m with Nic and Marcus. I expect Gallese will do what he always does, while I’m concerned with new faces at both fullback positions and physical breakdowns that the center backs have had both last year and in preseason (in Antonio Carlos’ case) without adding any veteran depth behind them. Up front and in the midfield, the club has done well on paper, but until those new guys start performing in games that matter, it’s a question mark, especially at forward, where everyone behind Kara is young. Gallese is the known quantity.

2. What is your biggest concern with Orlando City entering 2023?

Joshua: The area I would be most concerned about is the back line. Robin Jansson and Carlos both had their fair share of injuries to deal with last season. If that trend continues this year, the Lions will have to rely on some young defenders with little experience.

Nic: My biggest concern is center back depth and the lack of addressing it during the off-season. When healthy, Jansson and Carlos make a top duo in MLS but last year showed how vulnerable the back line can be if either or both miss an extended period of time.

Ben: Depth in defense. Carlos and Jansson remain the rocks, and Rodrigo Schlegel is as good a backup as any in the league. Things fall off sharply after him at center back though, and we don’t really know what to expect out of either Luca Petrasso or Rafael Santos at left back. After years of stability in the back line, there are definitely some questions in 2023.

David: I’m most worried about the back line. Yes, Carlos and Jansson are as good a pairing as any in the league, and Schlegel is one of the best backups in the league. But after that, experience falls off a bit. The same can be said for right back. It looks as if Michael Halliday will be the starter, and I’m all for the youngster getting the opportunity. Behind him is Oscar Pareja’s Swiss Army knife, Kyle Smith. The depth simply isn’t where I want it to feel comfortable. 

Sean: The outside backs are my biggest concern about this team because the starters will be new and probably young. They’ll also be asked to take an attacking role, which can leave the center backs vulnerable to a counterattack.

Ryan: My biggest concern is lack of CB depth. Schlegel has proven to be more than capable of stepping up should Jansson or Carlos go down. However, if both go down, I’m not confident in whoever might be Orlando’s No. 4 choice on the depth chart at this point.

Marcus: I’m not overly confident of any of the new fullbacks and the depth at center back is worrying. Orlando can’t afford injuries and frequent suspensions to its center backs during a busy 2023.

My Take: While it would be easy for me to continue to beat the drum about the inexperience behind Kara at striker, the defense is the obvious answer, as evidenced by my colleagues’ responses above. Unproven fullbacks and the continued refusal to add one more veteran center back have the potential to expose the team defensively, but I’m going to extend that out to the central midfield. Araujo is outstanding. However, with Mauricio Pereyra playing deeper last year, the team shipped more goals. The Lions kept only three clean sheets in the back half of the 2022 MLS regular season after notching six in the first half. There were other factors that were partly to blame (injuries on the back line, for example), but Mauri’s aging legs can be an issue in transition defense, especially in the second halves of games and during the grind of the late summer and early fall months.

3. Which new player are you most excited about seeing this year?

Marcus: I’m pretty excited to see what Shak Mohammed can do. He’s young, versatile, and surrounded by creative teammates who can bring out the best in his play.

Joshua: I’m excited to see what Ojeda can do for the Lions this season. Bringing that versatility to the Lions’ offense and playing alongside Torres could be a good one-two-punch combination that can give defenders a headache. If Ojeda can carry that form he had during his time with Godoy Cruz in Argentina, he can fit in well in the attack with Torres and Kara.

Nic: Ojeda is the player I am most excited to see debut this season, hands down!

Ben: Another easy one, it’s Ojeda. Not only was he the big Designated Player signing, but he looked like it on Saturday. Popping up all over the attacking half, and only denied a goal by a superb Petrovic stop, he looks like the real deal and should provide immense attacking firepower. If he lives up to what he showed against the Revs then he’s going to be very difficult to stop.

David: This will probably be the answer for many of my colleagues but it is Ojeda. I think he has the ability to not just score goals and assist goals, but also to be a leader on the field. The potential chaos he and Torres can create with their creativity is something that I think will be a pleasure to watch this season.

Sean: There’s only one answer to this question and it’s Ojeda. The newest DP was exciting to watch against the New England Revolution last Saturday night and his partnership with Torres should be fun.

Ryan: Ojeda! After initial looks against New England in the preseason, he seems to have more pace than I anticipated. He definitely isn’t afraid to rifle off a shot or two when he has a couple yards of space from his defender. I like the thought of seeing more players not afraid to test the keeper from outside of the box instead of trying to wait until they are just a few yards away for a tap-in.

