Orlando City
Orlando City vs. New York City FC: Final Score 1-1 as Teams Trade Second-Half Goals
The Lions and Pigeons split the points in a defensive struggle in the Orlando heat.
The Lions struck first but could only hold the lead for five minutes as Orlando City and New York City FC split the points in a 1-1 draw before an announced crowd of 22,827 at Inter&Co Stadium. Ramiro Enrique scored in his fourth consecutive match for Orlando (9-9-7, 34 points) but a bad giveaway in the defensive third handed Hannes Wolf a chance to equalize for NYCFC (11-9-5, 38 points) in a defensive struggle.
“A big effort from the players after this couple weeks that we have been playing every three days, and I would like to value that effort,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “The two teams tried to put a good performance, and from our side in the first half we had control but we were not as dangerous as we were coming in prior games. They kept possession sometimes in their half but not dangerous plays. Second half, it seems we brought more energy and we started creating better chances.”
Pareja made just one change from the squad that beat Nashville SC 3-0 on the road Wednesday, dropping Facundo Torres to the bench and starting Nico Lodeiro. Pedro Gallese started in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena started in central midfield behind an attacking line of Ivan Angulo, Lodeiro, and Martin Ojeda, with Enrique up top.
The first half was a defensive battle and probably not a match you’d use to change a soccer skeptic’s mind about the sport. With both teams playing their third match in eight days and the oppressive Central Florida heat, the teams tried to stay organized and wait for the other to make a mistake. As a result, there were no scoring chances of any kind in the first quarter of an hour.
Ojeda sent in a cross to Enrique in the 17th minute that had a lot of pace on it and the latter could only redirect it weakly toward goal. It wasn’t even technically a shot attempt. In the 22nd minute, Lodeiro sent a good ball from the right to the back post. Angulo got to it first but had no angle to shoot and put it into the outside netting.
Alonso Martinez fired New York City FC’s first shot from outside the box a minute later. It had a ton of power behind it but Gallese was able to fight it off.
Ojeda nearly picked out Enrique right in front from the left in the 27th minute but the ball was a bit too far out in front and Matt Freese pounced on it.
Just after the hydration break, Wolf got in behind Thorhallsson in the 34th minute down the left channel. He sent a good shot toward the back post but Gallese made the save, pushing the rebound out wide.
Two minutes later, Angulo cut in from the left and sent a shot toward the near post. Freese made the save and didn’t give up much of a rebound. The Colombian may have been better served to go for the far post.
That was the last half chance for either side in the scoreless opening period.
Orlando City had the halftime advantage in possession (56.7%-43.3%) and shot attempts (4-2), but the visitors held the edge in shots on target (2-1), corners (1-0), and passing accuracy (87.4%-86.3%).
Facundo Torres subbed on for Lodeiro to start the second half, but the visitors created the first clear-cut chance after the break. Keaton Parks got in behind Angulo and he and Santos couldn’t recover in time to prevent a good cutback pass into the area. No one was on Santiago Rodriguez — NYCFC’s biggest offensive threat — but the Uruguayan fired his shot over the bar from about 12 yards out in the 47th minute.
The Lions broke the deadlock five minutes later. Ojeda cut inside from the right and sent a shot toward goal that redirected off Enrique’s foot and caught Freese leaning the wrong way. The ball trickeled into the net near the right post and Orlando led 1-0 in the 52nd minute. It was Enrique’s fourth goal in as many games.
“It always makes me happy to score a goal,” Enrique said. “As a striker, it’s really important to be able to score, but I think tonight we leave the game with a little bit of a sour taste in our mouth, because we felt like we had that game and that we should have won.”
The lead lasted only five minutes. Cartagena’s howler of a turnover on a blind pass just outside his own penalty area went right to NYCFC’s Rodriguez, and the Pigeons paid off the short counterattack as the ball was slipped in to Wolf by Martinez, who chipped it into the far corner and out of Gallese’s reach to make it 1-1 in the 57th minute.
