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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Cruz Azul, Leagues Cup: Final Score 0-0 as Lions Crash Out of Leagues Cup on First Ever Shootout Loss

The Lions largely outplayed the Liga MX giants for 90 minutes but weren’t clinical enough in front of goal before bowing out in penalties.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City kept its unbeaten streak alive but lost its first-ever penalty shootout after a 0-0 draw against Cruz Azul at Inter&Co Stadium in the Leagues Cup round of 32. Stretching the team’s unbeaten run to eight matches in all competitions (5-0-3) will be of little consolation to the club after losing 5-4 in penalties to a solid Liga MX side. It was Cruz Azul’s fourth 0-0 draw in the last two Leagues Cup runs and second this year.

However, as good as La Máquina was defensively in this game, it was Orlando City’s lack of finishing that cost the team the game. The Lions lacked the finishing lethality they’ve shown for much of the team’s unbeaten run, either missing just wide or hitting balls straight at the goalkeeper.

“I thought the boys performed really well,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “I think we played against a very good team that brought a very good match as well. They were intense from the first minute and the level of the technical part and the level of the tactics were first level and we were up to it. We leave the competition without losing and that’s the pain that we have. And obviously we’re sad but we played very well and I saw that Orlando City that we want to see. We’re sad but we’re proud.”

Pareja’s lineup had only one change from the squad that drew Atletico San Luis a week ago. With Kyle Smith suspended for his red card, Rafael Santos got the start. Goalkeeper Pedro Gallese started behind a back line of Santos, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena started in the central midfield behind an attacking line of Ivan Angulo, Martin Ojeda, and Facundo Torres with Ramiro Enrique up top.

The first half offered few chances for either side in a physical matchup, but most of those created were by the Lions.

Orlando City should have scored early. A nice play by Angulo on the left allowed him to escape pressure and cut across the middle of the field, where he played a perfect ball to Thorhallsson on the right and continued his run. Thorhallsson gave him a perfect return pass with an open net in front of him but Angulo missed badly to the right of goal in the second minute.

Ojeda’s cross picked out Torres in front in the 10th minute but the Uruguayan got under his volley attempt and fired over the bar.

Ojeda thought he’s scored a minute later but the whistle had gone for a foul on Enrique against Cruz Azul goalkeeper Kevin Mier, who just beat him to the ball.

The visitors got their first shot in the 19th minute on a blast outside the box by Carlos Rotondi, but Thorhallsson did well to get in front of him and block it. Two minutes later, Giorgos Giakoumakis was left alone at the penalty spot and volleyed a shot off a cross from the right, but he didn’t get all of it and it was an easy save for Gallese.

Santos fired a shot high over the net in the 38th minute off a corner kick clearance and hit the Heineken sign on the facing of the upper deck.

In the 40th minute, Enrique got an excellent opportunity on the right, but he hit his shot right at Mier, who still had to make a good reaction save to keep it out.

After a couple of long-range shots by Cruz Azul that didn’t trouble Gallese’s goal, Thorhallsson got a chance from the right in the 44th minute, but he too hit his shot right at the goalkeeper. The Icelandic fullback then made a major mistake deep in first-half stoppage time, making a poor back pass straight to Giakoumakis, but the former Atlanta United striker sent his curling shot from the top of the area wide of the right post.

That was the last look of the half and the teams went into the break scoreless.

At the break, the visitors had the advantage in possession (54.1%-45.9%), shots (6-5), shots on target (3-2), and passing accuracy (88.9%-85.4%), while the Lions earned more corners (2-0) and created the most clear-cut opportunities.

The first chance of the second half fell Cruz Azul’s way when Brekalo was called for a foul and booked just after the restart. Ignacio Rivero went from goal on the free kick but Gallese punched it away.

Torres took Orlando’s first shot of the second period in the 50th minute from outside the area but hit his shot over the bar. Orlando City then squandered another great opportunity four minutes later. Angulo did well in the corner to shake free and get around the defense and into the box on the left. He picked out Enrique with a pass but the Argentine sent his left-footed effort wide of the left post from close range.

“I thought we created some (options) in very dangerous positions and you have to find the game as you see it, and we were not sharp in that finishing,” Pareja said. “But we had the best of the options and probably the best of the soccer.”

