Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Toronto FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
The Lions welcome an improved Toronto side to Orlando for an Eastern Conference battle.
Welcome to your match thread for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City (2-3-3, 9 points) and Toronto FC (4-4-1, 13 points) at Inter&Co Stadium (7:30 p.m., MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+). It’s the first of the two scheduled meetings between the Eastern Conference rivals this season, with the Lions set to make the return trip to Toronto on July 3.
Here’s what you need to know ahead of the match.
History
Orlando is 8-8-3 in the evenly split all-time, regular-season series. However, the Lions have won the last four meetings, sweeping the season series in 2022 and 2023. At home, Orlando is 5-4-0 against the Reds. City is currently on its longest ever unbeaten run in the series, compiling a 6-0-2 record in the last eight meetings.
The most recent meeting came on Decision Day of last season on Oct. 21, when Duncan McGuire came off the bench at BMO Field, scoring twice to beat Toronto 2-0. The teams last met in Orlando on July 4, 2023, with Orlando City putting the Reds to the sword on Independence Day, beating the Canadian side, 4-0. Cesar Araujo, McGuire, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, and Ercan Kara scored for the Lions, and Toronto finished with 10 men after Federico Bernardeschi was shown his second yellow card just past the hour mark.
Orlando City also romped 4-0 over the Reds in the previous meeting, Sept. 17, 2022 at Exploria Stadium. Facundo Torres, Kara, and Tesho Akindele scored for the Lions to go along with a Lukas MacNaughton own goal. The Lions won on May 14, 2022 at BMO Field, 1-0, thanks to a 92nd-minute goal from Kyle Smith, who flicked a header from a corner kick cross inside the far post to lift the Lions to victory.
The Lions went 2-0-1 in three meetings with Toronto FC in 2021. The teams played to a 1-1 draw at BMO Field on July 17, 2021. Jozy Altidore came off the bench to score the opener but Nani equalized from the penalty spot minutes later. Benji Michel drew the penalty, which was originally ruled a foul on the Orlando winger but was overturned after video review by referee Marcos de Oliveira.
The other Toronto “home match” in the 2021 season series came on June 19 at Exploria Stadium. The Reds were dealing with pandemic restrictions in Canada that forced the team to play home games in the United States. Orlando City built a 2-0 early lead on goals by Akindele and Nani, only to see Toronto tie the match by halftime on goals by Ayo Akinola and Jonathan Osorio. Junior Urso scored late to lift the Lions to a 3-2 victory. The teams first met that year on May 22, with Orlando City claiming a 1-0 win on Akindele’s goal.
The teams did not play in 2020 due to the pandemic affecting the schedule. Prior to the MLS stoppage for the pandemic, the teams met most recently in Toronto on Aug. 10, 2019, with the Lions grabbing a point at BMO Field in a 1-1 draw. Michel opened the scoring in the 69th minute but the Reds equalized off a scramble following a set piece in the 77th. The other matchup between the sides that season came on May 4, 2019, when the Reds walked out of Orlando with a 2-0 win on goals by Osorio and Jay Chapman.
The teams split their season series in 2018. Orlando City captured a 2-1 win at home in James O’Connor’s first home game as head coach of the Lions on July 14, 2018. Chris Schuler and Dom Dwyer staked City to a 2-0 lead and Nick Hagglund ruined the shutout in the 94th minute off a Sebastian Giovinco free kick delivery. The 2018 meeting in Toronto saw the Reds get a 2-1 win at BMO Field on Ryan Telfer’s 87th-minute goal.
Toronto shredded Orlando in a 3-1 win on July 5, 2017. Altidore and Giovinco combined to score Toronto’s three goals. Carlos Rivas gave Orlando a consolation goal. In the first meeting of 2017, Orlando out-possessed, out-shot, and out-passed the hosts, and played like the better team on the night. However, the Lions could not overcome a two-goal deficit and Giovinco’s first-half brace led Toronto to a 2-1 win.
The Lions got their first victory in the series on June 25, 2016, winning 3-2 at Camping World Stadium. Kaká scored from the spot in the 10th minute of stoppage time to win it. Cyle Larin and Adrian Winter each gave OCSC leads in the game, only to see Jordan Hamilton and Justin Morrow equalize until the captain’s late winner. The Reds took the second 2016 matchup in Orlando with a 2-1 victory, scoring late through Altidore. Tosaint Ricketts gave Toronto an early lead but the Lions fought back on a Larin goal. The teams also drew 0-0 on Sept. 28 of that year, with Toronto able to fend off the Lions with 10 men over the final 20 minutes of the match.
