Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Nashville SC: Five Takeaways
Here’s what we learned from Orlando City’s 3-0 home victory over Nashville SC.
The Lions returned to the City Beautiful after dropping their first match following the Leagues Cup last weekend to Sporting Kansas City. Fortunately for Orlando City, winning cures all ailments, and a home matchup against struggling Nashville SC was exactly what the soccer gods ordered. What follows are our five takeaways from a strong 3-0 rebound win at home.
Limited Rotation
Head Coach Oscar Pareja elected to change very little from the squad which lost by three goals to Sporting Kansas City. When the starting 11 was announced, the only swaps were on the back line, with center back Rodrigo Schlegel stepping in for David Brekalo and Rafael Santos starting over Kyle Smith. It is almost impossible to know what the coaching staff sees in training to warrant roster changes, but many, including our own David Rohe, spoke last week that it may be time again to shake things up in order to find a victory. I don’t expect major changes down the home stretch, with the exception of an injury or suspension, and against Nashville, Pareja tipped his hand as such that he more or less has his established squad at this point. As for effectiveness, Santos didn’t play notably better than Smith and Schlegel picked up a needless yellow card and was replaced by Brekalo at halftime.
Flirting with Disaster
Nashville opened the match on the front foot, commiting heavy numbers forward in the attack in the hopes of finding an early goal. Throughout the opening minutes, there were at least two golden opportunities for Nashville that should have seen the visitors up one or two goals. Fortunately for Orlando City, Sam Surridge hit the post with an early chance, and Pedro Gallese stood strong on a 1-v-1 situation against Alex Muyl to kept the visitors from finding success. It was a nervy opening but did not hurt the Lions in the long run.
Blink and Miss It
Any fans who had to take an early bathroom break inside Inter&Co Stadium might have returned back to their seats to find the game in a very different position than they left it as Orlando City took control of the match with two goals in the span of four minutes. Ivan Angulo and Facundo Torres made it 2-0 before the quarter-hour mark, capitalizing on a defensive mistake and then a beautiful cross. A week removed from squandering scoring opportunities with poorly placed shot attempts, it was refreshing to see Orlando capitalize early. Martin Ojeda did well to knock a wayward Joe Willis cross to Angulo (while in the air) to set up the first goal and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson provided excellent service on the second.
Yellow after Yellow
Who hurt referee Victor Rivas? While overseeing a match is a challenging job, requiring part skill and part art, it seemed as if the match got away from Rivas early with the physical nature of two teams that generally do not like one another. In a game that was fairly even in terms of number of fouls called, Rivas was quick to pull the yellow after a few scuffles to try to regain control — to the tune of three cards in the opening 45 minutes, which were all directed at Orlando City. Schlegel, Ramiro Enrique, and Robin Jansson all picked up bookings early and, fortunately for Orlando City, none of the cards came back to negatively effect the match outcome.
In the second half, three more cards were issued to Santos, Wilder Cartagena, and Cesar Araujo for various infractions. If you were keeping score at home, it took until the 68th minute for a Nashville player to get booked, and the yellow score tab ended 6-1 in sarcastic favor of Orlando. Again, Mr. Rivas…are you ok?
A Brace for Facu
With two goals against Nashville SC, Torres is now up to 10 goals on the season and 15 goal-scoring contributions for the campaign. That puts the Designated Player just four goal-scoring contributions short of his Orlando City career high of 19, which he set in his first season with the team. After a slow start to the year, Torres has now scored six goals across all competions since July 1. Orlando City will need to lean on its star player down the stretch and to see Torres bag a brace against Nashville should be a reassuring sign to all OCSC fans. A fingertip from Willis is all that prevented a hat trick, as the Nashville keeper did well to deflect a possible third goal onto the roof of the net in the second half.
Those are our takeaways from a great rebound victory. The Lions have a bye week before welcoming the New England Revolution to town on Sept. 14. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and as always Vamos Orlando!
Orlando City
Intelligence Report: Orlando City vs. New England Revolution
Get the inside scoop on the Revs, courtesy of someone who knows them best.