After Rotondi sent a shot well off target from the top of the box in Orlando’s defensive end, the Lions again wasted a good opportunity in the 59th minute. Enrique made a great tackle in the attacking third to win the ball, then quickly found Torres in the box. Torres’ first shot was blocked by the defense but he got in behind, still with the ball at his feet, but he sent his shot just inches wide of the left post.

Uriel Antuna tried a weak backheel flick from the top of the box in the 70th minute but it was no trouble for Gallese.

Ojeda had a go from the top of the area at the other end in the 73rd minute, but once again the shot was straight at the goalkeeper. Six minutes later, it was second-half substitute Duncan McGuire firing straight at Mier.

The final 11 minutes plus stoppage time were largely uneventful except a late chance deep in stoppage time for Cruz Azul that resulted in a Gallese save that ultimately didn’t count because the flag came up. That was the last action and the match ended in a 0-0 draw.

Cruz Azul finished with the edge in possession (54.6%-45.4%), shots (14-11), shots on target (6-4), and passing accuracy (87.3%-83.7%), while the Lions won more corners (4-0).

To determine which team would advance, there was no extra time, as the competition calls for penalty kicks immediately following a draw.

Jansson was the surprising choice to take the first penalty, and it looked like a poor decision when the defender’s shot was saved by Mier. However, Cruz Azul starting striker Ignacio Rivero missed the net wide to the right, offering the Lions a reprieve. The next eight shooters all found the mark in succession — second-half subs Nico Lodeiro, Luis Muriel, and McGuire, along with Torres for Orlando, and Andres Montano, Willer Ditta, Gonzalo Piovi, and Angel Sepulveda for Cruz Azul — sending the shootout to sudden death.

Thorhallsson was Orlando’s sixth shooter, but saw his penalty saved, putting the pressure on Gallese to make a save to keep his team in it. However, former LAFC winger Antuna scored to end the Lions’ perfect shootout record and knock Orlando City out of the competition.

“We’ve been doing good for a long period now here and we’re going to try to continue to build on that,” Jansson said. “I think today we had a great game and Pedro had some good saves too, when they had a couple of chances. I don’t think they had too many chances though. We take that with us that we had a great game, but right now we’re disappointed. We really wanted to go through, but the PKs sometimes it’s a lottery. Today we weren’t good enough. I missed and I’m not happy with that but sometimes that’s the game.”


With the Leagues Cup behind them, the Lions will have to wait until Aug. 24 to play their next game. That match will be at Sporting Kansas City.

Orlando City

Orlando City’s Designated Players Delightfully Productive to Start the Season

A performance evaluation of Orlando City’s Designated Players through three games and how they compare to the rest of the league.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

There will come a point someday in the future when Major League Soccer will stop using all its silly roster rules and allow teams to build their rosters however they would like to à la the rest of the world, but until then we must continue to live in the alphabet soup of acronyms like BAM, GAM, HAM, and TAM (two of those are actual MLS roster-building methods, one is a food often eaten with green eggs — back when eggs were affordable — and the other is onomatopoeia; I am confident you can identify the two acronyms that are MLS allocation money).

The other commonly used term, as it relates to roster-building methods in MLS, is DP, or Designated Player — a player who can be paid any amount as their salary while having a fixed amount that counts against the salary cap. The amount depends on the age of the DP. Players above the age of 24 count as $743,750 against the team’s salary budget; ages 21-23 count as $200,000; and players aged 20 or younger count as $150,000. You can read all you ever wanted to know about this subject and more by checking out the 2025 MLS Roster Rules and Regulations. Bring snacks. And a pillow.

Orlando City has three Designated Players on the 2025 roster: Luis Muriel, Martín Ojeda, and Marco Pašalić. Among the 30 teams in MLS, 11 teams, including Orlando City, have three Designated Players, 17 have two, and two teams only have one, for a total of 69 DPs on rosters as of Week 4 of the 2025 MLS season.

Only 61 of those 69 Designated Players have played thus far this season, however, as five are currently injured (CF Montréal’s Giacomo Vrioni, LA Galaxy’s Joseph Paintsil and Riqui Puig, New England’s Tomás Chancalay, and Portland’s Jonathan Rodríguez). In addition, one is on loan until June (NYCFC’s Talles Magno), one still does not have his paperwork in order to play in MLS (LAFC’s Cengiz Ünder), and one has been a healthy scratch in each game this season, as his team was actively looking to transfer him to another club (Toronto’s Lorenzo Insigne).