In 2015, Toronto took home all nine points in the three meetings, beating Orlando by a combined score of 11-1.
Overview
Orlando City enters on a four-game unbeaten run (2-0-2), including last Saturday’s 2-2 draw at CF Montreal. The Lions are 1-1-2 at home in 2024, but the win and one of the draws came in the two most recent matches at Inter&Co Stadium.
Toronto FC has shown tremendous improvement under John Herdman early in the season despite missing several key players with injuries. The Reds, however, are 3-1-0 at home but just 1-3-1 on the road in 2024. The team had lost three straight matches overall before knocking off New England last week. Now the Reds are on a two-game winning streak in all competitions, having beaten Rovers FC 5-0 in the Canadian Championship Wednesday.
The Lions will have to track forward Prince Owusu, who paces Toronto FC with four goals on the season. No one else on Toronto has more than two goals, and sitting on two is Lorenzo Insigne, who is out for tonight with a thigh injury. Orlando will need to be aware of Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, who leads the Reds with two assists.
But perhaps the sleeping giant is Bernardeschi, who leads Toronto FC with 37 shot attempts and 18 key passes, yet somehow has no direct goal contributions on the season. Even if he hasn’t been producing end product, the Italian has been dangerous.
“Looks like we’re getting more cohesiveness with the boys and they’re gluing more things together,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said ahead of the game. “We’re reviewing things and have done in prior games, but since we’re not getting results it seems like it’s not happening. In the end, you have to win games, you have to get results, so the good things get magnified and the things that aren’t being done well, seem like you need more time to fix it. It’s indeed important to get results.”
Orlando City will be without forward Ramiro Enrique (ankle). Toronto will be without Insigne (thigh), former Lions Richie Laryea (thigh) and Shane O’Neill (thigh), and Brandon Servania (knee). In addition, Deandre Kerr (foot) is questionable.
Match Content
- Our Intelligence Report provides more information about the Reds from Tomas Karageorgos from Toronto blog Waking the Red.
- The latest episode of the PawedCast includes our key matchups and final score predictions, as well as a Toronto FC preview with torontofc.ca beat writer James Grossi.
- Our David Rohe provided his three keys to an Orlando City victory in this matchup.
Official Lineups
Orlando City (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper: Pedro Gallese.
Defenders: Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson.
Defensive Midfielders: Cesar Araujo, Wilder Cartagena.
Attacking Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Facundo Torres, Martin Ojeda.
Forward: Duncan McGuire.
Bench: Mason Stajduhar, Kyle Smith, Michael Halliday, Rodrigo Schlegel, Felipe, Jeorgio Kocevski, Nico Lodeiro, Jack Lynn, Luis Muriel.
Toronto (3-4-3)
Goalkeeper: Sean Johnson.
Defenders: Nicksoen Gomis, Kevin Long, Sigurd Rosted.
Wingbacks & Midfielders: Raoul Petretta, Alonso Coello, Deybi Flores, Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty.
Forwards: Jonathan Osorio, Prince Owusu, Federico Bernardeschi.
Bench: Luka Gavran, Tyrese Spicer, Aime Mabika, Matty Longstaff, Kobe Franklin, Cassius Mailula, Kosi Thompson, Derrick Etienne, Jr., DeAndre Kerr.
Referees
REF: Armando Villarreal.
AR1: Cory Richardson.
AR2: Logan Brown.
4TH: Brad Jensen.
VAR: Kevin Terry, Jr.
AVAR: Jonathan Johnson.
How to Watch
Match Time: 7:30 p.m.
Venue: Inter&Co Stadium — Orlando.
TV/Streaming: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+.
Radio: Real Radio 104.1 FM (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!
Orlando City
Evaluating How Orlando City May Fill Its Open Designated Player Spot
An analysis of the history of the ages of Orlando City’s Designated Players (DP) and an evaluation of how Orlando City may fill their open DP spot.
Sometimes in order to admit to yourself that something is true you have to say the words out loud, or in the case of a website contributor, you have to write the words out, and so therefore I must disappointedly say the following: Facundo Torres will not play for Orlando City in 2025.
Sigh.