“We have the game one-zero. It is something this year that has been a challenge for us to open the games. And then this goal we conceded. This is why we have that sensation of frustration for us, that it was not that they did a lot of stuff to tie the game.”
NYCFC nearly took the lead a few minutes later on a simple long ball over the top that caught Santos napping. Mitja Ilenic blazed past the Brazilian and sent a chip shot similar to Wolf’s, but missed the target in the 62nd minute.
Torres cut inside on his left foot and fired in the 66th minute but pulled his shot to the right of the post. Enrique then fired a blast from outside the area in the 67th minute and Freese made a good save.
New York City was content to be physical when threatened by Orlando’s attacking players. The visitors finished with 20 fouls to the Lions’ 11 and ended the game with more yellow cards (4-1) as well. Strahinja Tanasijevic and Wolf were booked a minute apart for roughing up Ojeda and Torres, respectively.
Santos got away with a terrible turnover in his end in the 75th minute, hustling back into position to block Rodriguez’s shot just wide of the left post.
Cartagena nearly made up for his earlier mistake in the 83rd minute when he blasted a shot on target from long range. Freese was able to get over and make a diving, one-handed save on the play and needed treatment to his shoulder after hitting the ground hard.
The Lions were able to deal with several NYCFC set-piece opportunities down the stretch without too much trouble and the game went into eight minutes of injury time.
The only real opportunity in stoppage time fell to second-half sub Luis Muriel in the 98th minute. Just inside the top of the box, the ball cycled around and found Muriel in the middle. He turned and fired but didn’t get a lot of power on it and Freese was able to make the save.
That was that, and the teams had to settle for a draw.
The Lions finished with the advantage in possession (55%-45%), shots (12-8), and shots on target (5-3). Corners were even (5-5), and NYCFC passed slightly more accurately (84.9%-83.5%).
“Tough game,” Jansson said. “Two teams that really wanted it. I think that New York was a little bit better in the first half and we were a little bit better in the second, getting some good chances, and it was a tough opponent today. They did well. It’s always hard to play them. But overall, I think coming from a game two days ago and going into this one, I think we did a great job.”
The Lions’ four-game winning streak is over, but the unbeaten run stretched to five matches.
“We walk (away) with a bit of frustration, but as well with a lot of pride of what the boys have done,” Pareja said. “They have been the best team in Major League Soccer the last several games, knowing today that in front of our fans we should have won it. But we’ll carry that. We need to have energy for the next tournament and pause (of) the league, knowing that we are in a good moment and a good momentum, and I want to give that credit to the players that really have changed the story of our season so far.”
The Leagues Cup break is now upon us. Orlando City will next play at home next Friday against CF Montreal at 8 p.m.
Orlando City
Orlando City, Head Coach Oscar Pareja Mutually Agree to Part Ways
Just three matches into the 2026 season, the club is going to try to find someone else to lead a team with a makeshift back line.
The Oscar Pareja era in Orlando City — the club’s most successful period since joining Major League Soccer — is over. The club announced today that it has “mutually agreed” to part ways with the veteran coach who has compiled by far the most wins of anyone in team history. While the Lions are off to their worst start in club history, the 2026 MLS season is only three weeks old and Pareja has had to field a team with one of the worst back lines in the league while down a Designated Player — not exactly a recipe for success.
Assistant Coach and former OCB manager Martin Perelman will lead the team in the interim.
“I want to thank Oscar for the dedication, leadership and professionalism he brought to our club,” Orlando City General Manager and Sporting Director Ricardo Moreira said in a club press release. “He delivered one of the most significant moments in Orlando City’s history with the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and helped establish the competitive foundation that has propelled us forward, highlighted by our active club-record run of six straight playoffs appearances, which is currently the longest streak in MLS. At the same time, we believe this is the right moment to take the club in a new direction as we look to the next phase of our growth and ambitions. We are grateful for everything Oscar has contributed and wish him nothing but success in the next chapter of his career.”
