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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. FC Cincinnati: Final Score 3-1 as Lions Win Final Regular-Season Road Match

Orlando City overcomes an interesting night of officiating with two second-half goals to beat FC Cincinnati on the road.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

It wasn’t a pretty game and the officiating could have been costly to Orlando City, but the Lions (15-11-7, 52 points) managed to earn a 3-1 road win over FC Cincinnati (17-11-5, 56 points) at TQL Stadium. Ramiro Enrique scored a goal in each half, had one chalked off for a controversial foul on a corner kick, and assisted on another by Ivan Angulo. Orlando finished with a 2024 MLS road record of 8-6-3 and improved to 3-1-2 in road matches at Cincinnati.

If New York City does not beat Nashville on Sunday, Orlando City would clinch the fourth spot in the Eastern Conference standings and home field for the first-round, best-of-three series.

“I thought we won a very important game against a very good rival who complicated things in the first half for us,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “Second half, I think we settled and we found the answers that we wanted to have earlier in the first half, and we couldn’t do it. But the second half, we controlled the game. We came back in the ways that we wanted in that control and we had options. And happy for our fans, happy for our club, and we’ll keep pushing. It’s a very, very good match for us.”

Pareja’s lineup included only one change from the starting XI Wednesday against the Philadelphia Union. Pedro Gallese started in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Kyle Smith. Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena started in central midfield behind an attacking line of Angulo, Luis Muriel, and Facundo Torres with Enrique up top. Martin Ojeda made way in the starting lineup for Muriel.

Referee Filip Dujic was a talking point in the first half, and it’s never good for a referee to be a talking point. However, before that happened, Cincinnati started the game on the front foot and earned a couple of early corners but could do nothing with them.

The Lions opened the scoring against the run of play in the 10th minute. Enrique sent the ball wide to Smith on the right. The Cincinnati native sent in a beautiful curling cross as a return pass and Enrique blazed past the defense and directed it in with his foot to make it 1-0. It was Orlando’s 56th goal of the season, setting a new club record in the MLS era, and Enrique’s seventh of the regular season. Orlando set the old record of 55 goals in 2016 and equaled that mark last season.

“I forget who passed me the ball…but I knew I had the positioning on my defender, so I took a big first touch, and then I saw Ramiro in a perfect spot between the two center backs,” said Smith, who had a lot of friends and family in attendance. “And I just whipped in a ball, and he had a good finish.”

The hosts kept coming and were creating chances, with Kevin Kelsy firing wide of the left post on a spinning effort in the 17th minute. Three minutes later, Acosta sent a curling free kick wide of the right post after Cartagena was booked for a challenge just outside the area. Cartagena will miss the season finale due to yellow card accumulation. It was a foul, but the card seemed a bit harsh, especially given some of the fouls Dujic let go later.

Smith should have done better with a shot on a layoff from Torres in the 24th minute, sending his effort well off target. The flag for offside came up for Torres in the buildup after the shot, but the replay clearly showed the Uruguayan was onside on the play, meaning the goal would have counted had Smith scored.

Moments later, Kelsy fouled Jansson in a manner that should have drawn a yellow card but didn’t. Kelsy ended up committing five first-half fouls, getting booked for the third of those, but three of his fouls could have (and should have) been punished with a booking.

Angulo was pulled back in his own half without a call, allowing Cincinnati to take possession and attack. Schlegel then did the same just outside his box and Dujic gave the free kick. Acosta sent the layoff from Yamil Asad well over the bar and into the crowd.

Pavel Bucha was left alone on a good attacking movement by Cincinnati in the 33rd minute but scuffed his shot and it dribbled wide of the right post. After Kelsy was booked for a foul on Araujo, Bucha sent a volley attempt well over the bar in the 39th minute.

Orlando nearly scored a minute later, taking a free kick quickly at midfield. It was sent over the defense to Enrique, who fired a shot on a bouncing ball. Celentano made a huge save to keep it out, giving up a corner.

The Lions scored on the ensuing corner kick as Enrique blasted in Torres’ service to the back post. Dujic called a foul on Muriel after contact with Celentano. However, Celentano had charged off his line into a barely moving Muriel, who was tracking the cross. It was a harsh call and kept the score at 1-0 in the 41st minute.

Cincinnati took advantage of the break moments later. Acosta received a pass just outside the area in the 45th minute. Torres sagged off of him and Araujo had another man to mark, so Acosta blasted a shot through traffic that beat Gallese, tying the score just before the break.