My Take: Ojeda is pretty much unanimous here, and being a Designated Player, that’s to be expected, but with all due respect to Sean’s assertion that there is only one answer, I’m going with Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. He made an impact on the scoresheet in the preseason and brings something a little different to the team. I don’t know how he fits into the lineup or Oscar Pareja’s rotation, but when he’s on the field, I want to see him taking set pieces — something he did well while with his former team in Iceland. Hopefully he’ll have the confidence to take those instead of deferring to Pereyra or Torres. It would be a huge advantage if Orlando City could make opponents fear conceding fouls around the box.

4. Which 2022 newcomer will make the biggest leap in 2023?

Ryan: Ivan Angulo — Just wait until you see him with 10+ goal contributions this season.

Marcus: Excluding Gonzalez, for obvious reasons, I think it has to be Kara. He had a strong first year and could score 15 or more goals this season in an upgraded offense.

Joshua: I think Torres can have another solid year after scoring 13 goals last season across all competitions. Torres has proven to be a dynamic goal scorer, and I can see him becoming the top goal scorer for the club by the end of the season. 

Nic: I think Cesar Araujo is going to make the biggest leap in 2023. I expect him to be named to the MLS All-Star Game in his second year in the league and that we will see him contribute more on the offensive end of the field as well.

Ben: Araujo. He still eats up so much ground and does an immense amount of work in the middle of the field. With a full off-season and a year of MLS experience under his belt, I think he’ll be recognized as one of the very best defensive midfielders in the league by the end of the season. Frankly, I don’t think Orlando will be able to hold onto him for another season if he develops the way I think he will.

David: Kara will make the biggest leap. I know that sounds strange for a guy who scored 11 goals in 2022, but I’m expecting quite a bit more from him this season. One of the biggest issues he had was a lack of service, and I think that will improve thanks to Torres, Ojeda, Gonzalez, and others. I’m looking for the big guy to get closer to 17 or 18 goals this season.

Sean: Many of the returning players on this team had excellent seasons in 2022, so I expect to see the biggest jump by Mikey Halliday. The Homegrown defender hasn’t played much so far, but I expect he’ll get a lot more playing time this season and show what he can do.

My Take: Provided he stays healthy, I think Kara will add to his goal-scoring total in 2023 and serve up a big glass of shut-the-hell-up to some of the national guys who looked at his stats but didn’t take the time to analyze them or to, you know, actually watch the team play. I don’t know if he gets to 17 or 18 — that would be quite welcome — but 15 is a realistic number and I expect his assists to go up too. I think the scoring will be spread out better than it was last year, which is even more important to Orlando’s success than Kara’s goal total rising. If it happens, I think his metrics will be similar to last year but with the totals being higher, he’ll get more respect for the same rate of production, because that’s how these things usually go.

5. What position in the Eastern Conference will the Lions occupy at season’s end?

Sean: I think this team will be better than last year. Replacing Junior Urso with Ojeda is an upgrade offensively and most of the starters are returning. I don’t think they can compete with Philadelphia yet, but I think they can finish in third this year.

Ryan: Second in the East.

Marcus: Fourth. I think this team is going to have a slow start but finish strong as one of the hottest teams in the Eastern Conference.

Joshua: I think the Lions will improve on their seventh-place finish in the Eastern Conference last year and finish in second place in the East this year. 

Nic: I think the Lions will finish the season in the fourth spot, one point clear of fifth place.

Ben: Fourth. Goal scoring shouldn’t be an issue, but I do have some real worries about the defense, especially with the number of games the Lions are going to play this year. There are sufficient bodies to rotate things in the midfield and attack, but unless some young guys step up in a big way on the back line, I think OCSC is going to ship some goals from around August onward, and it’ll mean a fourth-place finish, which would still be respectable.

David: I’m going to be bullish and put Orlando City at third in the East. I think the playoffs are a given, but I’m hoping that once the team truly gels with the newcomers it will be something special. 

My Take: I think this is a team that may take some time to get its chemistry going and could hit some rough patches during fixture congestion because there aren’t enough viable bodies at the back. I think it’s likely the team will end the regular season in fourth or fifth place in the conference but could be peaking just as the postseason arrives.

6. Hit me with your bold prediction for Orlando City’s 2023 season. Make ‘em extra spicy!

David: The Lions win the MLS Cup, and Oscar Pareja wins Coach of the Year. The club accomplishes this because Orlando City goes from scoring 44 goals with a -9 goal differential in 2022 to scoring 65 goals with a +20 goal differential in 2023. 