The club hired Pareja as its fourth full-time MLS head coach on Dec. 4, 2019, succeeding James O’Connor. Pareja compiled a record of 103-69-65 in 237 games at the helm across all competitions, and if our numbers look different from other places, we are not counting shootout losses as losses from Leagues Cup league phase games (because that’s dumb) or the matches for which Pareja was suspended, like the 2025 home match against the Chicago Fire in which Diego Torres — who leaves Orlando City along with Pareja — led the team. Pareja led the team to the 2022 U.S. Open Cup championship, the club’s first major trophy, and had led the Lions to the postseason in every year he’s been in charge. He also led Orlando to the MLS is Back Tournament final as well as the final four of the 2025 Leagues Cup.
City extended Pareja’s contract through 2028 just 11 months ago, and although the club faded down the stretch in 2025, the insane amount of travel for the Leagues Cup knockout stages and heavy legs from the club’s thinner roster areas a year ago forced a lot of extra miles onto some of the team’s most important legs — Marco Pasalic, Martin Ojeda, Jansson, Eduard Atuesta, and others. Pareja, for his part, never looked for excuses or threw his players under the bus in the same way that former OCSC coach Jason Kreis did during his tenure. He accepted the blame for every on-field mistake, whether he could control it or not, including his club’s performance after Maxime Crepeau’s ridiculous red card on Saturday at New York City FC.
“I want to express my sincere gratitude to the club’s players, staff, and supporters for the trust they’ve given me over these last several years,” Pareja said in the club’s release. “Together, we shared moments that will stay with me forever. While it is the right time for both me and the club to move in new directions, I leave proud of the work we did and with deep appreciation for the people who made it possible. Orlando will always have a special place in my heart, and I wish the team nothing but success in the future.”
“Oscar’s impact on our club and community will always be remembered,” said Mark Wilf, Orlando City SC Owner & Chairman. “He helped elevate Orlando City on and off the field, guided us through milestones that reshaped our trajectory and represented our crest with integrity. We are grateful for all he has given to the organization.”
Perelman coached OCB in 2022 and 2023 before joining the MLS side’s staff as an assistant coach in 2024. OCB is also losing its coach at this time, as Perelman’s replacement with the reserve squad, Manuel Goldberg, will become an interim assistant with the MLS side. Goldberg served as Perelman’s assistant with OCB for two seasons before replacing him. Julian Vergara will be OCB’s interim manager.
What It Means for Orlando City
Reading Moreira’s statement, it’s hard to imagine what direction the club is choosing to go from here. Without significant upgrades to the roster, this does not look like a playoff team in a highly competitive MLS Eastern Conference. The back line, made up of an underachieving David Brekalo, rookie Nolan Miller (splitting time with teenaged new arrival Iago), the unconvincing Adrian Marin, and the recently arrived Griffin Dorsey, has been abysmal to start the year in the absence of injured captain Robin Jansson. While time may help that group gel to some extent, it is not a defensive group that opposing teams will lose sleep over.
The roster has suffered heavy losses along the back line, losing starters Rodrigo Schlegel and Alex Freeman as well as key backups Kyle Smith and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Additionally, the club moved on from starting goalkeeper Pedro Gallese. While upgrades were needed across the board, it’s hard to argue that any of those positions have even maintained their previous quality, let alone improved. Marin at least has a chance to provide an improvement at left back, as he’s finally been through a full camp and had time to integrate. It hasn’t helped that he picked up a knock early in this season.
Orlando City appears content with simply trying a new voice, and there’s nothing wrong with that (Pareja was the second-longest tenured coach in MLS behind Seattle’s Brian Schmetzer), but any new voice will need a back line, a goalkeeper who doesn’t get unnecessarily ejected, and a third Designated Player. That voice will also need the MLS U22 Initiative kids to grow up quickly, because they represent the depth of a team that sorely needs some. It’s clear that the club believes the roster is good enough for the moment, but three games have shown that it is not, unless Pareja was making things more complicated than the players could handle.
