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Orlando City vs. D.C. United: Final Score 1-1 as Lions Open Road Schedule with a Draw

The Lions finally got a goal in open play through Duncan McGuire but couldn’t hold the lead, settling for a draw at D.C. United.

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2 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

The good news is that Orlando City finally scored a goal from open play. The bad news is that the Lions finally conceded a goal on the season as they left Audi Field with a 1-1 draw against D.C. United. Rookie Duncan McGuire put Orlando City (1-0-2, 5 points) on the board in the second half, but an inch-perfect shot by Chris Durkin enabled United (1-1-1, 4 points) to claim a point.

“In the first half today, we didn’t look like us,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “I don’t blame the players. I just think that they did great trying to adjust. The intensity was good. We would like to play much better, obviously, but they’re always good (in terms of intensity and discipline).”

Pareja rotated his squad from Tuesday night’s match in Mexico. Pedro Gallese again started in goal but his defense was a three/five depending on whether Orlando had the ball or not. Rookie Abdi Salim, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Kyle Smith got the start, with Rafael Santos getting his first start at left wingback and Ivan Angulo playing wide right, with Wilder Cartagena and Mauricio Pereyra in central midfield. The attacking line featured Dagur Dan Thorhallsson and Facundo Torres on the wings underneath McGuire, who got his first start up top.

As has been the case throughout this young season, the Lions provided little to no danger in the attack in the opening half, while Gallese bailed the team out multiple times to keep the game scoreless through the first 45 minutes.

The hosts started to cause trouble early when former Orlando fullback Ruan sent in a good cross (I know!) in the sixth minute. Gallese came off his line to get a hand to it. The ball fell to Theodore Ku-Dipietro, who had his shot blocked in front.

Orlando City’s first shot attempt came from Wilder Cartagena in the 17th minute. He was way outside the box and obviously not in as much space as he thought because he got his shot blocked and it didn’t even make it inside the penalty area.

Gallese made a couple of tame stops early but in the 28th minute, the ball ended up with Christian Benteke all alone in front of goal when Salim missed getting his head to a cross. Benteke’s shot was good but Gallese’s save was better.

In the 34th minute, Gallese robbed Ku-Dipietro with a big stop and then Benteke nodded off target on the recyle attempt.

The Lions nearly got their first quality look of the game in the 41st when Pereyra sent a ball in for Torres. The younger Uruguayan’s first touch was a bit heavy though, and Tyler Miller scrambled off his line to smother it. It was practically Miller’s only activity in the opening 45.

Gallese had no trouble collecting Pedro Santos’ shot from distance in the 42nd minute, taking it on the first hop. Benteke fired wide of goal off Miller’s long free kick deep in first-half stoppage time as D.C. continued to present threats to the Orlando City goal.

The Lions had maybe their best attacking movement of the half deep in stoppage time when Torres sent a headed pass in behind down the left. McGuire ran onto it but could only win a corner kick.

D.C. held wide margins in possession (57.2%-42.8%), passing accuracy (85.2%-77.1%), shots (8-3), and shots on target (4-0). Orlando City had the first half’s only corner kick attempt deep in stoppage time but provided no threat from it.

If not for Gallese, the score could have been much different at the break.

Pareja changed shape and personnel at the break, sending Robin Jansson on for Salim and Martin Ojeda on for Torres. The Lions went to a four-man back line with Smith on the right, pushing Angulo up to the wing.

The move opened the game up a bit and the Lions were able to get on the ball more but also allowed D.C. to advance more easily as well, at times.

“We did expect the game in the second half we could have more volume and more actions up front,” Pareja said. “We knew the defensive five in the first half would probably reduce our possibilties because we were playing with one more defender and one less attacker. But we wanted to have solidness and try to see if we can create some more sequences around, in the flanks, and I think we did but not with so much consistency. Second half when we made the change of the model and the change of the personnel, we knew that this was going to surprise D.C. at some point and that we would add one more forward, and that happened.”

Thorhallsson finally gave the Lions a shot on goal in the 48th minute, sending his attempt from distance directly in at Miller, who had no trouble catching it. In the 52nd minute, Ojeda sent a ball straight to Miller that may have been a weak shot or an attempted through ball for McGuire that didn’t work out.