After Kelsy committed yet another foul, the halftime whistle sent the teams to the locker room, with plenty of animosity being shown between the two benches as the teams went off.

“I thought it was reactions for both benches and the people there — the personnel and the coaches. And I thought both sides were arguing things to the referees,” Pareja said about the kerfuffle. “From our side, it was just asking them to control the yellow cards. We wanted to keep the players in the pitch. And this is football, and we want to accept that this is a contact game, and sometimes things happen, but we cannot just be yellow carding all the time, but that was with all the respect that we have for referees too. Just a comment. From (Cincinnati’s) side, I don’t know what were they arguing. And I have a ton of respect for Pat (Noonan), and what he has done for this club is incredible. The career that he has done so far, and what he has done for Cincinnati, I respect him a lot and his coaches, too.”

With Orlando’s approach to the first half, it’s no surprise that Cincinnati finished with the edge in possession (57.8%-42.2%), shots (8-2), corners (2-1), and passing accuracy (83.2%-80.8%). Orlando City put more shots on target (2-1).

Pat Noonan subbed Kelsy off at halftime, sending on Yuya Kubo and getting away with the incessant fouling from his starting striker throughout the first half. Noonan brought on high-scoring wingback Luca Orellano on 10 minutes after the restart, getting more attacking players onto the pitch.

The Lions were a bit more organized in the second half, despite giving up more shots and shots on target. They mostly kept Cincinnati outside the area and in wider spaces for those shots.

Orlando had the first half-chance of the second half, with Smith whipping in a good ball for Enrique in the 59th minute. Miles Robinson got a touch to it and nearly sent it into his own net but it trickled wide of the left post. Orlando took the corner short, Muriel underhit a backheel pass, and the hosts broke in transition. Smith hustled back to break up the counterattack.

The hosts then won a couple of corner kicks but Jansson headed the first one clear of danger and Orellano put the second one into the outside netting trying for an Olimpico.

Orlando City doubled its lead in the 66th minute. Smith and Enrique were again involved, with the former sending in another good cross to the striker, who had his back to goal. Rather than trying to turn, Enrique laid the ball off to Angulo, who went for goal. Celentano made a mess of the shot and it squirted through him and in to make it 2-0 on Angulo’s fifth goal of the season.

The Lions created some havoc with their press in the second half and it nearly paid off nicely in the 69th minute. Enrique got to a loose ball on the right side of the box and blasted a shot, however, he missed the net to the right.

Orlando survived a couple of turnovers by Angulo in the defensive end over the next couple of minutes, with Gallese making a save on Orellano’s attempt in the 71st minute. A minute after that, Orlando pulled ahead by two.

Angulo was first to a poor back pass from Orellano toward Celentano, touching the ball to his right for Enrique to tap home in the 72nd minute. It was Enrique’s second of the night and eighth of the season, with the foul called on Muriel preventing a hat trick, and the pass gave Angulo his 10th assist of the regular season.

As Cincinnati poured numbers into the attack, Gallese was called into action more often down the stretch. He did well to track a deflected Kubo shot in the 74th minute. Just seconds later, Gallese made two of his best stops of the night to deny Asad and Orellano.

Orlando’s tired legs were starting to show late in the team’s third match in eight days. Pareja’s only substitution to this point was sending on Nico Lodeiro for Muriel in the 73rd minute. Acosta worked his way past five or six defenders in the 76th minute as several Lions had a clear chance to dispossess the Cincinnati talisman, but none could take it away. Once he found some space, Acosta shot wid of the right post.

Torres nearly put the game completely to bed in the 80th minute when he ran onto a pass that Lodeiro headed in behind on the right. Torres fired, but Celentano made a good save and didn’t allow a rebound.

Orellano tried his luck from extreme distance in the 86th minute, but Gallese was there to catch it. Three minutes later, Kubo got free of late substitute Michael Halliday but he headed off target.

Orlando City did well to waste the six minutes of stoppage time indicated but Dujic made one more curious call late. Lodeiro went to ground and stacked his legs on the ground in what appeared to be a clean and excellent tackle. Dujic awarded a free kick instead and Jansson was booked for dissent. Orellano sent the free kick high and wide, and that was the final play of the match.

FC Cincinnati finished with the advantage in possession (55.7%-44.3%), shots (20-6), shots on target (6-5), and passing accuracy (84.4%-80.8%). Each team earned five corners on the night.

“I thought we played well,” Smith said. “We had to absorb a lot of their pressure in the first half. They were kind of putting it on us with the pressure. But I thought in the second half we came out and we did well keeping the ball, and then we took advantage of our opportunities and scored three goals and held them to one. So, it was a big one for us.”