Sean: My bold prediction is that McGuire will replace Kara as starting striker and lead the team in scoring. Kara is a DP, but will only score with service. I think McGuire is a better fit for the offense because he’ll drop back into the midfield and help create chances.

Ryan: McGuire, Torres, Ojeda, Angulo, and Kara each will have six or more goals in all competitions. Orlando will break its 2016 record of 55 goals scored in MLS regular-season play.

Marcus: The Lions repeat as U.S. Open Cup champions. Head Coach Oscar Pareja is one of the best in the business when it comes to balancing the regular season and tournaments.

Joshua: Winning the U.S. Open Cup last year was nice, but I expect these Lions to be hungry to add another cup to that trophy case. My bold prediction is the Lions will win MLS Cup this year. 

Nic: Orlando City will earn a repeat spot in the U.S. Open Cup final but will lose on the road in penalty kicks during a nail-biting final.

Ben: Angulo scores 10 goals. He got the start on Saturday, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see that be the case for a little bit, while Gonzalez continues to work back from tearing his ACL. Angulo has great control, is devilishly tricky with the ball at his feet, and has speed to boot. While I think he’ll be tasked with a lot of defensive duties to help cover for the roaming Ojeda and Torres, he absolutely has goals in him, and I think he’ll hit double digits after not finding the net at all in his first half-season with the club.

My Take: Some of the above takes are pretty darn spicy. Warn a guy to get his oven mitts, guys! I’m going to go even further and get really nuts. I’m going to make my bold prediction as such: The Lions finally break the Wayne Rooney curse and sweep D.C. United in 2023. If not now, when? Oh, and Orlando somehow gets past Tigres in the Concacaf Champions League before bowing out later to another Mexican side.

If you made it to the end of this roundtable discussion, wow. Good job! We can be a verbose bunch sometimes, but we tried to keep them more concise this year.

Let us know in the comments where you agree and disagree, and give us your own bold predictions.

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Orlando City vs. New York Red Bulls: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions head to Red Bull Arena badly in need of some goals and a win.

Published

5 hours ago

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June 1, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your match thread and preview for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City (4-6-5, 17 points) and the New York Red Bulls (7-3-5, 26 points) at Red Bull Arena (7:30 p.m., MLS Season Pass on Apple TV). This is the second of the two scheduled league matches between the sides this season.

Here’s what you need to know for the match.

History

The Lions are 8-9-3 in 20 league meetings with the Red Bulls in the all-time series (9-9-3 in all competitions), with a record of 4-5-1 in road league matches. The teams met in Orlando on March 30, playing to a 1-1 draw at Inter&Co Stadium. A Kyle Smith foul in the box allowed Lewis Morgan to put the visitors ahead, but a late own goal by Noah Eile resulted in a stalemate. Ivan Angulo and Jack Lynn combined to force the own goal.

Orlando City got the sweep last year and did not concede a goal in the series, winning the last meeting 3-0 at Red Bull Arena. Facundo Torres scored twice — once from the spot — after Angulo opened the scoring for an easy road win. The two sides met in Orlando on opening day of 2023, with Orlando City winning 1-0 on a Torres penalty kick on Feb. 25. Sean Nealis’ handball allowed the Lions to start the season with a victory.

Orlando City won at Red Bull Arena 1-0 on Aug. 13, 2022, thanks to a Torres goal. That allowed the Lions to split the regular-season meetings and take two of three against New York in all competitions in 2022.

The Lions scored five unanswered goals to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 5-1 romp in the U.S. Open Cup semifinals on July 27, 2022 at Exploria Stadium. Cesar Araujo scored his first two professional goals on set pieces, while Mauricio Pereyra, Torres, and Benji Michel also found the net. Lewis Morgan scored New York’s lone goal.

The win in August had allowed the Lions to snap a four-game winless streak (0-3-1) in the regular-season series. The last of those non-wins came on April 24, 2022, when the Lions were walloped 3-0 at home on goals by Luquinhas, Cristian Casseres Jr., and Morgan, and Orlando City failed to get any of its measly three shot attempts on target.

The Red Bulls swept the season series in 2021. The teams met at Exploria Stadium on July 3 of that season with New York taking home a 2-1 win. Casseres opened the scoring just six minutes in, but Chris Mueller pulled the Lions level early in the second half. Fabio’s late goal lifted the visitors. Pereyra’s poor penalty was saved by Carlos Coronel, which cost Orlando City a better result.