I guess there is a chance, however slight, that he could transfer back from Palmeiras, but as a mathematician, I would not advise anyone to place any bets on seeing Torres playing for the Lions this season. I would also advise you not to place any bets in general and to remember the quote from the legend Danny Ocean that “the house always wins, you play long enough and you never change the stakes and the house takes you.”
You did not come here for gambling advice, so we will dispense with that part of the quote, but I want to go a little deeper on the concept of changing the stakes. During the last three seasons, Orlando City has steadily improved from losing in the conference quarterfinals to losing in the conference semifinals to losing in the conference final. The Lions played in the Concacaf Champions Cup in 2023 and 2024 and won the U.S. Open Cup in 2022. As I wrote last week, Orlando is now one of leading soccer cities in the country, and that is because of the accomplishments of both Orlando City and the Orlando Pride.
Orlando City Head Coach Óscar Pareja has led the Lions to the playoffs in each of the past five seasons, and in doing so has raised the expectations for the club higher, as while the Lions are not considered one of the league’s glamor teams by MLS leadership, the performance on the field says that they should be. Their 71 MLS regular-season wins during this decade ranks second only to LAFC’s 75.
Club | MLS Regular-Season Wins: 2020-2025 |
---|---|
LAFC | 75 |
Orlando City | 71 |
Philadelphia Union | 71 |
Seattle Sounders | 70 |
Columbus Crew | 70 |
This brings us back to Torres and the decision that Orlando City’s leadership will need to make about how to replace him. His departure opens up a Designated Player spot, allowing the Lions free rein to bring in anyone they want, since there are no restrictions on salary. The question that I am sure that the front office is grappling with, however, is whether to use that spot on the 2025 version of Torres, a young rising star who they hope to sell in a few years for a profit, or go with an established player who is ready to come in now but may not be someone that the club can profit off of in the future.
The history of Orlando City and Designated Players is more the latter than the former, despite the club-record sale of Torres a few weeks ago. The club has had 15 Designated Players and 33 seasons from those players during its 10 seasons in MLS, and using the age of every player as of Feb. 1 during the year they were a Designated Player, this is how Orlando City has deployed that designation:
Age Range | Number of Seasons | % of Seasons |
---|---|---|
19-20 | 4 | 12.1% |
21-23 | 5 | 15.2% |
24-26 | 4 | 12.1% |
27-29 | 8 | 24.2% |
30+ | 12 | 36.4% |
Slightly more than 60% of those player-seasons have been played by players 27 years of age or older, headlined by Kaká, Mauricio Pereyra, and Nani, but at the same time, more than 25% of the seasons were by players in the “we project them to be a young rising star” age group of 19-23. Torres clearly showed that he was, but the other young Designated Players — Bryan Róchez, Carlos Rivas, and Josué Colmán — did not produce on the field or generate a major financial return when they departed the club. Rivas, at least, is enduring, as every time a shot is skied high over the net at home games, you can always count on hearing someone in the crowd shout out his name.
During the last three seasons, the club has skewed younger with regard to Designated Players, with the average ages being 26 in 2022 [Pereyra (31), Ercan Kara (26), Torres (21)]; 24 in 2023 [Kara (27), Martin Ojeda (24), Torres (22)]; and 27 in 2024 [Luis Muriel (32), Ojeda (25), Torres (23)]. Torres’ departure means that remaining Designated Players Muriel (33) and Ojeda (26) will average out at 29.5 years old, with Muriel’s window to generate a future transfer fee of any significance nearly shut and Ojeda’s closing, unless he makes a leap in 2025. Both players contributed to the club’s success on the field in 2024, but the front office is always trying to balance the business and the team’s performance, and with this third open Designated Player spot those in charge of personnel will show their hand on where they believe they need to focus.
The hard part for the front office is that, as of today, the team is bringing back every key player except for Torres from a team that has used a pretty consistent set of players for the past two seasons. This group is very familiar with Pareja’s style of play and expectations, and nine of the returning players played more than 3,600 (out of a possible 6,120) MLS regular-season minutes during the last two seasons.
This team is built to win now, and while the Lions have the personnel to replace Torres with existing players (move Ojeda to right wing while starting Nico Lodeiro or Muriel in the middle, starting Lodeiro or Muriel on the wing, start Duncan McGuire at striker and move Ramiro Enrique to the wing, etc.), with an open Designated Player spot and Torres’ transfer fee money sitting in an Inter&Co digital vault, I think the team should be looking for someone to come in directly into the starting 11 and aggressively make a play to win the title in 2025, joining the battle-hardened group of returning players, many of whom are in their prime right now.