The Lions will have next weekend off and will conclude the regular season at home on Saturday, Oct. 19 against Atlanta United.

Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Real Salt Lake: Five Takeaways

Here’s what we learned from Orlando City’s 2-1 victory over Real Salt Lake.

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Image of Justin Ellis slicing between two Real Salt Lake defenders.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Justin Glatt

Orlando City hosted Real Salt Lake at Inter.co Stadium Saturday, and it was a tale of two halves. The first half was one of the most boring first halves of soccer ever, and the second half was a wild free-for-all with Orlando City coming to life. The Lions were able to earn all three points at home, defeating RSL 2-1. Here are my five takeaways from the match.

An Inevitable Goal

Orlando City put out a mostly first-choice team on short rest, while RSL rotated pretty heavily due to their schedule congestion and a Leagues Cup knockout match coming up on Tuesday.The Lions had the majority of the possession through the first 35 mintues, while RSL was able to send the ball over the top a few times early, but the visitors kept getting the timing wrong against Orlando’s high line, resulting in offside calls. That was until the 36th minute, when Dominik Marczuk managed to stay onside, blazed past Zakaria Taifi, and was all alone on the back post. It wasn’t hard to put it in from there. Orlando City had the better of the play up to that point, but it still felt like Real Salt Lake’s goal was more likely.

Possession Without Purpose

Despite holding 58% possession in the first half, Orlando City managed to get exactly zero shots on goal on zero shots total. Zero shots taken the entire first half! As I mentioned above, that was zero shots against a heavily rotated RSL squad. For a team with Antoine Griezmann, Marco Pasalic, and Griffin Dorsey in the starting lineup, that stat is unacceptable. The lack of any chances resulted in Martin Perelman bringing on Justin Ellis and Daryl Dike as offensive halftime substitutions.

Subs Make a Difference

It took less than 10 minutes for Ellis and Dike, along with fellow substitute Joran Gerbet, to make a difference. While it was ultimately Griezmann who scored the goal, it was Gerbet, Ellis, and Dike that made it happen. Gerbet picked up a loose ball Eduard Atuesta won and sent it to Ellis on the right. Ellis sent the ball into the box to Dike, who took it with his back to goal, pirouetted with the ball, and shot it. Unfortunately for Dike, Mason Stajduhar was there to block it. Unfortunately for Stajduhar, Griezmann was there for the poacher’s goal to level the score for Orlando City. Griezmann positioned himself wisely without the ball, but it was the three halftime subs that really made it happen.

Griezmann Gets Another

After equalizing, Orlando City had all the momentum and pressed for a second goal. It was Griezmann who provided the winning goal with his first brace for the Lions. If his first goal was a “right time, right place” type of goal, his second was luck and skill combined. He took a pass in the box from Tyrese Spicer and tried to back heel it to Dike. The ball bounced off the defender and right back to Griezmann, who wasted no time in putting it in the back of the net. It was a microcosm of Griezmann’s time in Orlando for me. He tried to be unselfish, but ultimately taking the shot himself was what was needed. More of this please.

Possession With Purpose

If Orlando City did almost nothing with the ball in the first half, the Lions did everything needed with the ball in the second half. They actually raised the possession to 60% by the end of the match, scored two goals, and didn’t allow a second from RSL. The defenders were able to clear most of the attacks and Maxime Crepeau cleaned up anything that got through. Orlando City was able to continue to push into the attack even after the second goal. As I said above, it was a tale of two halves, and fortunately, the second half was enough for the win.


That is what I saw in Orlando City’s 2-1 victory over Real Salt Lake. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Real Salt Lake: Final Score 2-1 as Griezmann’s Brace Lifts Lions to Win

Antoine Griezmann scored twice in the second half to help Orlando City erase a 1-0 deficit and beat RSL at home.

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Image of Antoine Griezmann and Justin Ellis celebrating a goal against Real Salt Lake.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Antoine Griezmann scored two second-half goals for his first Orlando City brace, leading the Lions to a 2-1 comeback win over Real Salt Lake at Inter.co Stadium tonight. After a lethargic opening 45 minutes that saw the visitors take a 1-0 lead into the half on Dominik Marczuk’s goal, an energetic trio of halftime subs injected life into the attack for Orlando (7-11-3, 24 points).