But a minute later, the Lions found their breakthrough.

Smith got the ball on the right side from Angulo and sent a cross to the back post. Thorhallsson was there and nodded it back across the front of goal. McGuire arrived to bundle the ball in despite a challenge from Steve Birnbaum and the ball finally found the inside of the net for Orlando. A check for offside confirmed the goal — McGuire’s first as a professional and on Thorhallsson’s first MLS assist.

The rookie celebrated his goal with a celebratory flip.

“It was a great team buildup. Great cross,” McGuire said. “I thought I could get my head onto (the initial cross from Smith). I turned, and Dagur played a great ball across the face of goal — made the goalie out of the play — and then it was a simple tap-in. Dagur could not have made it easier for me.”

“It’s a dream for him,” Pareja said of his rookie’s goal. “I’m very pleased because he’s a young kid and very committed with the group, and an American player that came from the college system, which is fantastic. And he’s proven already in his first game that he belongs. We’re very happy for him.”

The game had hardly restarted when it seemed D.C. would equalize. A shot that was blocked riccocheted off the arm of Wilder Cartagena and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. But Cartagena’s arm was not only tucked in, but his entire forearm was behind his back. That, added to the close proximity and sudden change of direction made the decision a harsh one, and the video assistant referee, Jorge Gonzalez, suggested that referee Jon Freemon have another look. Freemon went to the monitor and quickly overturned his initial call.

Pereyra turned down an opportunity to shoot from the top of the box in the 61st minute, and instead tried to thread a ball through the defense to Ojeda, who appeared to be offside anyway. Ojeda re-established himself and Pereyra played it to his left. Ojeda tried to turn and shoot in a single motion but couldn’t get squared all the way around and left his shot wide.

Seconds later, at the other end, Smith did well to erase a good cross from his former teammate, Ruan.

The Lions dealt with a series of corner kicks shortly after that but D.C. couldn’t pay them off. The best look for the hosts was a shot through traffic by fullback Mohanad Jeahze, but it was well wide of the goal in the 73rd minute.

Ojeda put a shot on target in the 79th but it was from distance and right at Miller.

A minute later, Durkin equalized. Smith and Schlegel were unable to gain control in the corner and the ball was sent to Durkin at the top of the area. He faked a shot on his right and pulled the ball back onto his left as second-half sub Cesar Araujo went for the block. Durkin then fired an unstoppable shot just inside the far post that Gallese somehow almost got to.

It was Durkin’s third career MLS goal and his second against Orlando City. Both cost the Lions points at Audi Field.

Ruan fired a shot well up into the crowd in the 86th after an initial clearance of a D.C. corner kick.

The final seconds of stoppage time produced a set piece for the Lions near the left corner, won by substitute Gaston Gonzalez. Ojeda played the ball to the penalty spot for Jansson, who had peeled away from goal. The Beefy Swede was open for the shot but mishit it badly and it went nowhere near the goal frame.

Orlando survived a quick D.C. push up the pitch and the final whistle brought the proceedings to an end.

D.C.’s advantage in possession dipped a little in the second half, but the hosts still finished with a comfortable advantage in that stat (56.7%-43.3%). United also led in passing accuracy (81.1%-75.5%), shots (16-9), shots on target (5-4), and corners (5-2).

“I thought we looked much, much better,” Pareja said of the second half. “I think we had a couple actions. I think we had a goal. And we accomplished that objective.”

Orlando City has made it through three of the five matches in 15 days and will return home to face Tigres in the second leg of Concacaf Champions league play in the Round of 16 Wednesday night at Exploria Stadium. The next league game for the Lions is set for next Saturday night at home against Charlotte.

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Orlando City

Orlando City Showing Signs of Adjusting to Eduard Atuesta’s Absence

The Lions have looked much better on offense the last two games, and there’s a couple of reasons why.

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18 hours ago

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May 16, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Much has been made of Orlando City’s difficulties in creating chances and scoring goals when Eduard Atuesta has been unavailable due to injury. It’s not hard to understand why either. The Colombian was unavailable for three of Orlando’s four scoreless draws this year, and he only played nine minutes as a substitute in the stalemate against the New York Red Bulls on April 12.