After a two-week break between matches, Orlando City is back in action Saturday and will try to make it two wins on the bounce after handily dispatching Nashville SC 3-0 during the team’s last outing. This week sees the Lions play their second game of the season against the New England Revolution, following the first meeting back in July when Orlando grabbed a first-ever victory at Gillette Stadium.
A date with the Revs means I caught up with Jake Catanese of the always excellent independent site The Blazing Musket. As usual, Jake was very helpful in getting us up to speed on New England, and I also answered some of his questions about OCSC, so make sure you check those out over at their place.
The Revs have tallied a perfectly balanced record of 1-1-1 since Leagues Cup ended. What’s been your general impression of the team’s play during those games?
Jake Catanese: About what the record has said, a true mixed bag. A blowout win in Montreal, where the Revs just hammered the counter and scored in bunches, a tough loss at RSL where they got outplayed but gave away goals on silly mistakes, and then a really interesting draw against St. Louis last time out that I think a lot of people heard about.
Overall, the Revs have really improved as the season has gone on, and a lot of that has to do with health but also a drastic shift in aggression. When the Revs are forced to sit in their own half and ping the ball around, they look really ineffective when they eventually do get the ball into the attacking half. But when New England catches you backpedaling, it’s only a matter of time before they find someone open in and around the box for a good shooting chance. I think New England is one of the best countering/transition teams in the league, but there’s still long stretches of play where they choose not to push the ball forward and that is usually playing into their weakness.
New England has conceded 51 goals in 26 games, which is third most in the Eastern Conference. Is there concern about the defense, and if so, how has coach Caleb Porter gone about addressing it?
JC: The defense has largely been fine. The goal difference makes things seem a lot worse because the New England just had a lot of trouble generating anything offensively in the first month or two of the season. There’s been a handful of blowouts where the Revs were dealing with heavy squad rotation and injuries, and playing without Carles Gil really hampers the Revs in the transition game, so largely when the Revs are playing at full strength they’ve been competitive. There have been a lot of glaring individual errors leading to goals, but a lot of those occur when the Revs are pinned back and passing amongst themselves, which as we’ve already stated, is a bad thing.
The Revs are facing a dilemma at center back though, with the Henry Kessler trade to St. Louis. He was their only CB under a guaranteed deal for 2025. That means they have decisions to make on Tim Parker, Dave Romney, and Xavier Arreaga, as well as veterans Matt Polster and Nick Lima, among others. Newcomer Alhassan Yusuf has yet to make his debut (international duty with Nigeria as soon as his visa cleared) and could add a lot of help from the central defensive midfield position. Right now there should be enough playing time down the stretch for the three center backs in particular to show what they can do and perhaps force the Revs into some tough decisions.
Despite any defensive shakiness, statistical or otherwise, the Revs are only five points out of the last play-in place and have at least one game in hand on all of the teams in the East besides Columbus. What needs to happen for New England to get into the playoffs, and how far do you think they could go if they get there?
JC: Well, kind of a lot. The Revs only have three home games remaining and they dropped points to a not great St. Louis team at home that they really needed. Their final two games are at Columbus and at Miami, where they might force Messi to pry their 2021 Shield campaign single-season points record from their cold, dead hands. At this point, dropping any more points at home could be the final nail in the playoff coffin and the Revs are going to have to win probably two of their upcoming road games against Orlando, Charlotte, and Houston, which are all solidly in the midtable.
At best, the Revs can get into the play-in game, but then they’re more than likely going to face Miami as the top-seed in a three-game series if they even advance in the one-off match. If the Revs get hot and Gil goes on a 2021 MVP-level heater and Luca Langoni and/or Giacomo Vrioni are finding the back of the net every week, they can absolutely scare someone, but I don’t see them getting past Miami or Columbus in the first round. So that means the Revs need to jump up 10+ points into Orlando/Charlotte range to be one of the middle seeds to make a deep run, and they’re just too far back to make up that ground, barring a massive win streak and probably a catastrophic collapse from a team or two ahead of them.
Are there any players who will be unavailable due to injury, suspension, etc.? What is your projected starting XI and score prediction?
JC: Hehehe, well, we have a head coach who’s not available due to suspension, but I think everyone knows that. It was kind of hard to miss.