There are rumors that a signing is imminent for a left-footed winger who likes to play on the right side of the field, but it would be using an MLS U22 Initiative spot and not a Designated Player spot. Rumo(u)rs are second-hand news and may end up only being dreams (some of you will see the chain connecting what I did there, others will tell me to go my own way…away), but those currently reporting on Orlando City’s negotiations for this winger, Fabrizio Romano and Tom Bogert, are well sourced, increasing the likelihood that the club is closing in on bringing in a player who is similar to the 2022 version of Torres — young, skilled, and someone who could bring the club a profit in the future.
This does not preclude the team from looking for a Designated Player who is also a wing player on the right side of the field, but it changes the calculus (and as all of you certainly remember from math class, calculus is all about change) for what the team may want to do with its third Designated Player spot, probably making a little more likely that that spot would be used on a more established (read: older) player — reports have already indicated a bid was made to Liga MX side Club America, which was rejected, for 26-year-old winger Alex Zendejas.
Orlando City, like most MLS clubs, has rarely used a Designated Player spot on a defender. Yoshimar Yotún is the closest case, but while he played left back for Peru and other clubs, for Orlando City he played primarily in the midfield. The team could look for an upgrade on the left wing, which could also involve moving Angulo to the right wing or dropping him into a competition for a right- or left-back spot, as a player with a similar profile to former right back Ruan. McGuire will be out for a few months to start the season, and so the club could bring in an elite striker to complement Enrique to fill the 90 minutes up top. OCSC could also go find a central attacking midfield Designated Player and move Ojeda back out to the wing.
Or…City could do none of these and take an existing player who makes more than the Designated Player amount ($683,750) and turn him into a Designated Player, saving salary cap money. It is not as exciting to do something like this, but one of the benefits of being a good team with youth and depth is that there are already players ready to take on some of the minutes made available by Torres’ departure. It is not always beneficial to add players just because you can, as players want to play and team chemistry can be just as important as the total top end talent on a roster.
Decisions like these in a league with a salary cap can make or break a team, especially a team with so many players returning from a successful season the year prior. Should the Lions acquire one player to slot right into Torres’ spot, and leave everyone else as is? Do they actually need a big shake-up and change at multiple positions, as while they were successful, they struggled to score late in the season, and came up short on the ultimate goal? I am excited by all of the possibilities, look forward to seeing the moves the team makes, and am thinking about how the Lions will line up in the season opener on Feb. 22.
Vamos Orlando!
Orlando City
Previewing Luis Muriel’s Second Year in Purple
Orlando City needs more production from its Colombian striker in 2025, so what’s the best way to get it?
The 2025 season will be Luis Muriel’s second as an Orlando City player following a 2024 campaign that wasn’t bad but was uneven and marked by potential that ultimately went unfulfilled. With the Colombian striker still occupying a Designated Player slot, there’s a lot of questions about how he’s going to fit into the team.
With him occupying a precious DP slot and commanding the highest salary on the team by a comfortable margin, it’s essential that the Lions get maximum output from him on the field. What’s the best way to do that, though? With the departure of Facundo Torres and Muriel getting a full off-season and preseason under his belt, there are a few different ways to achieve that goal.
Striker
The obvious answer is the reason that he was brought to the City Beautiful in the first place — to play him at striker. Duncan McGuire likely won’t be available until sometime in April, meaning that Muriel will be duking it out in preseason with Ramrio Enrique (and to a lesser extent, Jack Lynn) for the right to start as the tip of Orlando City’s proverbial spear. He got some time there last year in the first few months of the season, but ultimately his production, or lack thereof, opened the door for McGuire, and later Enrique, to supplant him.
The most straightforward way to get him in the team is to get him scoring in the volume that he’s shown himself to be capable of. It wouldn’t require any alterations to the formation or moving players around to areas where they might not be comfortable. Orlando could try to go big for a winger with proven goal-scoring threat to help replace the Facundo Torres-sized hole on the right wing, Ivan Angulo can stay out left, Martin Ojeda retains his place at the 10, and things keep ticking along.
The big question is whether he can find the back of the net consistently enough to justify going this route, particularly when McGuire and Enrique have proven themselves to be capable of providing solid scoring output. However, if he shows better than Enrique and Lynn in preseason, this is probably the most likely route.
