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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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1 year ago

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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.

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2025 Orlando City Season in Review: Alex Freeman

The right back had a breakout season, making a name for himself in the league and for the national team.

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10 hours ago

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November 10, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City signed Alex Freeman to a Homegrown Player contract on Feb. 15, 2022. He played primarily with OCB and saw few minutes for the first team the last few seasons. However, the right back won the starting position over Dagur Dan Thorhallsson early this season and had a breakout year for the Lions.

The 2025 campaign saw the 21-year-old defender make his debut for the U.S. Men’s National Team, compete in the MLS All-Star Game, win MLS Young Player of the Year, and be named to the MLS Best XI. It was a season to remember and hopefully just the start to a fabulous career.

Let’s take a look back at the incredible season for the young player.

Statistical Breakdown

Freeman was a substitute in the first game of the season and was the regular starter for the rest of the year. He was out of the team while competing with the USMNT in the Concacaf Gold Cup but returned to his starting position after the final.

The right back made 29 appearances this year (26 starts) and played 2,451 minutes. He scored six goals and added three assists while putting 15 of his 43 shots on target. Freeman completed 934 of his 1,130 passes (82%), including 42 key passes. Defensively, he added 42 tackles, 26 interceptions, 86 clearances, and nine blocks, and he won 58.2% of his 110 aerial duels. He committed 20 fouls, drew 36 from the opposition, and picked up four yellow cards.

Freeman played all 90 minutes of the Lions’ 3-1 loss to the Chicago Fire in the Eastern Conference Wild Card game. He didn’t contribute to Orlando’s lone goal or attempt any shots in the match. The young fullback completed 26 of his 36 passes (71%) with no key passes. Defensively, he recorded a clearance and won his two aerial duels. He suffered one foul, did not commit any, and was not booked.

Freeman started both U.S. Open Cup games, playing 45 minutes against the Tampa Bay Rowdies and 90 minutes against Nashville SC for a total of 135 minutes. He didn’t score a goal or assist on one, but he attempted one shot (off target) and completed 51 of his 59 passes (86.4%). He helped defensively with one tackle, four interceptions, and two clearances. He suffered three fouls without committing one, but he was booked against Nashville.

The defender played in all six Leagues Cup games, starting five and coming off the bench in the 54th minute against Atlas for a total of 487 minutes in the competition. He did not score in the tournament but chipped in two assists, attempting four shots and putting two on target. He completed 166 of his 194 passes (85.6%) in those games, with seven key passes. Additionally, he completed 10 of his 17 long balls (58.8%) and two of his six crosses (33.3%). Defensively, Freeman added 12 tackles, six interceptions, four blocks, and 15 clearances, andhe won 10 of his 14 aerial duels (71.4%). Freeman committed just two fouls while drawing 11 from his opponents and was booked once in the competition.

Best Game

For a player who was named to the league’s Best XI team, you can point to a number of high-quality performances. However, I believe Freeman’s best game came early in the year in a 4-1 win over D.C. United on March 22. The right back started and played all 90 minutes, recording a goal and an assist — the only time he’s had two goal contributions in a game.

His biggest impact came in the 50th minute, when a foul on Cesar Araujo gave the Lions a free kick near the D.C. box. Martin Ojeda sent a curling ball towards the back post where Freeman jumped over Boris Enow to give his team a 3-0 lead.

In the attack, the right back completed 38 of his 44 passes (86%), including two key passes and his only cross attempt. His only shot was his goal, and he was strong defensively with seven clearances and winning four aerial duels — a team high.

2025 Final Grade

Freeman received a composite rating of 8 out of 10 from The Mane Land staff for the 2025 season. While he had an average rating of 6.4 for the season — fourth best on the team — in our individual game player grades, he was truly one of the bright spots in the Orlando City team this year. There were times when he was fantastic, and he even earned his spot in Mauricio Pochettino’s U.S. setup. If Freeman remains with the Lions next season, it will be hard for him to top this grade, his first as a Lion. While he’s been on the first team roster since 2022, this is the first season that he’s played the minimum required minutes (450) to earn a grade.

2026 Outlook

Freeman’s contract ends at the end of the year, though the club holds an option for the 2026 season. The question isn’t whether the club will want to bring him back, but whether he’ll want to move to Europe and try his hand at a higher league. Reports earlier this season indicated the club was attempting to offer him an MLS U22 Initiative deal and ensure he can get regular minutes at the club level while the U.S. prepares for the World Cup. If sold to a European side, Freeman would not be assured of getting regular minutes and it could prove costly to a player looking to earn a spot on the U.S. squad.

Should the right back return to Orlando next year, there’s no question he’ll continue in his starting role and be a key player in the side. The club will undoubtedly pick up his option while working on a new deal, ensuring Orlando City gets a fee for a sale if he does move on. However, that fee will likely have to be high for the Lions to part ways with the young playmaker.

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Lion Links: 11/10/25

Pride defeat Seattle Reign in the NWSL playoffs, several young Lions receive U.S. youth national team call-ups, Americans abroad, and more.

