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Orlando City vs. Charlotte FC: Final Score 2-0 as Lions Open 2024 Playoff Run with Home Victory

Facundo Torres and Martin Ojeda provided the offense, leading Orlando City past Charlotte FC in the Lions’ playoff opener.

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6 hours ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

Facundo Torres and Martin Ojeda scored on either side of halftime as Orlando City (1-0) defeated Charlotte FC (0-1) in Game 1 of the teams’ first-round, best-of-three series at Inter&Co Stadium tonight. The Lions controlled the game almost from start to finish, allowing the visitors little room to attack and finding spaces to create chances, handing Charlotte its first loss since the team’s last visit to Orlando in September.

Orlando finally scored more than one goal in a playoff game, but the Lions could have had even more had they been just a tad more clinical with the volume of chances they created. In the end, two was enough to open the series with a win, as Pedro Gallese only had to make two saves to earn his third MLS playoff shutout.

“We’re very happy with the result, but much more for the way we did it against a tough rival in a very difficult postseason game, which means a lot for our fans,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said. “First half, we controlled it and we had a lot of volume. We created many chances. We missed a lot of opportunities.”

Pareja’s lineup included Gallese in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson. Cesar Araujo and Wilder Cartagena started in central midfield behind an attacking line of Ivan Angulo, Ojeda, and Torres, with Ramiro Enrique up top.

Orlando City dominated the first half but was wasteful with its opportunities, especially early. The Lions took the first shot of the game six minutes in as Cartagena sent an attempt from outside the area that was always going wide. Ojeda tried to redirect it in front, but it was just out of his reach. A minute later, Torres fired from the right but his shot was deflected out for a corner by the defense.

On the set piece, the Lions played it short and tried something off the training ground that nearly came off. A ball from the top of the area was sent into the box for Schlegel, who sent his header wide in the eighth minute. Orlando couldn’t pay off another couple of corners just after that opportunity.

Charlotte finally got forward in the 16th minute and a dangerous cross in from the left was just over two attacking players in front, sailing harmlessly out for a goal kick.

Araujo unlocked the defense with a brilliant pass in the 20th minute that sent Enrique in behind. The striker fizzed a shot inches wide of the left post from the right to waste the opportunity. The flag came up on the play, which would likely have been reviewed had Enrique found the net.

In the 22nd minute, the visitors got their best chance of the half as Liel Abada shielded off the defense well on the left and fired on frame, but Gallese was there to make the save. A minute later, Charlotte sent a good cross in from the right to Karol Swiderski, but it was a tad behind the striker and he headed it over the bar.

Orlando’s first shot on target came in the 26th minute when Torres tried his luck from outside the area. He put a lot of power on his shot, but it was right at Kristijan Kahlina, who fought it off.

The Lions broke the scoreless deadlock in the 32nd minute. Angulo sent Santos into the left corner and the fullback sent a dangerous cross into the six. Adilson Malanda tried to head it away but Torres stepped in front of it, chesting it down and firing it off the bottom of the crossbar and in to put Orlando City on top. It was Torres’ 46th career goal across all competitions, tying Dom Dwyer’s career combined (USL and MLS) mark. It also set a new single-season mark with 19 across all competitions, and it was Torres’ third goal against Charlotte in as many meetings in 2024.

“We worked a lot during the week in trying to take it a little bit deeper down the line and hit it back toward the center and back toward that back post, because Charlotte likes to get a lot of guys into the box defensively,” Torres said. “Thankfully, the ball kind of came my way. I just thought, ‘Just hit it on goal and see where it goes.’ And thankfully it went in.”

Orlando kept coming and had a good attacking movement in the 35th minute that appeared would put Enrique in behind. Torres continued his run on the play and the two Lions collided, knocking each other down to end the threat.

Angulo sent a cross in with teammates breaking in the 38th minute but sent it too close to Kahlina. Seconds later, the Lions nearly doubled their lead. Cartagena sent a beautiful through ball that sprung Enrique again. This time, the Argentine got his shot on target, but Kahlina got a piece of the shot with his leg, deflecting it off the right post to keep it a one-goal game.

That was the last good look of the half as the Lions took their slim advantage into the break.

Orlando City held the halftime advantage in possession (61.3%-38.7%), shots (11-3), shots on target (3-1), corners (6-0), and passing accuracy (90.9%-82.4%).

