Orlando City vs. CF Montreal: Final Score 0-0 as Lions Drop Points, Remain Unbeaten in Opener

Orlando City (0-0-1, 1 point) looked like a team that played on the other side of the continent a few days ago in a sloppy 0-0 draw against CF Montreal (0-0-1, 1 point) at home in the first game of the MLS regular season for both clubs. Orlando did put the ball in the net off of Felipe but the flag came up and review upheld the call.

With the draw, the Lions remain unbeaten on opening day (3-0-7) but settle for a scoreless draw for the third time in three openers under Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja. The Lions have not conceded a goal on opening night in five seasons under Pareja.

“Very intense game for both teams,” Pareja said after the match. “In the first half I thought it was a little bit rough and rocky for us. Couldn’t find the sequences that we normally have found in the way that we play and our model. When we had the ball we couldn’t create the sequences that get us much closer to the goal.”

Pareja went with a strong lineup, with little rotation from Wednesday night’s win in British Columbia. Pedro Gallese was in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo — making his Orlando City and MLS debut — and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena manned the central midfield behind an attacking line of Ivan Angulo, Nicolas Lodeiro (his first OCSC start), and Facundo Torres with Duncan McGuire up top.

Orlando City was nowhere near as sharp in possession during its second game of the week. The passes were often offline and when they reached the target, a wayward touch often turned the ball over. Additionally, the Lions were slow to get the ball out of their feet, allowing the more energetic visitors to dispossess them in dangerous areas repeatedly.

A turnover led to a good chance by Matias Coccaro in just the third minute and Bryce Duke fired one in at Gallese seconds later as the visitors looked to jump on top early.

Torres tried an inside-out shot from a severe angle on the right in the fourth minute but sent it into the outside netting.

Gallese then had to be sharp to deny Coccaro and Ariel Lassiter in the fifth minute as Montreal stayed on the front foot early, helped out by wayward passes and bad touches by the Lions, who also were the slower players to react.

Orlando had better spells of possession after that early Montreal flurry but did little with them. Lodeiro won a corner in the 10th minute and then sent in a good near-post delivery for McGuire, but the forward’s shot was blocked behind for another corner. Five minutes later, off another corner, a ball fell for McGuire, who lost control and it popped loose in the box. He and Araujo got in each other’s way going for the loose ball and the chance evaporated.

Araujo had a go from outside the box in the 26th minute but sent his shot well off target on an attack in which it appeared he had better options.

Brekalo sent a header on goal in the 44th minute but it was no trouble for Montreal goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois.

There weren’t any clear-cut looks for either side the rest of the half and the game went to the break still scoreless.

Orlando City held more of the possession in the first half (59.2%-40.8%) but did little with it. The Lions also passed more accurately (86%-79.9%) and won more corners (5-1). Montreal had more shots (6-4), shots on target (4-1).

“We weren’t expecting them to be so compact,” Santos said through a club interpreter. “We were expecting them to play a little bit more open, and they were very compact. It was very difficult to find spaces and opportunities within the tight areas that they were creating. And that’s why we found it so difficult to score a goal.”

Pareja made one tweak to the lineup at the break, withdrawing Cartagena and replacing him with Martin Ojeda. With the visitors staying tightly compact, there was no need for a double pivot and the team played better after the change, with Araujo dropping between the defenders to start the attack and Lodeiro trying to pull the strings from a deeper position.

After the match, Pareja said he felt his team was spending too much time and energy getting the ball into dangerous positions. By dropping Araujo deeper to start the attack and having an extra playmaker on the field, his team was able to fix the problem, even if the Lions still weren’t sharp with the final ball.

The first chance of the second half came early, with Thorhallsson seeing his shot blocked in the box. The rebound fell to Ojeda, who shot from a tough angle on the left side but missed the target. Lodeiro had a shot blocked off a well-worked corner kick play in the 51st minute and Brekalo scuffed a shot wide.

Three minutes later, Angulo sent a weak shot easily into Sirois’ hands from a tough angle on the right with three teammates crashing the net. It was another example of the wrong decision at the end of a good sequence, which plagued the Lions all evening.

The Lions kept coming but nothing would go in. McGuire headed just inches over the bar in the 66th minute, and Thorhallsson sent a volley shot off the ground and similiarly just over the bar in the 74th. Two minutes later, Santos sent in a dangerous cross that was cut out at the last second by the defense for a corner. The ensuing set piece was knocked out of the box to Thorhallsson, who sent a shot well off target from distance.

The first of Montreal’s two golden opportunities in the second half came in the 79th minute, when former Lion Ruan sent in a cross that Josef Martinez fired wide on a first-time effort.

Orlando City scored in the 80th minute, but the flag came up. Substitute Ramiro Enrique sent a header toward goal and Sirois got a touch on it. The ball came off the crossbar, hit fellow second-half sub Felipe, and went into the goal. The flag came up for offside and it was a close call. After a review, the referee accepted the VAR decision to uphold the call.

Ojeda got a header opportunity in the 87th minute but didn’t get any power on it and Sirois was able to catch it easily. The flag again came up for offside in the 92nd minute and it was a costly one. Torres was fouled in the box and the referee immediately pointed to the spot for a penalty but the AR’s flag was in the air. Substitute striker Jack Lynn left too early in the buildup and it was a costly mistake, as the Lions were denied an opportunity to win the game from the spot in stoppage time.

Seconds later, disaster nearly struck. Montreal cut the defense open with one quick pass for Kwadwo Opoku, who sliced through with a well-timed run to get onto the pass. Beyond the last defender, the Montreal forward had only Gallese to beat, but the goalkeeper made a sensational play to come off his line aggressively and stuck out a leg to block the shot, preserving a point for his team.

It was the last opportunity for either side in the match and, despite a good effort, the performance was a little off as Orlando City dropped two points at home.

The Lions finished with more possession (60.1%-39.9%), shots (15-9), corners (9-1), and passing accuracy (86.2%-78.2%). Montreal managed more shots on target (5-4).

“We decided just to make a couple changes in the way we wanted to face the second half,” Pareja said. “Much better. Much better second half. So it looked more like us. We created the options to score, not being so clean, but we respect the job that Montreal did as well, because they put their team in a very low block in the second half. I think we dominated, not being that clear. We’ll take that point. I think we all had big expectations. I want to make sure that we all know that this is a long trip and we have to know how to navigate it.”

“The game did not turn out the way that we wanted. We wanted the win,” Santos said. “We unfortunately weren’t able to do that. We did get the draw, which is better than a loss, but we again wanted to win. We leave frustrated from this game because again, we wanted to win. We were always looking for the opportunity to make goals. We had our chances. But we’re going to continue to look ahead, because the tournament is long and we know that we’ll get opportunities moving ahead.”

Newcomer Brekalo had a solid first MLS game in his Orlando City debut, but said afterward he’s been not only waiting for his international paperwork to come through — and as a result has spent time training as if to start and other days as if he wouldn’t be playing — but he’s also been nursing an injury that he is managing with the medical team.

“I just tried to keep it simple today honestly,” he said. “But still, like I was forcing (things) a few times, but it will come, I think, with more and more trainings and games with my teammates. I was taking many heavy touches. I’m usually better than this, but like I said, it’s going to come and it’s going to be okay.”

The Lions are back in action on Tuesday when Cavalry FC visits Orlando in the second leg of the teams’ Concacaf Champions Cup series. Orlando City will then visit Inter Miami next Saturday in the first Tropic Thunder rivalry match of 2024.