The Red Bulls also handed Orlando City its first loss of the 2021 season, a 2-1 affair at Red Bull Arena, on May 29, 2021. Nani was suspended for that match and it showed, as the Lions were sloppy in possession and lacked composure on the ball. New York took the lead on goals by Caden Clark and Casseres, before Silvester van der Water pulled one back late. The Dutchman had a golden opportunity to tie the match moments later but skied his shot well over the bar.

The Lions got a road draw on Oct. 18, 2020, with Brian White equalizing deep in stoppage time in a 1-1 match. Nani had put the Lions ahead in the second half with a penalty kick goal and Orlando clinched its first ever MLS playoff spot despite spilling those late two points. That was the last match in the club’s record 12-match unbeaten streak in MLS play.

Orlando got the better of New York at Exploria Stadium on Oct. 3, 2020, winning 3-1 on goals by Daryl Dike, Junior Urso, and Antonio Carlos. Florian Valot scored for New York.

The Red Bulls won 1-0 at Exploria Stadium on July 21, 2019. White’s goal stood up as Carlos Ascues, Tesho Akindele, and Sacha Kljestan each hit the woodwork in the second half. Prior to that, the Lions eked out a 1-0 win at Red Bull Arena on Kljestan’s goal on March 23, 2019. Before that game, the home team had won each of the previous five home games in the series, splitting a pair of matches during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.

The teams split two meetings in 2018, with the Red Bulls grabbing a 1-0 result in the 2018 season finale to capture the Supporters’ Shield and the Lions pulling off a 4-3 home victory on March 31, 2018. Each team won at home in 2017 to split the two-game series, with New York winning 3-1 on Aug. 12, and Orlando City opening the season series with a 1-0 win on April 9 behind Servando Carrasco’s goal.

The teams met three times in 2016, with New York going 2-0-1. The teams split two games in 2015, with the road team winning both times, including Orlando City’s 5-2 win in New Jersey behind a Cyle Larin hat trick.

Overview

Orlando City is coming off an ugly 1-1 draw at the Chicago Fire on Wednesday and is playing its third game in eight days, with the final two away from home. Much of the league has faced a jam-packed fixture schedule over the last week with an international break coming up, but Orlando is off to a 0-1-1 start in this eight-day stretch, with both of those earlier matches featuring unusual officiating decisions that went the other way. While that’s not an excuse for this run of form — and the Lions are not using it as one — it doesn’t help.

The Lions are 3-2-2 on the road, which is better than their home record, so they will feel confident they can get a result, despite playing against one of the four best teams so far this season in the East. Orlando City will need to find some offense to do that. The club hasn’t scored more than one goal in a game since the 3-2 win at Philadelphia on May 11.

New York is coming off a 3-1 home win over Charlotte Wednesday night, firing three goals home in the second half against a stingy North Carolina-based side. The Red Bulls have yet to taste defeat at home this season, going 4-0-2 at Red Bull Arena. New York’s trend has been positive of late, with a 3-1-0 record in its last four matches and two straight wins at home.

As usual, the Lions will need to take care of the ball and avoid New York’s dangerous transition attack. Morgan leads the Red Bulls in goals (9) and is tied for fourth in all of MLS in that category. He has also chipped in four assists and is clearly the leader of the club’s attack. Emil Forsberg isn’t far behind, with six goals and three assists. Dante Vanzier has a team-high seven assists to go along with a pair of goals. That’s the trio Orlando’s defense will need to try to slow down and the Lions will need to do it without the suspended Robin Jansson (yellow card accumulation).

“When we played (New York earlier this season), I thought it was a good performance and we have already that context,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said ahead of the match. “At this moment, just going one game at a time, preparing our mind and our phases tomorrow to try and get a result in New York, that for us is a priority.”

In addition to Jansson, Orlando City will be without backup fullbacks Mikey Halliday (knee) and Tahir Reid-Brown (thigh). However, Duncan McGuire (shoulder) has been upgraded to questionable. New York will be without Ronald Donkor (hip), Roald Mitchell (knee), Serge Ngoma (knee), and Peter Stroud (ankle), while Kyle Duncan (illness), Cameron Harper (hamstring), and Andres Reyes (foot) are questionable.

Match Content

Projected Lineups

Orlando City (3-5-2)

Goalkeeper: Pedro Gallese.

Defenders: Rodrigo Schlegel, Wilder Cartagena, David Brekalo.