When he was healthy and got the start against Atlanta United two games later, the Lions won 3-0 and he created the most chances of anyone in the game with three. Orlando then promptly reverted to being offensively stunted in the following game against the Chicago Fire, and was only able to manage its fourth scoreless draw of the year, despite playing over a half the game with a man advantage.

There certainly seemed to be plenty of evidence pointing towards Atuesta being the missing cog in Orlando City’s offense. While he only has two assists in eight games, he does a ton of work in linking the defense to the attack and is great at finding attacking players in dangerous areas, as evidenced by his 17 key passes. In the 0-0 draws with the Philadelphia Union, CF Montreal, and the Fire, Orlando just didn’t look right without him, although the Red Bulls game was a much better performance that was ultimately derailed by Rodrigo Schlegel’s sending off.

While he hasn’t played in either of Orlando’s last two league matches, a 3-3 draw against the New England Revolution, and a 3-1 win against Charlotte FC, the offense clearly hasn’t had any problem creating chances. If anything, the Lions should have scored more goals if not for a couple instances of less-than-crisp finishing in each match.

So, why the sudden change?

Well for one thing, the Designated Players are firing on all cylinders again. Martin Ojeda scored a hat trick against New England, and he and Luis Muriel scored Orlando’s first two goals against Charlotte. Ojeda didn’t start either of the two games against Atlanta and Chicago because he was dealing with a minor injury, but now that it’s in the rearview mirror, he’s been a man possessed. Muriel probably should have had at least one goal of his own against the Revs but seemed oddly reluctant to shoot, although he still completed three dribbles and delivered three key passes. The Charlotte game was then his turn to come out of the gate swinging, as he narrowly had a goal ruled out for offside just two minutes in, before hammering a venomous shot from distance just six minutes later that gave Kristijan Kahlina all sorts of trouble and opened the scoring.

It isn’t just getting contributions from the big guns though, because we need to acknowledge the play of rookie Joran Gerbet in these last two games. He’s the man who’s been asked to fill in for Atuesta next to Cesar Araujo, and he’s getting more and more comfortable in that role. Against the Revs he had an interception, a key pass and an assist, and completed a long ball and a through ball while recording a passing accuracy of 86.5%. Against Charlotte, he recorded an interception, three clearances, a completed dribble, and two successful long balls, and he had an outstanding passing accuracy of 98%. They weren’t all simply backwards or sideways passes either. There were plenty of times when he progressed the ball upfield to an attacking player and helped keep the Lions moving forward, and that’s exactly what you want out of the guy playing that position.

He still has a way to go before reaching Atuesta’s level, but that’s to be expected for a guy that’s playing the first professional season of his career. What’s most important is that he’s getting more comfortable, contributing, and proving that he can be a legitimate option to rotate into the starting XI when Atuesta is unavailable or when fixture congestion dictates changes to the lineup.

It’s worth mentioning the caveat that the last two games haven’t been against the strongest opposition the league has to offer. The Revs were on a four-game winning streak before playing Orlando, but three of those four wins were against weak or shaky teams in Atlanta, Toronto FC, and Charlotte, while the fourth team (NYCFC) has been difficult to get a read on. I’m not saying the Revs are a paper tiger, but it’s tough to know how good they really are despite a good run of recent form. Then you have Charlotte, which was above the playoff line but also on a three-game losing streak coming into the match that has now been convincingly extended to four.

At the end of the day, you can only beat who’s in front of you, but I’d encourage us all to not get too carried away until we see the same results against sterner opposition. For better or worse, that’s exactly what we’ll get in the Lions’ next three matches, which will be against a capable, albeit flawed, Inter Miami side on the road, at home in the U.S. Open Cup against a Nashville SC team that’s fourth in the East, and at home against the Portland Timbers, who are currently fourth in the West.

Ultimately, we can only judge this team on what we’ve seen from it, and over the last two games we’ve seen a side that’s had no trouble creating chances. Despite the continued absence of the important Atuesta, the Lions are adjusting thanks to contributions from their heavy hitters and the improving play of the rookie Gerbet. Only time will tell if those improvements are sustainable, but for now its a hell of a lot of fun to enjoy.