Most clubs use their Designated Player spots for attacking players, which makes sense considering attacking players tend to command the highest salaries, and with a DP only counting a set amount against the salary cap, teams can afford to pay high salaries to bring in attacking talent without the risk of jamming up their salary cap utilization. Only three of the 69 DPs in MLS this season are primarily defenders — Inter Miami’s Jordi Alba, Nashville SC’s Walker Zimmerman, and NYCFC’s Thiago Martins — and frankly, I am surprised it is even that many.

Orlando City has deployed 16 Designated Players since entering MLS, with all of those players in attacking roles while wearing purple. During some years, the performance by the club’s Designated Players was, shall we say, underwhelming, but through three games in 2025 (I know, I know, it is only three games), Orlando City can make a case that the performance of its DPs has been nearly the best in the league.

Let’s make that case. Right here. Right now. Bonus points if you remember this outstanding adidas commercial using Fatboy Slim’s “Right Here, Right Now.”

Ultimately, soccer matches come down to two measures: goals scored and goals allowed. Being that nearly every Designated Player plays in an attacking position, we can focus more on the goals scored as a measure of comparison. In order to score a goal, you need to create a shot, so I used Opta’s tracking on fbref.com to aggregate every Designated Player’s performance thus far in 2025 and normalize it to a per-90-minute basis.

Every blue circle in the table below is the average performance by a team’s Designated Players per 90 minutes for shot-creating actions and goals scored (example: the Houston Dynamo are the lonely circle closest to the bottom left corner; the Dynamo’s two Designated Players create, average, exactly one shot per 90 minutes and zero goals per 90 minutes, which is not ideal). The purple bullseye is Orlando City, which has DPs averaging 4.73 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes and scoring 0.57 goals per 90 minutes. The orange circle is the MLS average.

The ideal location on a chart like this would be for your team’s circle to be as far to the upper right as possible, with DPs creating lots of shots for their teammates and scoring lots of goals as well. If you had to choose one axis, you would of course prefer to be higher on the y-axis than the x-axis (your seventh grade Algebra teacher promised you that you would use the cartesian plane in real life someday), since goals scored are more important than shots created.

The Mane Land’s Ben Miller wrote a piece in our Monday newsletter, exclusively available to those who subscribe (which you can do by clicking on this hyperlink) about the goal-scoring performances of Orlando City’s three Designated Players thus far this season. Expanding on what Ben wrote, here are the per-90-minute stats for Orlando City’s three DPs thus far:

PlayerMins PlayedSCAGoalsAssistsGoal Contributions
Luis Muriel1513.580.600.601.20
Martín Ojeda2436.670.370.370.74
Marco Pašalić2343.460.770.381.15

The combined averages of these players’ performances are the aforementioned 4.73 shot-creating actions and 0.57 goals scored per 90 minutes. Orlando City’s DPs rank third in the league for shot-creating actions and fifth in goals scored. Seattle’s DPs (Jordan Morris and Albert Rusnák) are the reverse — fifth in shot-creating actions and third in goals scored — tying them with Orlando City at an average of fourth. Both teams trail expansion team San Diego FC, which is off to a strong start with two wins and a draw in its first three matches, and which has DPs (Anders Dreyer and Hirving “Chucky” Lozano) who rank fourth in shot-creating actions and second in goals scored, leading all clubs with an average of third across the two measures.

Looking at this a little differently, we can use standard deviations to compare just how much better or worse each club’s Designated Players compare to the league average. The axes look flipped from the last chart, but they are not. Shot-creating actions are still on the x-axis and goals on the y-axis. In this case, on the x-axis we are comparing a team’s average per 90 minutes in shot-creating actions to the league average, and we can see that Orlando City, again located in the purple bullseye, is 1.33 standard deviations better than league average.

The Lions are also 0.99 standard deviations better than league average in goals per 90 minutes, making them one of only six clubs who have Designated Players performing better than league average in both metrics (positive values are better than league average, negative values are worse than league average), and in a smaller group of three clubs that can claim to have had the best performance in terms of both creating shots and scoring goals.