Pareja has been a good soldier for the club his entire tenure. He has routinely put every failure on his own shoulders and has given all credit for successes to his players and the organization. The Colombian has stoically led Orlando City to its highest highs. It is hard to imagine a way forward this season regardless of who takes over unless some changes come to the roster.
Lion Links
Lion Links: 3/11/26
Maxime Crepeau fined, NWSL season approaches, USMNT news and notes, and more.
Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. The Orlando Pride are finally back in action this weekend, and we’ll get to watch it — unlike the preseason. It’s a good thing too, since Orlando City has been hard to watch. Speaking of the Pride, you won’t want to miss this week’s episode of SkoPurp Soccer: An Orlando Pride Podcast and our special guest. Until then, let’s get to the links.
Trio of Missing Lions
Crepeau, Jansson & Gerbet sounds like a law firm specializing in personal injury cases. That is definitely the case when it comes to Robin Jansson and Joran Gerbet, as the two work back from their respective injuries. Fortunately, there’s some progress on that. Both are training off to the side. Hopefully, their recoveries go well and they can return to help Orlando City.
Maxime Crepeau will be absent from Orlando City’s next match thanks to the red card he earned against New York City FC Saturday afternoon. He was also fined by the MLS Disciplinary Committee for not leaving the field in a timely manner. I’d like to say he had a good argument against the sending off, but I can’t, and I’m not the only one.
NWSL Season Approaches
We are days away from the Orlando Pride season opener — and the rest of the NWSL will kick off over the weekend as well. That means it’s time for speculation about the various clubs and how ambitious each was based on its off-season moves. The Pride were not very ambitious, but perhaps the club did not need to be. Despite the supposed lack of ambition, the Pride are still a team to watch, even if others don’t consider the club “must watch” tv.
U.S. National Team Player News & Notes
The fact that there are USMNT players competing in the Champions League is great news in a World Cup year. Johnny Cardoso’s Atletico Madrid beat Tottenham Hotspur 5-2 with some help from a guy name Antoine Griezmann. Mauricio Pochettino said he also respects MLS players like Sebastian Berhalter. Speaking of Berhalters, former USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter said the USMNT is poised for success in the World Cup. We know the team won’t be wearing the denim kit despite Adidas bringing it back.
Free Kicks
- The Lions are not at the bottom of the ESPN MLS power rankings. I am pleasantly surprised.
- Orlando City and the Orlando Pride have renewed the sponsorship with Publix to a new multi-year deal.
- The club also announced a series of single match ticket promotions.
- The Premier League’s new financial rules have others in UEFA a little nervous. It’s not surprising in the arms race for the top players in the world.
- The NWSL announced the formation of the NWSL Health Advisory Council that will take a holistic approach to player health and wellbeing.
- MLS Next has announced a host of new clubs will be joining both tiers of the league.
- Former USWNT player Lauren Holiday is calling for the various women’s leagues to align their seasons much like MLS is doing with the rest of the world.
- The Houston Dynamo are bringing back Ibrahim Aliyu in a trade with the Columbus Crew.
That will do it for today. Check back as we get you ready for the Orlando City and Orlando Pride matches this weekend. Vamos Orlando!
Lion Links
Lion Links: 3/10/26
MLS hands out two lifetime bans for gambling, Americans in midweek action, Sergino Dest injury update, and more.
Good morning, everyone. It was a mixed bag for Orlando’s soccer teams over the weekend, as Orlando City took a brutal beating on the baseball diamond at Yankee Stadium, while Orlando City B knocked off Chicago Fire II at home to pick up its first win of the young season. We’ve got a busy week ahead of us, as the Young Lions take on Carolina Core on Saturday afternoon, OCSC is at home against CF Montreal later that night, and the Orlando Pride kick off the season against the Seattle Reign on Sunday. We’ve got a lot to discuss this morning, so let’s get into the links.