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Lion Links: 5/16/25

Orlando City players make MLS Team of the Matchday, Luis Muriel focused, Orlando Pride plays tonight, and more.

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22 hours ago

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May 16, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Happy Friday! I’ve had a pretty good week so far and am looking forward to three straight days of Orlando soccer. The Orlando Pride will get us started tonight and then we have Orlando City B on Saturday before Orlando City plays on Sunday. It should be a fun next few days, and hopefully one filled with celebrations too. Let’s dive into today’s links!

Lions Make MLS Team of the Matchday

There’s plenty of purple in the latest MLS Team of the Matchday following Orlando City’s 3-1 win over Charlotte FC. Martin Ojeda and David Brekalo were both selected, while Oscar Pareja was chosen as the top coach from the midweek slate. Ojeda’s strike in the first half is also up for Goal of the Matchday as his strong run of form continues. The only outfield player on this Team of the Matchday that didn’t score is Brekalo, who had two assists, so it’s nice to see him receive deserved recognition for an excellent performance that included a great setup on Orlando’s third goal. Pareja has the Lions on an 11-game unbeaten streak across all competitions and is managing things well so far during this busy May.

Luis Muriel Staying Focused in Sophomore Season

With five goals so far this season, Orlando City forward Luis Muriel has already mirrored his scoring total from all of last season. Staying mentally prepared has been key for the 34-year-old in his second year with Orlando, and he spoke about what’s changed for him after not quite reaching expectations in his first year.

“Coming to a league like this isn’t easy. A lot of times from the outside, you aren’t able to measure up or really see what the league is. Sometimes you can underestimate things, thinking it’s easy,” Muriel said. “That leads you to take things on in a different way, the work, the matches.

“When you go into ‘MLS Mode’ you realize how good the league is, how competitive it is, how demanding the league is to be able to do things well. That’s when things start to flow, to go well. I think that’s the difference between this year and last.”

He’s finding his footing in the league now and was a force to be reckoned with against Charlotte on Wednesday. Muriel is aware that the Lions will need him to be at his best when they travel to take on Inter Miami on Sunday for an important rivalry clash.

Diving Into Justin Ellis’s Ascent

Victor Olorunfemi of Top Drawer Soccer gave a great profile on Orlando City B forward Justin Ellis and his growth with the club. Ellis, who just celebrated his 18th birthday on Wednesday with his MLS debut, is having a great year after a solid season with OCB last year. The high school senior was the top scorer at this year’s Generation Adidas Cup with six goals to help Orlando’s U-18 team win the tournament. He can create chances just as well as he can convert them and is quick to give credit to the coaches and staff that have helped him develop. The U.S. youth pool is deep, but Ellis could be a name to keep an eye out for ahead of the U-20 World Cup in September.

Orlando Pride Match Headlines NWSL Weekend

The Orlando Pride’s match tonight against the Kansas City Current is the premier matchup this week in the NWSL. While I wouldn’t call it a rivalry just yet, these two teams had great games last year. The Current are still out for revenge after Orlando beat them while shorthanded last summer and won again in the NWSL playoffs in Orlando before winning the NWSL Championship in Kansas City. First place in the league is on the line and it should be a thrilling match featuring the league’s top two defenses and attacking threats like Barbra Banda, Temwa Chawinga, Marta, and Debinha.

NWSL Contenders and Underperformers

We’re about a third of the way into the NWSL season and ESPN‘s Jeff Kassouf dove into how each team is meeting its expectations so far. Despite their stumbles in recent weeks, the Pride are near the top of the table and have plenty of time to get things firing on all cylinders. Two of the California teams are enjoying surprising success so far, with the San Diego Wave up in fourth while Angel City FC is in fifth and could become a real contender once Alexander Straus takes over as head coach. NJ/NY Gotham FC and the North Carolina Courage are sleeping giants of sorts, so it will be interesting to see when they start climbing up the table.

Free Kicks

  • You’ll need a paid subscription for the full details, but Orlando City right back Alex Freeman continues to impress this season. Freeman is finding success in a way different from his father Antonio Freeman, who led the NFL in receiving yards for the Green Bay Packers in 1998.
  • This year’s MLS pre-match jerseys to celebrate Pride month are out and they’re a vibrant and funky design.