Charlotte came out in the second half and controlled the ball more but Orlando City’s defense kept the visitors from creating many opportunities from that possession. Once Charlotte started pushing up the field, the Lions looked more dangerous on the counter. Charlotte racked up corners and set pieces in the second half but couldn’t make them pay off.

“Second half, we became more tense, and the first 15-20, minutes in the second half, we sensed that we are winning, but this is a dangerous situation, and we started dropping in the zone that we don’t feel comfortable,” Pareja said. “But we just started getting some spaces too. So it was like a trade.”

Enrique missed another opportunity in the 50th when he got down the left side and tried a shot with his off foot, blasting it wide of the near post.

Torres should have doubled the lead in the 54th minute on a great attacking movement. Ojeda got down the left and pulled a pass back through traffic to a wide-open Torres in the box. The Uruguayan had plenty of time and space but he fired the shot too close to Kahlina, who made the save.

The visitors got three corners in quick succession over the next several minutes but the Lions did well to clear the danger, although they could never quite get out in transition off of them.

“I feel like the first half was really good from the team, and in the second we kind of dropped down a little bit, and I feel like we got a little bit sloppy, and that’s something that we can’t do in the playoffs,” Thorhallsson said. “So, we need to go the full 90 minutes with just full effort and full concentration. I feel like we did it. It dropped a little bit, but it’s just something that we need to be careful about.”

Araujo won a corner kick in the 64th minute and the initial ball was cleared. The recycle found Schlegel in front but the center back couldn’t get much on his shot, allowing Kahlina to make another save.

Charlotte nearly tied the match in the 70th minute and it would have been a controversial one. Substitute Patrick Agyemang pulled Jansson down in front as a cross came in from the left, leaving him all alone in front. The big striker’s header was too close to Gallese, who made the save. Jansson wasn’t happy with the lack of a call but managed not to pick up a yellow card for dissent.

Ojeda looked exhausted at that point in the game but it’s a good thing he didn’t get subbed off immediately, because he doubled the lead in the 76th minute, just moments after giving the ball away and conceding a free kick in Orlando’s defensive end.

Araujo sent a good ball forward down the left. Ojeda was offside but made no play on the ball, allowing Angulo to blaze down the left flank and beat Nathan Byrne to the ball . Angulo used his first touch to poke the ball inside to Ojeda. With Charlotte waiting for Ojeda to play the ball across to a teammate, the Argentine instead fired a shot just inside the left post, beating Kahlina to make it 2-0 with his last involvement in the game. It was the first time the Lions have scored twice in an MLS playoff game.

“Martin gave us that bit of peace when we scored a second one,” Pareja said. “In those instances where the other team is just throwing bodies up front, and they had this chance with Agyemang. And we were tense too. We were waiting for that second one. Martin was looking a bit tired but also his intentions were correct all the time too. And Martin has that quality of not just creating dangerous plays but he’s finalizing. His second goal in two games is great for us and a great moment as well.”

The visitors threw some attacking subs on to try to get back into the game but it was Orlando creating more on the counter in the final minutes. However, the Lions left Pep Biel alone outside the box in the 86th minute and it was nearly costly, as the winger smashed a shot just wide of the right post and into the outside netting.

Orlando had a few transition opportunities but couldn’t pick out the correct pass. One of the best chances dissolved when Angulo held the ball too long with second-half substitute Duncan McGuire breaking behind the defense on the right and another was just a tad behind McGuire.

Disaster struck for Charlotte early in stoppage time when Biel tangled with Jansson and kicked out at the Orlando center back, intentionally tripping the Swede. Referee Drew Fischer showed Biel a straight red card, sending him off, meaning he’ll be suspended for Game 2.

McGuire nearly got in behind late in stoppage time, but an untidy touch allowed the defense to recover and knock it out for a late corner. Shortly after the set piece, the game was over.

Orlando City finished with the advantage in possession (55.8%-44.2%), shots (17-9), shots on target (6-2), corners (8-4), and passing accuracy (88.6%-84.2%).

“We came into today looking for that victory, knowing that we were going to be playing in our home, in front of our fans, and we were looking to take advantage of that home-field advantage and carry a win into Charlotte,” Torres said. “We knew that coming into tonight, if we were able to get the win, that that was going to elevate the confidence for us going forward and how we were going to approach the rest of the series. And so, being able to get the win tonight and coming off a really good game, we know that we can go into Charlotte with a little bit more tranquility, but the same level of intensity, and try and go out and repeat and get that win in the series on Friday.”