On the injury front, Tomas Chancalay is out for the year which is a bummer. Brandon Bye missed last week’s game but might be fit to be on the bench this week. Esmir Bajraktarevic, Arreaga, and Yusuf all return from international duty.
4-2-3-1: Aljaz Ivacic; Peyton Miller, Xavier Arrega, Tim Parker, Nick Lima; Matt Polster, Ian Harkes; Luca Langoni, Carles Gil, Dylan Borrero; Giacomo Vrioni.
About as solid of a starting group as the Revs can do, with Will Sands possibly starting again at fullback over Lima. If Yusuf is ready to start, he could feature next to Polster, and at some point Esmir should appear. Since he subbed on for Bosnia and had an assist to some guy named Edin Dzeko on his debut for them, I think he’s in good form.
The Revs need this one but the PawedCast gods demand their usual 2-2 draw.
Thank you to Jake for the helpful insight into the Revolution. Vamos Orlando!
Lion Links
Lion Links: 9/13/24
Orlando City prepares for the New England Revolution, Morgan Gautrat signs new contract, Orlando Pride play tonight, and more.
It’s Friday the 13th, so make sure to stay away from black cats and broken mirrors. I’ll be a bit festive today and grab some early Halloween decorations and a costume for my cat that he will definitely despise me for. Let’s jump into today’s links!
Orlando City Gets Ready for New England
After getting last weekend off, Orlando City is back in action Saturday with a home game against the New England Revolution at 7:30 p.m. The Lions are coming off of a dominant 3-0 win over Nashville SC and are seventh in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, the Revolution played during the international break and had to settle for a 2-2 draw against St. Louis City. Orlando Head Coach Oscar Pareja spoke on how the Lions have been trying to maintain momentum during the break to get another win against the Revolution this season.
Morgan Gautrat Signs New Contract
Orlando Pride midfielder Morgan Gautrat has signed a new deal with the club that will last through the 2025 season, with an option for 2026 as well. The Pride traded for Gautrat in January of this year and she’s made 14 appearances across all competitions so far. The 31-year-old has provided important depth for the Pride’s midfield, filling in when needed to cover for injuries and international absences. She’s the latest player to sign a new deal with the club, as Orlando aims to keep most of its roster for next year.
Orlando Pride Game Headlines NWSL Slate
Although tonight’s match between the Orlando Pride and Kansas City Current won’t be a battle of undefeated teams like the last time they squared off in July, it’s still a heavyweight matchup. The Current will likely have revenge on their minds, as they have an opportunity to do what the Pride did earlier this year and snap their opponent’s unbeaten streak. It will also be another duel between two of the league’s top scorers in Barbra Banda and Temwa Chawinga.
Elsewhere in the league this weekend, the North Carolina Courage will host Bay FC in an intriguing match as both teams jockey for playoff position. Pride fans will also likely be keeping an eye on the Washington Spirit’s match Sunday against the Houston Dash. The Spirit are currently six points behind the Pride with just six games left this season.
Gauging the MLS Playoff Race
The MLS playoff picture is becoming clearer and clearer each week, and Andrew Wiebe assessed where each team stands. Orlando was grouped alongside the New York Red Bulls, New York City FC, and Charlotte FC as Eastern Conference sides who should qualify for the playoffs and have a chance at hosting in the first round. Another strong summer by the Lions has put a gap between them and a playoff bubble that includes teams that have underperformed but have the talent to make some noise this postseason.
As for the Western Conference, the Portland Timbers have established themselves as a potential dark horse amid a strong run of form, while FC Dallas, Minnesota United, and Austin FC are poised to fight for the last playoff spot. It should all make for an exciting final stretch of the season.
Free Kicks
- The cooking competition between Nico Lodeiro and Morgan Gautrat continued with a pair of chicken dishes. The video also includes handy recipes in case you want to try making them yourself.
- Mikel Arteta has signed a new contract with Arsenal that will keep him at the club through 2027. He’s done well since taking over in December of 2019, with Arsenal finishing second in the league for the past two seasons.