Winger
Another solution, and probably the one that would be second easiest, would be to deploy him at the winger spot vacated by the now-departed Torres. This would allow Enrique and McGuire to compete for the no.9 slot, while filling Torres’ place with someone who is capable of creating and producing goals for others at the same, if not higher, level, and it wouldn’t require any formation or positional shifts.
A downside is that the right-footed Muriel wouldn’t be inverting the way that Torres did, which would tweak some of the team’s tactics and patterns of play in the final third. Additionally, it would be gambling on Muriel improving his goal-scoring numbers despite being shifted out wide and presumably not having as many looks at goal.
In this scenario, the Lions likely aren’t going out and adding a third Designated Player, or if they are, it’s probably an attempt to upgrade over Angulo — something which just doesn’t seem super likely to me, given how ever-present he’s been in the lineup since joining the team. I also don’t know if I can see Luiz Muzzi and Co. standing pat with the current state of a roster that couldn’t win it all and then lost its best player.
No. 10
A different route would be to trot him out at the no.10 position, where he often found himself deployed when coming on as a substitute during the second half of the year. The advantages of this solution are that it would allow the Colombian to utilize his considerable passing range and ability on the ball while minimizing his need to contribute large amounts of goals. On the downside, it would require shifting Ojeda out of the central position that he occupied to such great effect during the second half of the 2024 season. While Muriel has played well in this position, I can’t see the decision-makers being willing to gamble on Ojeda regressing if moved out wide again.
Shadow Striker/Roving Playmaker
The final, and most intriguing (and complex) of the options would be to deploy him as a shadow striker/roaming playmaker as part of a front two. Muriel drops into the hole behind the striker and moves around, finding space just behind his fellow forward, popping up wherever the spaces are and making it difficult for teams to zero in on patterns of play.
Again, it would allow him to use his excellent passing and dribbling ability to create scoring chances for McGuire/Enrique, while still getting him some looks at goal. It’s also a position that he’s played at various times throughout his career, including last year, when we saw him partnered with McGuire in either a 4-4-2 or 3-5-2. The two played well together during those games, and showed signs of a flourishing partnership that ultimately wasn’t pursued further as the team got more bodies healthy and Ojeda began to shine as the central player in the three-man attacking midfield.
The biggest problem would be finding a formation that gets Orlando’s best players on the field in their best positions. A 4-4-2 would allow a midfield of Ojeda, Angulo, Wilder Cartagena, and Cesar Araujo, but Ojeda would need to be out wide and we’ve already covered why that’s an issue. A 3-5-2 would also allow for those guys to be on the field, but then Dagur Dan Thorhallsson and Rafael Santos would likely be sacrificed, and Cartagena would move to center back while Nico Lodeiro slotted into the midfield in his place. OCSC is better when Cartagena and Araujo are partnering in the midfield, and I love having Santos’ crossing ability and DDT’s versatility on the field. For me, it would be cutting off your nose to spite your face.
An interesting solution could be trying a 4-2-2-2, with Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel/David Brekalo, and Thorhallson at the back, Araujo and Cartagena as the defensive midfielders, Angulo and Ojeda as the attacking midfielders, and Enrique/McGuire and Muriel up top, with Muriel operating as the shadow striker. To get the necessary width in attack, one of the fullbacks (presumably DDT) could invert into the midfield when in possession, and one of the defensive mids (likely Cartagena) would drift out wide while Ojeda plays centrally, where he operates best. The biggest issues here are that it would necessitate a lot of tactical variation from what the team is accustomed to, requires Thorhallsson to run his guts out, and is susceptible to getting torched on the counterattack. There’s a world where it could work, but I wouldn’t expect to see it.
At the end of the day, everyone’s lives are made easier if having a full off-season and preseason under his belt helps the Colombian DP find his shooting boots and he hits the ground running as the striker in Oscar Pareja’s preferred 4-2-3-1. Orlando adds firepower at right wing, Ojeda stays in the middle, and Muriel does what he was primarily signed to do — score goals. If that doesn’t happen, there are still ways to try to get him involved, but each solution comes with its own unique set of advantages and disadvantages to navigate. Either way, Muriel’s fit during the 2025 season is an intriguing storyline to watch as we build towards the start of the new campaign. Vamos Orlando!
Lion Links
Lion Links: 1/10/25
Orlando City reportedly nears signing Nicolas Rodriguez, Orlando Pride re-sign Marta, Americans abroad this weekend, and more.