MLS Bans Two Players for Life
Major League Soccer has given lifetime bans to Derrick Jones and Yaw Yeboah for violating the league’s gambling policy. The pair “engaged in extensive gambling on soccer,” with the kicker being that they placed bets on games in which their own teams were involved. The bets took place during the 2024 and 2025 seasons, with a particular instance highlighted in the Columbus Crew’s 3-2 victory over the New York Red Bulls on Oct. 19, 2024, in which both players bet on Jones to be given a yellow card, which he received in the 35th minute. Neither player is currently under contract with an MLS team.
Americans in Midweek Action
There are a number of Americans who will be playing matches during the working week, and the knockout rounds of continental competitions are once again in the spotlight. Things get going this afternoon when Yunus Musah and Atalanta host Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League, while Johnny Cardoso and Atletico Madrid play Tottenham Hotspur in the same competition. Wednesday has Malik Tillman and Bayer Leverkusen playing Arsenal in the UCL, while former Lion Daryl Dike and West Brom take on Southampton in the Championship. Thursday sees Tanner Tessman and Lyon travel to play Celta Vigo in the Europa League, while Chris Richards and Crystal Palace take on AEK Larnaca in the Conference League. Things conclude on Friday when Alex Freeman will hope to break a streak of four games as an unused substitute when Villarreal travels to Deportivo Alaves in La Liga.
Sergino Dest Injury Update
Sergino Dest went down in the 55th minute of PSV Eindhoven’s league win over AZ Alkmaar on Saturday and had to be helped off the field while putting minimal weight on his left leg. PSV coach Peter Bosz confirmed that it was a hamstring injury, and while the club has made no official statement about how much time he might miss, the fullback said in a statement that he is confident he’ll be fit again near the end of the season. His injury means that the right back situation for the USMNT is suddenly a more interesting one, as Freeman hasn’t been playing much with Villarreal, and guys like Joe Scally will be keen on seizing any potential opportunities.
Iranian Soccer Players Granted Asylum
Five members of the Iranian women’s soccer team have been granted humanitarian visas to remain in Australia after they escaped from the people assigned to keep an eye on them following the team’s final match in the Women’s Asian Cup. The group, which includes team captain Zahra Ghanbari, had been in contact with Australian officials for a number of days, who made it clear that the remaining members of the team would also be welcomed by the country if they chose to stay. The five players that chose to leave are now protected by the Australian Federal Police and consented to have their names and faces published. It is not currently known when the remainder of the team is set to depart from Australia.
Free Kicks
- Marco Pasalic has been called up to represent Croatia.
- United States Men’s National Team Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino is reportedly on the shortlist to replace Real Madrid boss Alvaro Arbeloa before next season.
- The FA Cup quarterfinal draw is complete, with highlights of the next round including Manchester City hosting Liverpool and League One side Port Vale travelling to take on Chelsea.
That’s all I’ve got for you this morning. Vamos Orlando!
Orlando City, Head Coach Oscar Pareja Mutually Agree to Part Ways
SkoPurp Soccer Episode 114: Caitlin Carducci Interview, Seattle Preview, and More
Lion Links: 3/11/26
Orlando City vs. New York City FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
Orlando City vs. New York City FC: Final Score 5-0 as 10-Man Lions Crushed at Yankee Stadium
Orlando City vs. New York City FC: Five Takeaways
-
Orlando City2 weeks agoOrlando City vs. Inter Miami: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
-
Photo Galleries1 week agoOrlando City vs. Inter Miami: Photo Gallery
-
Orlando City1 week agoOrlando City vs. Inter Miami: Player Grades and Man of the Match
-
Orlando City1 week agoOrlando City vs. Inter Miami: Final Score 4-2 as Lions Blow 2-0 Lead in Home Loss
-
Orlando City2 weeks agoOrlando City vs. Inter Miami: Three Keys to Victory
-
Orlando City5 days agoOrlando City vs. New York City FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
-
Orlando City7 days agoOrlando City at New York City FC: Three Keys to Victory
-
Podcasts2 weeks agoPawedCast Episode 518: Antoine Griezmann Transfer Rumor, Red Bulls Rewind, Miami Preview, and More