Wingbacks/Midfielders: Facundo Torres, Nico Lodeiro, Cesar Araujo, Ivan Angulo, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson.

Forwards: Luis Muriel, Jack Lynn.

New York Red Bulls (4-4-2, which may play more like a 4-2-2-2)

Goalkeeper: Carlos Coronel.

Defenders: John Tolkin, Noah Eile, Sean Nealis, Dylan Nealis.

Midfielders: Emil Forsberg, Frankie Amaya, Daniel Edelman, Wikelman Carmona

Forwards: Dante Vanzeir, Lewis Morgan.

Referees

REF: Drew Fischer.
AR1: Gianni Facchini.
AR2: Diego Blas.
4TH: Pierre-Luc Lauziere.
VAR: Kevin Terry Jr.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Red Bull Arena — Harrison, NJ.

TV/Streaming: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.

Radio: FM 96.9 The Game (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish).

Twitter: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow along at @TheManeLand, as well as Orlando City’s official Twitter feed (@OrlandoCitySC).

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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Opinion

Predicting Orlando City’s June Results

Take a peek into the crystal ball as we predict this month’s fixtures.

Published

6 hours ago

on

June 1, 2024

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

After earning eight points in the month of May across six matches with a 2-2-2 record, Orlando City has a large mountain still to climb in the quest to re-enter the playoff picture. With four of the five teams that the Lions are set to face in June currently ahead of them in the standings, there is no rest for the weary. Last month I predicted that the Lions would go 3-1-2, maybe a bit overzealous on my part but if the midweek fixture with Chicago would have resulted in all 3 points, then I would have been pretty happy with my psychic powers. Let’s see how well I can do for the month of June.

Saturday, June 1 — at the New York Red Bulls

A trip to face the Red Bulls on short rest and without at least the services of Captain Robin Jansson, who will miss the match due to yellow card accumulation, sounds on paper like a recipe for disaster. The good news for Orlando is that the game is played on the field and not on a notepad. The New York Red Bulls have been a surprising storyline to follow this season so far, with the resurgence of Lewis Morgan and their unbeaten record at home to start the season. In the first meeting, Orlando City needed late-match heroics to salvage a draw at home, and with an offense that is as currently anemic as Orlando’s, this will be the match where they score early, take the lead, and then hold on for dear life. Something about this squad currently just screams it will win the match it certainly has no business winning.

Prediction: Orlando City 3-2 NYRB.

Saturday, June 15 — vs. LAFC

LAFC is certainly counting down the days until later in the summer when Olivier Giroud joins from AC Milan. Initially struggling out of the gates this season, LAFC has turned its season around in a big way. LAFC is currently riding a six-game winning streak across all competitions, with its last defeat coming back on May 4 against the San Jose Earthquakes. During those six victories, LAFC has scored multiple goals in all but one match, and so I assume that goals will come fast and furious in this East vs. West matchup. Despite Orlando’s struggles, I like this match to be close until the very end, when Orlando will be caught chasing the match and give up an extra goal to the visitors from the City of Angels. A tough one to swallow for sure as Orlando City’s home woes will continue.

Prediction: Orlando City 1-3 LAFC.

Wednesday, June 19 — at Charlotte FC

Orlando will head north to take on Charlotte FC for a midweek clash during the middle of yet another spell of three matches in eight days. Charlotte, much like the Red Bulls, has been somewhat of a surprise player in the Eastern Conference so far this season. Before being bested by the Red Bulls on May 29, the club had kept five clean sheets in a row, earning 11 points throughout the month of May. My favorite thing about this match is the recent news that Enzo Copetti, ever the thorn in the side of Orlando City, has now departed the Queen City. It will be at least one less weapon that Orlando will have to deal with. Despite the team’s recent form, I am not overly sold on Charlotte’s ability to stay above the playoff line, and I like Orlando City to flip the script and be the team to walk away from this match with a clean sheet.

Prediction: Orlando City 1-0 Charlotte FC.

Saturday, June 22 — vs. the Chicago Fire

Call it a rematch, revenge game…I truly don’t care as long as Orlando City avenges the disappointing draw that happened a few days ago in the Windy City. There are certainly multiple reasons as to why both teams find themselves near the bottom of the Eastern Conference, but if I had to pick one to actually figure it out heading into the meat and potatoes of the season, it would still be the Lions. Orlando has created plenty of chances at home, and while finishing those chances is another issue entirely, I like City to build some momentum towards the end of the month.

Prediction: Orlando City 2-0 Chicago Fire.