- The Seattle Reign loaned defender Sofia Huerta to Olympique Lyonnais for the French club’s season. While it’s a great opportunity for Huerta, it’s a tough blow to Seattle’s playoff aspirations.
- Paris Saint-Germain was ordered by the French league’s legal commission to pay Kylian Mbappe $61 million in unpaid wages. However, PSG reportedly stated that it does not owe Mbappe and plans to take further legal action.
- Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur was charged by the Football Association for his racially charged comments regarding teammate Son Heung-min in June.
- EA Sports FC 25 ratings are out and Luis Muriel is the Lion with the highest rating, likely due to his time with Atalanta. As for NWSL players, the Pride’s Ally Lemos was tied for eighth among U-21 players.
That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a smooth Friday the 13th!
Orlando City
Orlando City’s Fullback Dilemma
Examining a weak point in Orlando City’s defense as the playoff hunt continues.
Orlando City has compiled a 6-2-2 record over the last 10 matches, climbing into the playoff picture in the process. The club sits in seventh place with 37 points heading into the weekend, which puts the Lions four points above Toronto FC in eighth place. During those 10 matches, the Lions have scored 25 goals while allowing 14 goals for a +11 goal differential. That all seems pretty good, but it doesn’t mean everything is clicking.
One of the reasons for the 14 goals allowed in that period — and the 41 goals allowed all season — has been the quality of play at the fullback position. There aren’t really any new faces from last season’s record-winning club, so what is going on? Let’s take a look at the left and right back positions.
I’m going to start on the right side, because things aren’t nearly as dire over there. Dagur Dan Thorhallsson hasn’t been perfect, but most of the time he’s pretty good. He’s had the odd game where he didn’t seem to be clicking, but more often than not he’s been fine. Offensively, he has two goals and four assists on the season. There have been defensive lapses, but he is in some ways still developing as a left back. If he wasn’t doing well, we might have seen more of Michael Halliday by this point.
It’s the left side that is more concerning. Oscar Pareja has gone back and forth between Rafael Santos and Kyle Smith. Santos has played in 25 matches, starting 16 and logging 1,451 minutes. Meanwhile, Smith has played in 23 matches, starting nine, and logging 834 minutes. Neither of the two have been consistent enough for Pareja to name one as the go-to starter.
I think the dilemma stems from both players struggling on the defensive end of the pitch, which is the primary assignment for a left back. Both have been culpable on goals allowed by the defense. I think that Smith is exactly who we think he is. He has a pretty good game, is otherwise fine, but probably shouldn’t be a starter in MLS.
Santos, on the other hand, showed us what he is capable of after he locked down the position last season. I’m not certain what happened, but he hasn’t been as good this season, at least not consistently. It poses quite the conundrum for Pareja as neither has made a definitive case to be the starter. That is a potential problem for a club chasing a playoff spot.
This is where you might expect me to have an answer for the fullback dilemma, but alas I do not. I’ve previously suggested letting Luca Petrasso get a start to shake things up, but the truth is he’s probably not ready. That means that we will still see either Santos or Smith get the start. It will probably depend on which player looks better in training.
This isn’t a great situation as the end of the regular season approaches. Santos was able to step things up late last season, and frankly he needs to do so again.
Let me know your pick in the comments below.
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Joe Parra
September 1, 2024 at 2:57 pm
Brekalo plays slow, and is physically slow. KC ran circles around him. Everyone complained about Kara, and Brekalos is the Kara of the backline. If the midfield is controlling the game he is solid. If we have to defend counters, he can’t do it. Schlegel makes dumb plays once in a while, but he is overall a better CB at the moment. Brekalo was needed in the second half because Rivas was tossing out cards like party favors.
Not to mention that Jansson has a much longer partnership with Schlegel and they know how to play with each other. The team is better with Schlegel.
Flipper
September 1, 2024 at 10:42 pm
Yea, gonna disagree here. Schlegel is a liability as a starter and is the reason we lost in the playoffs last year. It’s time we moved on from him
Koi No Yokan
September 2, 2024 at 11:56 am
Schlegel, who constantly lets players slip in behind, can’t offside trap to save his life and is routinely out of position and loses attackers? That Schlegel?
He’s a perfectly serviceable backup but that’s it.