“The boys were very happy on this first achievement, or this first win in the playoffs. But I noticed as well that they were very committed with just move on and prepare for the next one,” Pareja said. “Their experiences during the playoffs in Major League Soccer tell them, and tell us, this is one game. We need to move on and then prepare with the same intensity and responsibility, because it’s a series that is not done yet.”

These two teams will be back at it Friday night in Charlotte for Game 2 of the series. If Orlando gets a road win, the Lions would advance to the conference semifinals.

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Charlotte FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

Orlando City opens the postseason looking for a way past Charlotte’s stingy defense.

Published

18 hours ago

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October 27, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City FC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your match preview and live thread for a Sunday night playoff matchup between Orlando City and Charlotte FC at Inter&Co Stadium (7:30 p.m., FS1, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV). This is the first time the teams have met in the postseason as they open a best-of-three, first-round series.

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

History

The Lions are 3-1-2 in the regular-season series and 3-2-2 in all competitions against Charlotte. Orlando City is 2-1-0 at home in the regular season. Every game between the two teams (aside from the draws) had been decided by a single goal until the most recent clash, when the teams met a month ago on Sept. 18 in Orlando. The Lions got second-half goals from Facundo Torres and Duncan McGuire to win 2-0, claiming the first multiple-goal win in the series.

The teams also met on June 19 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte and played to a 2-2 draw. The hosts struck first with an early Kerwin Vargas goal and the Lions pulled one back through McGuire in the second half. But despite Charlotte going down a man on Scott Arfield’s red card, Brandt Bronico restored the hosts’ lead shortly after McGuire’s strike. Torres struck back moments later but the Lions could not find a winner on the road.

The previous match was also a draw at Bank of America Stadium, finishing 1-1 on Aug. 30, 2023. Enzo Copetti’s late penalty appeared to wrap things up for the hosts on a rainy night in Charlotte, but Martin Ojeda’s seeing-eye set piece equalized just before stoppage time as the teams split the points.

Charlotte claimed a 1-0 “home” victory in U.S. Open Cup play on May 9 of last year. That game took place at Mecklenburg County Sportsplex in Matthews, NC, rather than at the club’s regular stadium. The first matchup of the 2023 season didn’t go any better for Orlando City, finishing as a 2-1 Charlotte win at Exploria Stadium on March 18. Copetti and Vargas put Charlotte up 2-0 by halftime. Ojeda pulled one back, but the Lions were wasteful in front of goal and couldn’t pull level.

The teams met at Bank of America Stadium on Aug. 21, 2022. After a scoreless first half, Ercan Kara put the Lions ahead on the road, only to see McKinze Gaines equalize just four minutes later. Tesho Akindele’s late goal lifted Orlando to a 2-1 victory.

Orlando City won the first-ever meeting between the sides on April 30, 2022 at Exploria Stadium. Ruan scored the opening goal and set up Torres on the counter for the second as the Lions took a 2-0 lead into the locker room. Christian Fuchs scored from the spot after Rodrigo Schlegel was called for a foul in the box in the second half, but that was as close as Charlotte got in what was ultimately a 2-1 Orlando victory.

Overview

These teams were separated by only one point in the standings after the 34-game regular season. The Lions (15-12-7, 52 points) needed their three points this season against Charlotte (14-11-9, 51 points) to finish in the home playoff places for the first round.

Orlando City enters tonight’s match having lost 2-1 to Atlanta United at home on Oct. 19 in the season finale. The Lions staked the visitors to an early 2-0 lead and outplayed them the rest of the way, with Ojeda scoring just before the break. However, Orlando could not find an equalizer, backing into the fourth spot in the Eastern Conference due to New York City FC’s loss at CF Montreal. That game also allowed Charlotte to leapfrog NYCFC into the fifth spot, producing tonight’s matchup. The Lions finished 7-6-4 at home in the regular season, but considering the team’s terrible start to the season at Inter&Co Stadium, that was an accomplishment. Orlando had a seven-game (6-0-1) home unbeaten run snapped on Decision Day, as well as a 10-game unbeaten run in all competitions (7-0-3).