Happy Friday! I’m already pretty much over this cold weather. While it was a nice change of pace, I’ve never been a huge fan of shivering in my car while waiting for the heat to get going. Thankfully, it looks like some warmer weather is coming this weekend before temperatures dip again next week. But enough about the weather, let’s get to today’s links!
Orlando City Linked With Nicolas Rodriguez
According to Fabrizio Romano, Orlando City is close to signing Colombian winger Nicolas Rodriguez from Fortaleza in Colombia’s top flight.
The 20-year-old would bring the club some needed attacking power and Orlando has open U22 Initiative slots to make it happen. The Lions have yet to make much noise this off-season beyond transferring Facundo Torres to Palmeiras, so hopefully signing Rodriguez kicks off the excitement ahead of the 2025 season. Another report has the transfer fee coming in around $2 million, with Fortaleza keeping a 30% sell-on fee if he’s sold in the future.
Marta Re-Signs With the Orlando Pride
The Orlando Pride have re-signed Marta to a new contract that will keep her in the City Beautiful through 2026. Whether or not Marta would return was the biggest question mark surrounding the club after her contract expired following a historic season that included winning both the NWSL Shield and the NWSL Championship. Marta is one of the best attacking midfielders in the league and was a finalist for both the NWSL MVP and NWSL Midfielder of the Year awards last year. Enjoy how Marta revealed the big news through the club’s social media. She definitely had me in the first half.
Keeping Up With the Americans Abroad
Goalkeeper Ethan Horvath had a stellar game in Cardiff City’s 1-0 win over Sheffield United in the FA Cup, making seven saves in the shutout. It was his first start for the club since August and he could get the nod in Cardiff’s next FA Cup match in February. Lindsey Horan had an assist in Lyon’s 2-0 road win over Dijon, while Cameron Carter-Vickers and Auston Trusty started in Celtic’s 2-0 win against Dundee United.
As for upcoming action, Joe Scally will have a chance to impress when Borussia Mönchengladbach hosts Bayern Munich on Saturday. Elsewhere in the Bundesliga, Giovanni Reyna and Borussia Dortmund will take on Bayer Leverkusen today. Serie A should feature the usual suspects on Saturday, with Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, and AC Milan playing Cagliari and Tim Weah, Weston McKennie, and Juventus facing off against Torino. We also might get to see Matt Turner in goal when Crystal Palace plays Stockport County in the FA Cup.
FA Cup Third Round Storylines
There’s plenty of more FA Cup soccer all over England this weekend to check out. While we were robbed from seeing Ashley Young and his son Tyler Young play against each other in Everton’s 2-0 win against Peterborough United, there are still many storylines in the third round. The heavyweight matchup is between Arsenal and Manchester United on Sunday. While it may be too much to say some of the English Premier League’s bigger clubs are on upset alert this weekend, Tottenham’s road game against Tamworth and Liverpool’s match with Accrington Stanley could prove interesting. Manchester City is set to take on a Salford City side owned by several former Manchester United players as well.
Free Kicks
- Former Orlando City Academy player Charles Ahl was signed by the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. He was named 2024 Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year after a fantastic season with Stetson University.
- The Columbus Crew signed goalkeeper Nicholas Hagen to a contract extension. He started in the club’s 3-1 win over LAFC in the Leagues Cup final and will remain part of an impressive Crew goalkeeping unit that also includes Patrick Schulte and Evan Bush.
- Nashville SC waived midfielder Randall Leal and also goalkeeper Elliot Panicco as the team prepares for its first season with B.J. Callaghan as head coach.
- Minnesota United re-signed midfielder Wil Trapp to a one-year deal with an option for 2026 as well.
- FC Dallas added a whopping six Homegrown Players to its roster and the club leads the league with 43 Homegrown signings in its history.
- Liga MX informed Toluca that Hector Herrera must serve the three-game ban he received for spitting at a referee in the MLS playoffs.
- MLS apologized for falsely confirming that Atlanta United signed Celtic forward Kyogo Furuhashi as a Designated Player.
- Kathryn Nesbitt and Guido Gonzales Jr. were voted 2024 U.S. Soccer Female and Male Referees of the Year.
- Jesse Marsch spoke on how Canada could not hold a January camp this year due to its financial situation. I guess they weren’t able to sell all of those drones in a yard sale.
- Everton fired Sean Dyche before its FA Cup win and David Moyes is reportedly set to replace him.
That’s all I have for you today. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!
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