The two circles located in the vicinity of Orlando City are again Seattle and San Diego, performing better in goals per 90 minutes but not as well in shot-creating actions. The outlier on the y-axis is D.C. United, as that club’s DPs are averaging 1.04 goals per 90 minutes, nearly three standard deviations (read: a lot) more than league average. The outlier on the x-axis is Nashville, which is surprising given that Zimmerman, a central defender, is one of the team’s DPs. Nashville is averaging nearly six shot-creating actions per DP per 90 minutes — almost 2.5 standard deviations more than league average.

If you recall your statistics classes, the general rule is that 95% of data points fall within two standard deviations above or below the average, so when any person or any team is more than two standard deviations better than the average either a) they are doing incredibly well, or b) the sample may not yet be big enough to feel confident in the standard deviations. In this case, it is probably both, as the teams have only played three games.

Even though the samples are small, it is still completely OK to feel great about the initial performances of Orlando City’s three Designated Players. The group has combined for four goals and three assists, and Muriel, Ojeda, and Pašalić have been a driving force behind a strong start to the season on the offensive end of the field.

Here’s to hoping that Orlando’s Designated Players will continue their torrid pace when the club returns back to the New York City metro area to play the Red Bulls on Saturday and their performance evokes a phrase from another Fatboy Slim song, and come Saturday, we find ourselves praising them like we should.

Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City

Orlando City at New York Red Bulls: Three Keys to Victory

What do the Lions need to do to bounce back on the road and secure a victory against the New York Red Bulls?

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Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Orlando City heads north for the second week in a row, but this time to Red Bull…er…Sports Illustrated Stadium to take on the New York Red Bulls. The Lions are coming off a disappointing loss to New York City FC. A win gets Orlando City back to .500 before returning to Inter&Co Stadium next week.

On paper this looks like a low-scoring match, so it will probably be a barn burner. What does Orlando City need to do to earn all three points on the road against the New York Red Bulls?

Oh Captain, My Captain!

Robin Jansson is back, but the defense still gave up two goals against New York City FC. That’s eight goals shipped in three games for those who are counting. It’s not particularly surprising that Orlando City is 1-2-0 given the leaky defense. It doesn’t get any easier this Saturday with yet another road trip to play a New York team, albeit this time in New Jersey. I’m not sure if that’s better or worse, but we do know they will at least be playing on a normal-sized soccer pitch this week.

The Red Bulls aren’t exactly prolific scorers so far this season with only two goals so far — one from Emil Forsberg and one from Mohammed Sofo — but that doesn’t mean they can’t score this weekend. Now that the captain is back, the defense needs to get things sorted out. I’m hoping that the normal spacing of SI Stadium will allow the defense to refocus with Jansson back in charge.

Break on Through

New York may not score a ton of goals, but it gives up even fewer. The Red Bulls have only allowed one goal this season. It came in the match against FC Cincinnati off a long pass and off the head of Kevin Denkey. Even then, there were two defenders on him and it was a race between Denkey and keeper Carlos Coronel to see who would reach the ball first. I’m saying it’s not easy to score against them.

On the flip side, Orlando City has been able to score seven goals in its first three matches. Those goals have come from six different players. I think that there will be two players I’ll be watching in particular in the buildup. Jansson is fairly accurate at delivering long passes like the one on which Cincinnati scored. We also know that one of Eduard Atuesta’s strengths is connecting the defense to the offense. If the two can break the lines of the opposition, then the Lions have enough options up top to spread out the chances.

Use the Space

If Orlando City never plays in Yankee Stadium again it will be too soon. Luckily, the passing lanes and spacing will be back to normal standards this weekend. That should mean better passing from Orlando City, and the ability to run the offense how Oscar Pareja prefers.

As such, I want the Lions to take their time, be methodical, and strike when the time is right. That doesn’t mean they have to build out of the back all night. If the Red Bulls are creeping up, go route one. Use whatever space New York gives, but don’t let up. You can’t win if you don’t score, and one goal may determine this match.


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

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 3/13/25

Getting to know Robin Jansson, Orlando Pride announce 2025 season roster, Orlando City’s watch party schedule, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

How’s it going, Mane Landers? Soccer in the City Beautiful is back and in full swing, with another stacked weekend ahead of us. I’ve been spending most of the week working and getting some reading done before the rest of the month really gets busier for me. For those who like contemporary romance and are looking for a recommendation, First-Time Caller has been a fantastic read so far. But enough about what you should be reading, let’s get to the links!

