Orlando City vs. D.C. United: Five Takeaways

Well that was certainly fun, wasn’t it? Orlando City returned to the City Beautiful and absolutley obliterated D.C. United in a 5-0 drumming. For Orlando it was easily the squad’s best performance of the year as five different Lions found the back of the net. What follows are my five takeaways from a great night of soccer.

Solid Defense

D.C. United started the match on the front foot, and for Orlando, a team that has conceeded more goals in the first 15 minutes of matches this year than any other team in Major League Soccer, the pressure was coming early and often. The great news for Orlando City fans is that the defense held stout, and for as much pressure as D.C. tried to apply early with a high line and aggressive press, United’s attack was ineffective. Orlando needed a clean sheet and will look to ride the momentum from a good team defensive performance into the remainder of its July matches.

Ojeda’s Strong Form

Much has been written and discussed about Designated Player Martin Ojeda and his role with the squad since joining Orlando on Jan 7. 2023. For all of the ups and downs so far, the Argentinian midfielder seems to have finally found his footing, and it could not come at a better time for the Lions. After scoring and setting up the go-ahead goal against Toronto, Ojeda found the back of the net for the first goal of the match against D.C. and was seemingly all over the pitch, making multiple good passes to get the team into dangerous positions. In his current form, Ojeda is a must-start player, and it is refreshing to see his skill finally flourishing.

The Captain Leaves his Mark

Making an incredibly strong push for Man of the Match honors, captain Robin Jansson contributed on both the offensive and defensive side of the pitch. On defense, Jansson did well to help keep Christian Benteke out of threatening positions and had a beautiful goal line clearance, preventing a United goal just before the second-half hydration break. Offensively, Jansson found the back of the net, placing a header past Tyler Miller on a perfectly placed pass from Wilder Cartagena for his first goal of the season and first since the 2022 campaign. It was fitting for the captain to score on a night the Lions were honoring their inaugural MLS captain, Kaká.

Torres’ Right Foot

They say that good things come to those who wait. I say good things come to those who use their non-dominant foot. For the second week in a row, Torres has struck the ball with his right foot and the ball has found the back of the net. I know the goal against Toronto was technically an own goal. But at home against D.C., Torres scored the fourth goal of the night with his right foot after a lung-busting run to get onto the end of a brillant pass from Duncan McGuire. Torres now has four goals and three assists in the last five matches and is quickly rounding into his summer form. If he continues to take chances with his right foot, I expect the offensive options to open up even more than they already have.

Slashing the Goal Differential

Who are these Lions and where did that effort come from? Orlando City scored five times for the first time since a match against the San Jose Earthquakes back on June 22, 2021. It was the best collective offensive showing in recent memory, with five different Lions scoring and four different Lions contributing assists. Ojeda, Jansson, Ivan Angulo, Torres, and Ramiro Enrique all scored, and the team as a whole had multiple quality chances to add even more to the overall total if just a few bounces had fallen differently. Coming into the match, Orlando was sitting at a slightly embarassing -9 goal differential. With Saturday’s win, the Lions climbed the table into a playoff position and the goal differential fell to -4.

That is what I saw in Orlando City’s best home result of the year. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below and as always, vamos Orlando!