Friday, June 28 — at New York City FC

Orlando will ride that momentum directly into a baseball stadium. One of the most embarrassing fields in MLS is still allowed to be called a soccer pitch in the outfield of Yankee Stadium. Historically, teams struggle with the dimensions and space that this specific field presents, and Orlando is no stranger to those struggles, as the Lions have lost the last three matches played in the Bronx by a combined score of 9-1. History alone gives me very little hope that this current iteration of Orlando City will be the squad to finally buck the trend, and I suspect that Orlando will once again leave the outfield without much to show for its efforts.

Prediction: Orlando City 0-2 NYCFC.

The month of May went fine for Orlando. It could have been a little better. It could have been a little worse. I predict that that is exactly the way that June will go as well. As I mentioned before, there are no “easy” matches on the slate this month, and everyone except for Chicago is currently sitting on a better record than OCSC at this point in the season. If what I have predicted comes to fruition, then Orlando will earn nine points out of a possible 15 and will still be sitting just shy of the playoff line.

Check back at the end of the month to see just how close I came to predicating the correct results. Vamos Orlando!

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Intelligence Report: Orlando City vs. New York Red Bulls

Get up to speed on the New York Red Bulls ahead of Orlando City’s trip to Harrison, NJ.

Published

1 day ago

on

May 31, 2024

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

It’s Friday once again, and that means that another Orlando City matchday is almost upon us. The Lions will stay on the road and try to bounce back from a disappointing and disjointed draw against the Chicago Fire. The task won’t be an easy one though, as OCSC will square off against the New York Red Bulls, who currently sit fourth in the tough Eastern Conference.

A visit to Red Bull Arena means I caught up with Mark Fishkin, host of the Seeing Red podcast. As always, Mark was very helpful in bringing us up to speed on what’s been happening with NYRB.

The Red Bulls poured it on late against Charlotte FC on Wednesday, and scored three times in the final 20 minutes to get the win. Did you notice any substitutions or tactical tweaks that helped open the floodgates?

Mark Fishkin: While the additions of Dante Vanzeir (for Elias Manoel) and Dennis Gjengaar (for Wiki Carmona) in the 65th minute made New York faster, the Red Bulls were able to create scoring chances by running directly at the Charlotte goal rather than trying too many passes in the Charlotte box. Charlotte hadn’t conceded in over 500 minutes coming into the second half, and the Red Bulls confused them. Emil Forsberg’s curling free kick opened the scoring, but Lewis Morgan’s great pass to Forsberg three minutes later was the dagger.

New York has given up 22 goals so far, second most of any team above the playoff line in the East? Are those numbers a cause for concern, or have you been mostly happy with what you’ve seen from the back line?

MF: Well, nine of those goals were conceded in just two matches — the 3-0 loss at Columbus and the 6-2 pounding at Miami. Two more have been conceded late on errors on the road by young center back Noah Eile. They all count of course, but the team’s lost just three times in 15 matches, so I’m not concerned. Carlos Coronel has been fantastic and was rightly livid at his back line for conceding in the 96th minute against Charlotte on Wednesday.

With 15 games under NYRB’s belt, who has been your standout performer of the season so far?

MF: Lewis Morgan, without a doubt. The Scottish forward/midfielder is on pace to best his 2022 performance of 14 goals. Morgan has nine so far this season, and found Forsberg on Wednesday with a perfect pass to set up New York’s second goal. The Red Bulls missed his production so much last season. 

Will anyone be unavailable due to injuries, suspensions, call-ups, etc.? What is your projected starting XI and score prediction?

MF: The Red Bulls have had some major injuries suffered by promising Homegrowns, most notably midfielder Peter Stroud, who broke his ankle against Chicago on April 13. Serge Ngoma is out longterm as well after a knee ligament tear. No Red Bulls are suspended for Saturday.

For the lineup, I’m thinking (4-2-2-2):
Carlos Coronel; Dylan Nealis, Sean Nealis, Noah Eile, John Tolkin; Daniel Edelman, Frankie Amaya; Emil Forsberg, Wikelman Carmona; Lewis Morgan, Dante Vanzeir.

The Red Bulls are one of three MLS teams that are unbeaten and home (4-0-2) and after playing nine of their first 14 on the road, New York has seven of 11 matches at home. After Wednesday’s second half, I’m confident that the Red Bulls will carry the day. 2-0 to New York.

Thank you to Mark for the update on the Red Bulls. Vamos Orlando!

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