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13 hours ago

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November 10, 2025

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Image of Haley McCutcheon, Luana, and Angelina celebrating Orlando's win over Portland.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been staying busy at work and covered high school hockey this week. The Pride continue their playoff run in the National Women’s Soccer League, and we’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Pride Defeat Seattle to Advance to NWSL Semifinals

The Orlando Pride defeated the Seattle Reign 2-0 at Inter&Co Stadium Friday in the NWSL playoff quarterfinals. Haley McCutcheon scored the opening goal in the first half to give Orlando the lead. Late in the second half, Luana scored her first NWSL goal from the spot to seal the win for the Pride. Orlando secured its fourth consecutive playoff win in two seasons and looks to take another step towards defending its NWSL crown. After Friday’s match, Haley McCutcheon and Marta discussed welcoming doubters and being motivated to prove them wrong as the Pride move on to the next round. The Orlando Pride will host NY/NJ Gotham FC in the semifinals Sunday at Inter&Co Stadium at 3 p.m. after Gotham’s win at Kansas City over the weekend.

Several Lions Receive Call-Ups to U.S. Youth National Teams

The U.S. Soccer Federation announced the rosters for several upcoming youth national team training camps and several young Lions got the call. The USSF announced that Orlando City Development Academy products Justin Ellis and Colin Guske have received call-ups to the U-19 team for the November FIFA window, while midfielder Jacob Ramirez was also announced as a call-up for the U-17 U.S. squad. The U-19 U.S. Men’s National Team will travel to Wales to participate in the UEFA U-19 Youth Tournament from Nov. 10-17. The squad will face Germany on Nov. 12, Wales on Nov. 15, and Japan on Nov. 18. The U-17 U.S. Men’s National Team will travel to Dubai as that squad prepares for qualification for the 2026 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar. The U-17s will play friendlies against England on Nov. 13, Australia on Nov. 15, and the Ivory Coast on Nov. 18. Meanwhile, Homegrown fullback Tahir Reid-Brown has gotten the call from the U.S. U-20 side, coached by former USL-era Lion Rob Valentino, for a camp from Nov. 10-18 in Alajuela, Costa Rica. The U.S. will play a pair of matches against Costa Rica in that camp.

MLS Playoff Roundup

The first round of the 2025 MLS playoffs wrapped up over the weekend. On Friday, New York City FC beat Charlotte FC 3-1 to win the best-of-three series and advance to the conference semifinals. Saturday featured three matches, with plenty of drama. Minnesota United edged the Seattle Sounders 7-6 on penalties after a thrilling 3-3 draw. Minnesota trailed 2-0 and fought back to take a 3-2 lead, before Jordan Morris scored the equalizer late in the second half to send the game to spot kicks. FC Cincinnati beat the Columbus Crew 2-1 with a late winner from Brenner to advance. Inter Miami avoided a repeat of last year’s first-round exit and cruised to a 4-0 victory over Nashville SC. San Diego held a 3-0 lead in the late game with less than 20 minutes to play against the Portland Timbers Sunday, with the winner facing Minnesota United in the Western Conference semifinals. The matches set for the next round are the Philadelphia Union vs. New York City FC, Inter Miami vs. FC Cincinnati, and LAFC vs. the Vancouver Whitecaps.

NWSL Quarterfinals Recap

In other NWSL playoff action from the weekend, the Washington Spirit beat Racing Louisville 3-1 on penalties after a 1-1 draw to move on to the semifinals. The top-seeded Kansas City Current fell to the eighth-seeded Gotham FC 2-1 after extra time. Katie Stengel scored the game-winning goal late in extra time to help Gotham FC pull off the upset and move on to the semifinals against Orlando. The Portland Thorns also needed to go to extra time to defeat the San Diego Wave 1-0 as Reilyn Turner scored the lone goal. The Portland Thorns will face the Washington Spirit at Audi Field in the other NWSL semifinal matchup on Saturday.  

Americans Abroad

It was a busy weekend for Americans in Europe. Folarin Balogun scored his fourth goal of the season in Ligue 1, but Monaco fell 4-1 to Lens. Patrick Agyemang scored his second goal of the season for Derby County as his side defeated Blackburn 2-1 Saturday and secured a fifth straight win in the EFL Championship. Alyssa Thompson played 86 minutes and scored her first goal in the WSL for Chelsea.

However, Chelsea couldn’t hold onto the lead as Arsenal found a late equalizer, and the match ended in a 1-1 draw. In the 2025 FIFA U-17 World Cup, the U-17 U.S. Men’s National Team overcame a 1-0 deficit to defeat Tajikistan 2-1 with a goal from Cavan Sullivan. With the win, the U.S. booked a spot in the Round of 32 and will face the Czech Republic in its final group stage match Tuesday.

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That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday, and I’ll see you next time.

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2025 Orlando City Season In Review: César Araújo

Injuries limited the Uruguayan, but he still had a solid season in the midfield.