Griezmann’s two goals pushed the Lions past Real Salt Lake (8-8-4, 28 points), but it’s fair to say Orlando City wasn’t clean enough in the first half and couldn’t turn possession into attacking threat until the introduction of second-half subs Justin Ellis, Joran Gerbet, Daryl Dike, and Tyrese Spicer.

The Lions snapped an 0-2-2 winless streak in all competitions and a 0-2-1 skid in league play with tonight’s win, moving just over the playoff line into ninth spot in the Eastern Conference.

“It was a tough game,” Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman said after the match. “It wasn’t easy the first half; we tried good and sometimes it happens like that, the game. I think the team in the second half was able to to play in a very difficult moment. It’s not easy and the guys did an amazing job.”

Perelman’s lineup included Maxime Crepeau in goal behind a back line of Zakaria Taifi, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, and Griffin Dorsey. Luis Otavio and Eduard Atuesta started in central midfield inside of Ivan Angulo and Marco Pasalic, with Tiago joining Antoine Griezmann up top.

The first half consisted of long spells of Orlando possession that came to nothing against a heavily rotated RSL side, with former Lion Mason Stajduhar having to do nothing in goal, because the Lions couldn’t even manage one first-half shot attempt. The visitors were content to stay in their low block of five at the back and four midfielders, wait for the exhausted-looking hosts to misplace a pass or have a bad touch, and look for chances to hit on the counter or with balls over the top.

Griezmann looked the most in need of a rest, as several of his touches were heavy in the first half, but he was far from the only one.

There was a scary moment early in the game when Jansson collided with Marczuk on an attempted RSL switch of play. The Orlando City captain was fouled and stayed down to get treatment, eventually leaving the field under his own power. He was able to return moments later.

Orlando City won a few set pieces in the opening half but did nothing with them, while the visitors looked dangerous if they could stay onside, which they struggled to do early. When the Lions did manage to find space against RSL’s back line, the crosses were poor, ending up either out of play or in the goalkeeper’s hands.

The visitors broke through the dull affair in the 36th minute. Alexandros Katranis laid off a ball on the left flank for Sam Junqua behind him. Junqua picked up his head and spotted Marczuk’s well-timed run behind Taifi and delivered a nice cross. Marczuk met the ball in the air with his foot and knocked it past Crepeau to make it 1-0.

Crepeau kept things from getting worse just before halftime. Angulo turned the ball over on an attempted recycle of a failed set piece, igniting a Real Salt Lake counter. The ball ended up with Marczuk again on the right and this time Crepeau was able to get a hand on it to palm it out for a corner.

The Lions dealt with the set piece and the half came to an end with Orlando’s starters trailing 1-0 to an RSL B-squad that dien’t allow a single shot attempt.

At the break, Orlando City had the advantage in possession (59.4%-40.6%) and passing accuracy (89.7-84.2%), while Real Salt Lake led in shots (3-0) and shots on target (2-0) and each team won one corner.

“It was a complicated game,” Griezmann said. “It’s never easy starting off with with a negative mark like that, but we made changes at halftime and put more more guys further up the field, and we were able to to get that goal and really kind of give ourselves some time of tranquility to create more opportunities to create those occasions to go out and get the winner.”

Looking to injuct some life into the game, or at least some fresh legs, Perelman sent Gerbet, Dike, and Ellis into the game at halftime for Otavio, Tiago, and Pasalic. It took a few minutes for the subs to settle in, but it made a difference in the Lions’ energy level.

Marczuk had the first look at goal in the second half, however, firing from distance from the right side, but it caused no trouble for Crepeau in the 50th minute.

Gerbet and Atuesta worked well together in the middle, keeping the ball better and allowing Taifi to jump into the play on the left. Taifi had a shot blocked out for a corner in the 51st minute. A minute later, Atuesta played a slick through ball for Griezmann. With Stajduhar coming off his line, the Frenchman chipped a shot over him but it went inches wide of the left post.

Orlando scored seconds after Stajduhar put the ball back into play. Atuesta won the ball to Gerbet at midfield, and he turned and found Ellis on the right. Ellis sent it in front to Dike for the shot, but it was blocked to Griezmann, who cleaned up in front, making it 1-1 in the 53rd minute.

Taifi got down the left in the 55th minute and did well to cut back a cross for Griezmann entering the box. Griezmann hit his shot immediately but it fizzed just over the bar. Three minutes later, Taifi cut inside and fired but hit the outside of the left post.

Real Salt Lake sent on Diego Luna, Saba Lobjanidze, and Morgan Guilavogui to try to counter the energy Orlando’s subs had brought into the game, and things opened up a bit. Dorsey did well to stick out a foot to deny a pass that would have put Luna in on goal in the 64th minute.