Getting to Know Robin Jansson

Enjoy taking a stroll with Orlando City center back Robin Jansson, who detailed his role on the team and experience in Orlando. The 33-year-old has become an MLS veteran over the years and talked about how his game has developed since moving from Sweden to the U.S., notably how he’s able to play with the ball at his feet a bit more. As the team’s captain, Jansson provides leadership both on and off the pitch and discussed how he’s fit into the verbal and intense South American culture within the club. He also spoke on how he gives back to the community by visiting kids in the hospital to help them on their journeys.

Orlando Pride Announce Roster for 2025 Season

With the NWSL season only a few days away, the Orlando Pride announced their start-of-season roster. There aren’t too many changes from the team that won both the NWSL Shield and NWSL Championship last year, although Adriana’s transfer to Saudi Arabian club Al Qadsiah FC is notable. New additions acquired this off-season include Zambian forward Prisca Chilufya, World Cup winner Oihane Hernández, and rookie defender Zara Chavoshi. Luana, Simone Charley, and Amanda Allen are the players on the season-ending injury list heading into the 2025 season as well.

Orlando City Reveals 2025 Watch Party Schedule

The schedule for this year’s Orlando City watch parties was announced and fans will be able to watch seven away games at different local pubs. The first will be Saturday at Burton’s Thornton Park for Orlando’s road game against the New York Red Bulls. This should create a nice atmosphere for Orlando’s road rivalry games in May too, as the game against Inter Miami on May 18 will fittingly be watched at Rivals, while the watch party for the game against Atlanta United on May 28 will be at The Hideaway. Orlando’s Decision Day match with Toronto FC will be hosted at Kiwi’s Pub & Grill to close out the regular season. As part of the club’s partnership with the pubs, each one will have access to MLS Season Pass for all of the Lions’ games this year as well.

New NWSL Players to Watch in 2025

Pride fans are well aware that NWSL newcomers played a major role in the league last season, as Barbra Banda was a major reason behind the club’s historic year. This year’s new faces include many players who could impress in their first year in the NWSL, like aforementioned Pride defender Oihane Hernandez. The right back helped Spain win the 2023 Women’s World Cup and bronze at the 2024 Olympics and joined the Pride after two seasons with Real Madrid. She’s skilled on both sides of the ball and gives opponents another obstacle to overcome this season.

OCB Lands in MLS NEXT Pro’s Top 10

The first power rankings of the MLS NEXT Pro season are out and Orlando City B placed sixth. The Young Lions kicked off their season at home on Sunday with a 2-1 win over Columbus Crew 2. A late rally by Columbus nearly spoiled things, but OCB did well to hold onto its lead and secure all three points. Orlando’s next match will be Sunday at Osceola Heritage Park against Atlanta United 2, which lost 1-0 to New York Red Bulls II during the opening weekend.

Free Kicks

  • Chicago Stars forward Mallory Swanson won’t be with the team when it takes on the Pride this Friday due to personal reasons.
  • Although she’s focused on this NWSL season, Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman stated that it’s just a matter of when in regards to her making the move to Europe.
  • Seattle Sounders midfielder Paul Arriola was carted off due to a left knee injury during his team’s 4-1 loss to Cruz Azul. It’s tough news for Arriola, who tore his right ACL in 2020.
  • Charlotte FC bolstered its defense by adding left back Souleyman Doumbia on loan from Standard Liège for the 2025 season.
  • The Kansas City Current signed forward Flora Marta Lacho to a two-year contract, making her the first Angolan player in league history. She heads to the U.S. after helping TP Mazembe win the 2024 CAF Women’s Champions League last year.
  • The UEFA Champions League quarterfinals are set and each matchup looks to be a good one. Arsenal will take on Real Madrid, Bayern Munich will face Inter Milan, Borussia Dortmund will play Barcelona, and Aston Villa will square off against Paris Saint-Germain.
  • Bos Nation FC hired Amina Bulman as its chief revenue officer. Bulman led the Washington Commanders’ revamp as the NFL team’s chief brand and strategy officer, so a similar brand reset is hopefully on the horizon for the NWSL club.

That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and rest of your week!

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