Love lifts us up 💜The new 2025 Pride Pre-Match Jerseys are here!🛒 orlsoccer.co/fbpri

— Orlando City SC (@orlandocitysc.com) 2025-05-15T18:56:08.764Z
  • Esther Gonzalez leads the NWSL with seven goals this season and has agreed to a contract extension with Gotham FC that will last through 2027.
  • FIFA representatives, including FA Chair Debbie Hewitt and UEFA President Alexander Ceferin, walked out of FIFA’s annual congress in protest of FIFA President Gianni Infantino arriving three hours late. Infantino has spent this week in the Middle East visiting leaders in Saudi Arabia and Qatar with Donald Trump.
  • FC Barcelona officially won this year’s La Liga title after a 2-0 win over Espanyol. Phenom Lamine Yamal scored a sensational goal in the match, which is fitting considering how crucial he was to Barcelona winning the league this year.
  • Predictable names like Luis Enrique and Antonio Conte are on the list of top European coaches this year, but this article also shines a light on coaches who navigated tough waters in small boats. Alexander Blessin has St. Pauli on the verge of survival in the Bundesliga and Filippo Inzaghi improved Pisa by 30 points in Serie B to secure promotion.

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

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Inter Miami: Three Keys to Victory

What do the Lions need to do to secure a victory in Sunday’s edition of Tropic Thunder?

Published

2 days ago

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May 15, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City / Mark Thor

The first Tropic Thunder match of the season is here. As I recently said on The Mane Land PawedCast, I am both looking forward to and dreading this match. I think that is an appropriate feeling. Orlando City is in the midst of a congested May schedule, but every match matters.

Inter Miami tops my list of hated teams at this point. As such, I very much want the Lions to win and for Florida to be purple. What does Orlando City need to do to earn all three points on the road against their in-state rivals?

Pocket Messi

Orlando City must keep Lionel Messi from having too big of an impact on the match. There are plenty of other players that the defense will need to worry about, and I’ll get to them. What I’m looking for is a frustrated Messi — Messi that feels he should be getting calls on the lightest of touches but is not.

The pair of players that I’m expecting to keep an eye on Messi are Cesar Araujo and Rodrigo Schlegel. The lion’s share of that burden will fall to Araujo. I want him to be hounding Messi every time he gets the ball. If Messi is able to get past Araujo, I want Schlegel to be right in his face. We’re all sick of MLS and Apple TV putting his smug mug in our faces at every opportunity. It’s time for two of Orlando’s defenders to take the shine off of Messi.

Deal with the Rest

Assuming Araujo can limit Messi, Orlando City still has to deal with Miami’s talented attacking players not named Messi. Miami and Orlando entered Wednesday night’s game with the same number of goals scored (21) and allowed (15) this season, although the Herons conceded more at San Jose (3) than the Lions (1) did at home against Charlotte. Each scored three times on Wednesday. However, the memory of the last time the Lions faced Miami at Chase Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale is a 5-0 loss. That isn’t something we want to see again.

Theoretically, no match is more important than another, although an argument could be made that Tropic Thunder is no mere match. I fully expect a starting back line of Alex Freeman, Schlegel, Robin Jansson, and David Brekalo in front of Pedro Gallese to stop Miami’s attack. A clean sheet is the objective.

Alex vs. Alba

As you can tell, this is a very defensive heavy Three Keys, but given what happened in this fixture last year, I don’t think it’s out of line. Alex Freeman has been good this season. He has secured the starting spot at right back and seems unlikely to give it back. One of the things he is good at is getting into the attack with Marco Pasalic. That isn’t what I’m looking for from him this weekend.

Miami’s Jordi Alba is a dangerous player that Freeman will be expected to help contain. Alba has five assists, seven successful crosses, and 13 key passes so far this season. If Freeman is still getting up the pitch to assist in the attack, he will need to make sure he isn’t allowing Alba free rein to get behind him and serve as a provider in Orlando’s half of the field.

That is what I will be looking for Sunday night. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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