Spicer came on for Taifi in the 69th minute and injected even more energy into the match. He quickly won a set piece on the left just moments after coming on near the left corner flag. Atuesta sent his delivery on target toward the near post but it was headed behind for a corner kick. The ensuing corner bounced out to Ellis near the top of the area. The Homegrown forward used some deft footwork to work his way past two defenders before getting his shot blocked out for another corner.

Real Salt Lake broke the other way after the set piece and Luna ended up with it. He fired on target but Crepeau blocked it out of play for a corner. Orlando partially cleared the set piece delivery and Katranis tried a shot from long range that was well off target.

Orlando City took the lead moments later. Jansson sent the ball long out of the back to Spicer on the left. The Trinidad & Tobago international did well to get a cross in for Griezmann in the box. The first touch got away from the Frenchman but he picked up the rebound and slotted it past Stajduhar to make it 2-1 in the 81st minute.

“I think it’s a very good cross from ‘Spice’ and I was thinking to do one touch to score but I did very bad,” Griezmann said. “The defender touched the ball and the ball came to me, and yeah I saw a lot of legs and I tried to just make a pass between the legs of the defender and here is where you need to be patient just for one or two seconds. And today I was very patient in this time and this is why I scored.”

“It’s mandatory for us to enjoy Griezmann,” Perelman said. “We are lucky to be in the moment that he’s here with us. He’s one of the best players in the history of this sport. We have the privilege to see him. It’s just about enjoying him, watching him and enjoying him.”

Real Salt Lake threw bodies forward into the attack, but aside from some corner kicks, the visitors couldn’t produce much. Any time it looked like RSL might create something in the final third, Orlando was able to block crosses or head them out of danger. Orlando City also kept the ball well for spells down the stretch, taking the pressure off and allowing the Lions to see out the game.

At the final whistle, the Lions held the advantage in possession (59.6%-40.4%), shots (13-9), passing accuracy (88.8%-82%), and corners (5-4). Real Salt Lake put more shots on target (4-3). Ultimately, the Lions were sharp enough in the second half to make up for the slow start, although RSL helped out by being offside seven times to just once for Orlando.

“In the final zone, we were a lot more aggressive,” Griezmann said of the second half. “We were pressing more and more aggressive with our press, and it was a really good way to to get the win tonight.”

“The players were wanting to give us that control of the game against a team who sat back a little bit,” Perelman said. “I think the guys did a huge effort. Fortunately we could come back, win, because we really need it, and now we need to rest and think (about) the next one.”

“Just so happy to have the win at home,” Gerbet said. “It’s been like a gritty one, but a necessary one, an important one towards like the end of the season to get some momentum, because we’re going to start to go away as well, so we need to start to gain momentum, and I think that was a great way to do it.”


The Lions now get an honest-to-goodness normal work week. Their next match will be a week from tonight at Minnesota United.

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Real Salt Lake: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions look to finish their long homestand with a bounce-back performance against RSL.

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Image of the starting Orlando City lineup prior to playing a home game vs. the Chicago Fire.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Justin Glatt

Welcome to your match thread and preview for a Saturday night showdown between Orlando City (6-11-3, 21 points) and Real Salt Lake (8-7-4, 28 points) at Inter.co Stadium (7:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the first and only scheduled meeting between the two teams from opposing conferences and the first time they’ve met since 2023 in Utah.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of the match.

History

The Lions are 2-2-3 in seven previous MLS meetings with RSL, including a 1-0-2 mark at home. However, Orlando City is 0-2-1 in their last three games against tonight’s visitors.

The last time the teams met, it was a forgettable result for Orlando City fans. But if you do remember, it’s not for good reasons, because it was a 4-0 beatdown that Real Salt Lake laid on the Lions on July 8, 2023. Cristian Arango, Justen Glad, Jefferson Savarino, and Anderson Julio did the damage.

During the most recent matchup in Orlando, most of us had no idea what COVID-19 was yet. The Lions and Real Salt Lake met on opening day of the 2020 MLS season, playing to a 0-0 draw at Exploria Stadium on Feb. 29. Despite it being a Leap Day, no one wanted to leap onto the scoresheet.

Orlando City lost the previous meeting, a 2-1 Real Salt Lake win in Utah on April 13, 2019. Nani scored Orlando’s only goal that day, but it came late in the match after Sam Johnson and Demir Kreilach had staked RSL to a 2-0 lead.