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1 day ago

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November 9, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City signed Uruguayan midfielder Cesar Araújo on Jan. 7, 2022, from Montevideo Wanderers, making him the club’s first-ever MLS U22 Initiative signing. Araujo inked a three-year contract through 2024 with an additional club option year in 2025. The midfielder moved out of a U22 Initiative slot and into a standard contract in 2024, and as Araújo had hit his performance incentives his club option was triggered for 2025.

Let’s take a look back at the midfielder’s fourth season with the Lions.

Statistical Breakdown

The Uruguayan was one of Orlando City’s stalwarts in 2024, but injuries held him back from playing a similar amount of minutes in 2025. When he was available he was a first-choice defensive midfielder, but unfortunately for the Lions, he missed more than one-third of the MLS regular season.

In MLS regular-season play, Araújo appeared in 22 of Orlando’s 34 matches, starting 20 and playing a total of 1,801 minutes. He scored two goals and added three assists — increases over 2024, when he had one in each category, and new career highs as a Lion. He attempted 19 shots and put a career-high seven on target. Araújo completed a team-high (among players who played significant minutes) 92% of his passes with 19 key passes. On the defensive side, he compiled 38 tackles, nine interceptions, 21 clearances, and six blocks. He committed 31 fouls and suffered a team-high 58, and his 2.9 fouls suffered per 90 minutes ranked him tied for fifth in all of MLS among players who played at least 1,000 minutes. He received six yellow cards and one red card — a straight red card he received against Atlanta.

Araújo started the Eastern Conference wild card game alongside Eduard Atuesta in the center of the midfield but only played 75 minutes before coming off for Colin Guske with the team trailing 3-0. He did not take any shots, but matched his regular-season average by completing 92% of his passes, with no key passes. He added one tackle and one clearance on defense and both committed and suffered two fouls. He was not booked.

The Montevideo, Uruguay native started both games during the U.S. Open Cup, playing a total of 123 minutes. He did not take any shots or record any goal contributions, but he completed 87% of his passes with one key pass. Defensively, he made six tackles but did not have any other contribution. He committed one foul, drew three on the opposition, and was not booked in the competition.

Araújo played nearly every possible minute during Leagues Cup play, starting all six games and only sitting out one minute out of the 540 total available minutes. He did not score a goal but assisted on one, and he put his one shot during regulation play on target, though he did not convert his penalty kick attempt in the game against Pumas that went to a penalty shootout. He slightly bested his performance in the U.S. Open Cup by completing 89% of his passes, with six of them being key passes, and on defense he was all over the field, contributing eight tackles, six interceptions, three clearances, and three blocks. He committed three fouls but suffered a team-leading 13, earning one yellow card.

Best Game

There were several candidates for Araújo’s best game, including the 4-1 demolition of Miami in August and the 4-2 victory over St. Louis in June, but I believe he had his best performance of the season early in the year, during Orlando City’s first win of the season over Toronto. The Uruguayan had a goal and an assist, scoring a stunning free kick to open the scoring and then assisting Martín Ojeda with a beautiful through ball for the third goal for the Lions.

Araújo also led the team with 53 completed passes, while tallying one interception and five loose ball recoveries on defense, wrapping up what was an excellent all-around game (he was also fouled twice, because he is seemingly always fouled at least twice) for the midfielder, and a game for which he was awarded our Man of the Match in our player grades.

2025 Final Grade

The Mane Land awarded Araújo a composite rating of 6.5 out of 10 for the 2025 season, which is a slight decrease from the 7 out of 10 that we awarded him for the 2024 season, and made it four consecutive years that his end-of-year rating dipped by .5, as he had earned a 7.5 in 2023 and an 8 in 2022. Injuries definitely played a role in the lower grade, as did the team’s overall disappointing performance, but his form and his stats also reflected a player who was slightly less effective in 2025. The red card he received against Atlanta completely changed that game as well, turning a late lead into a loss, and those thrown away points would have been enough for Orlando City to avoid the wild card had the Lions closed out that game successfully. He also had to play with a new primary midfield partner and several part-time replacements for when Atuesta was unavailable, which likely contributed to some of his inconsistency this season. Araújo was still an effective and above-average player in 2025, but he was not the destroyer he had been during his first three seasons in Orlando, and his player rating reflects that.

2026 Outlook

As of this writing, Araújo is out of contract, and while it is not official, it appears like he will not return to Orlando and will move to a new club in 2026 based on internet reports and rumors. While it is still possible that Orlando City is able to work out a new contract with Araújo, all signs point to him having played his last match in Lions purple. There were rumors about him returning to South America prior to the season, and those rumors persist now that he is out of contract heading into the MLS off-season. He was a mainstay in the middle during each of his four seasons in Orlando, and as he is only 24 years old, he has a long career ahead of him still, but unfortunately it seems like that future will not be in Orlando. If he were to sign a new contract, he would be a clear starter once again in the central midfield, but if he does not, then those will be big shoes to fill for the Lions.

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