The May 6, 2018 meeting in Orlando was a wild 3-1 win for the Lions in which RSL missed multiple good scoring chances, hitting the woodwork and forcing Joe Bendik into some big saves. Dom Dwyer, Lamine Sané, and Yoshimar Yotún provided Orlando’s offense to offset Corey Baird’s early strike.

When the teams met in 2017 at Rio Tinto, Will Johnson provided all the offense against his old club in a 1-0 Orlando City victory. Johnson’s tally in the 17th minute was all Orlando City needed to take the first win of the series after two draws the previous two seasons.

In 2016, the teams played a memorable opening day match in which the Lions roared back with a frantic rally, as Cyle Larin and Adrian Winter pulled City level in a 2-2 draw at the Citrus Bowl. Joao Plata scored both RSL goals — one from the penalty spot — and RSL led 2-0 despite going down a man for 25 minutes, prior to Chris Penso evening things out by sending off Darwin Ceren.

Orlando drew 1-1 on the road in 2015 while down to 10 men after Kaká was sent off at the end of the first half. The captain opened the scoring. Sebastian Jaime found the equalizer in the 28th.

Match Overview

Orlando City enters on a poor run of form in a congested fixture schedule. The Lions lost 2-1 at home against the Chicago Fire on Wednesday, making it four games without a win in all competitions (0-2-2) and they haven’t won in MLS play in their last three (0-2-1). While the defense is leaking just one or two goals per game of late, the offense has been less tidy in finishing chances, which could be attributed to some players, including Antoine Griezmann, not getting much rest during this stretch of seven games in 22 days. Orlando is a pedestrian 4-4-2 at home this season and is winless in its last two home matches (0-1-1).

Real Salt Lake sits eighth in the Western Conference after going 0-3-3 in its last six league matches, including a 4-3 home loss to FC Dallas on Wednesday. But, oddly enough, that stretch of matches sandwiches a 2-0-1 run in Leagues Cup, and RSL advanced to the knockout rounds, where it will play Club Leon on Tuesday, so we may see some rotation, assuming the Utah-based club is going all in on trying to win Leagues Cup or at least one of the three coveted Concacaf Champions Cup spots. Tonight’s match will be RSL’s first on the road since Aug. 1, where the team is 1-5-3 in 2026 in league play.

Sergi Solans leads tonight’s opponents in goals (9) and goal contributions (12), with Diego Luna leading in assists (6) while adding five goals for 11 total goal contributions. The departure of Zavier Gozo and his six goals and five assists is a tough break for RSL, because beyond those three, 10 goals are spread across eight different players.

The Lions must rediscover their scoring boots for this game, as the Orlando defense pitches precious few shutouts, and if RSL plays its starters, either Solans, Luna, or both could do some damage on the other end.

The Lions will be without Braian Ojeda (foot), Martin Ojeda (thigh), and Bernardo Rhein (thigh), while Adrian Marin (thigh) is questionable, so left back may be an adventure, with Zakaria Taifi, Ivan Angulo, and David Brekalo as the leading candidates to play there, and all of them are right-footed. Real Salt Lake will be without Zach Booth (hamstring), Griffin Dillon (foot), Emeka Eneli (knee), Glad (adductor), and Ariath Piol (Achilles).

Match Content


Official Lineups

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Zakaria Taifi, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Luis Otavio, Eduard Atuesta, Marco Pasalic.

Forwards: Tiago, Antoine Griezmann.

Bench: Javier Otero, Iago, Wilder Cartagena, Joran Gerbet, Gustavo Caraballo, Harvey Sarajian, Tyrese Spicer, Justin Ellis, Daryl Dike.

Real Salt Lake (5-4-1)

Goalkeeper: Mason Stajduhar.

Defenders: Alexandros Katranis, Sam Junqua, Juan Arias, Kobi Henry, Domink Marczuk.

Midfielders: Aiden Hezarkhan, Luca Moisa, Pablo Ruiz, Lineker Rodrigues.

Forward: Victor Olatunji.

Bench: Rafael Cabral, Juan Sanabria, Philip Quinton, Lukas Engel, Noel Caliskan, Colin Guske, Morgan Guilavogui, Saba Lobjanidze, Diego Luna.

Referees

REF: Fotis Bazakos.
AR1: Brian Dunn.
AR2: Jose Da Silva.
4TH: Marcos DeOliveira.
VAR: Edvin Jurisevic.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.


How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter.co Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Streaming: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.


Enjoy the match. Go City!

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