Charlotte hasn’t lost since dropping that Sept. 18 match in Orlando, going 4-0-1, with the only draw coming on the road against Inter Miami, 1-1. Three of the other four games were shutout victories, including the last two. Charlotte’s 3-0 win at D.C. United on Decision Day pushed the team ahead of NYCFC and into the fifth spot.

Although Orlando scored twice in each meeting with Charlotte this season, tonight’s visitors have the best defensive record in the Eastern Conference and have the second-best defense in MLS, allowing just 37 goals in 34 games. Charlotte went just 5-8-4 on the road in 2024, but has been good of late, with a win and a draw in its last two away from home. Despite setting a club record for goals in 2024, the Lions have never scored more than one goal in a playoff game, and tonight’s opponents won’t make things any easier.

Orlando City will need to be patient but also try to build a volume of shots against Charlotte’s stout defense, led by goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina, who posted 119 saves on the season and tied for the league lead in minutes played (3,060) and a strong back line that includes U.S. international Tim Ream. The key to beating Charlotte is to get some goals on the board, as the visitors’ offense has found the net just 46 times this season — tied for 10th in the Eastern Conference — although it has scored 14 during its current unbeaten run and has been held under two goals just once since getting shut out in Orlando in September.

“We are so proud to again be at this stage of the playoffs, which is the most important part of the season,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said ahead of the game. “For us, it’s just an opportunity one more time, just to get the best prize here, to our club, to our city, and that’s what we are focused on. We are very optimistic and ready to compete. Regarding our match, it’s playoff time. The playoffs are a different tournament. It’s a short tournament when there is no tomorrow, you have to be ready that day, and we are preparing mentally just to face that challenge. We are really proud to represent our club again in the playoffs.”

The Lions will be without Mason Stajduhar (lower leg). Charlotte will be without Jahlane Forbes (hip), while Nikola Petković (knee) is questionable.

Match Content

Official Lineups

Orlando City (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Pedro Gallese.

Defenders: Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson.

Defensive Midfielders: Cesar Araujo, Wilder Cartagena.

Attacking Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Martin Ojeda, Facundo Torres.

Forwards: Ramiro Enrique.

Bench: Javier Otero, Kyle Smith, Michael Halliday, David Brekalo, Felipe, Jeorgio Kocevski, Nico Lodeiro, Luis Muriel, Duncan McGuire.

Charlotte FC (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Kristijan Kahlina.

Defenders: Tim Ream, Andrew Privett, Adilson Malanda, Nathan Byrne.

Midfielders: Brandt Bronico, Ashley Westwood, Junior Urso.

Forwards: Liel Abada, Karol Swiderski, Pep Biel.

Bench: David Bingham, Jere Uronen, Jaylin Lindsey, Bill Tuiloma, Djibril Diani, Iuri Tavares, Jamie Paterson, Kerwin Vargas, Patrick Agyemang.

Referees

REF: Drew Fischer.
AR1: Micheal Barwegen.
AR2: Lyes Arfa.
4TH: Rosendo Mendoza.
VAR: Michael Radchuk.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter&Co Stadium  — Orlando

TV/Live Stream: FS1, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV (Free).

Radio: Real Radio 104.1 FM (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish).

Twitter: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow along at @TheManeLand, as well as Orlando City’s official Twitter feed (@OrlandoCitySC).

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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Orlando City

Orlando City’s Attack Needs To Produce in the Playoffs

The Lions have historically struggled to score in the playoffs, and it’s time to buck that trend.

Published

3 days ago

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October 25, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

While Orlando City has made the playoffs in each of the last five seasons, including this one, things have been a mixed bag for the Lions once they’ve gotten there. OCSC has only advanced past the first round on two occasions, with the first coming in 2020 by eliminating New York City FC on penalties, and the second occurring in 2023, thanks to a pair of 1-0 wins over Nashville SC.

In 2021 and 2022, Orlando was eliminated at the first hurdle, which came against Nashville in the former season and CF Montreal in the latter. Across all four of the Lions’ postseason campaigns, there’s one constant theme that needs to change — goal scoring, or rather a lack of it.

It might be easy to forget in light of Orlando finally banishing its streak of missing the postseason, and then starting a new streak of making the playoffs five years straight, but the Lions have never scored more than one goal in a playoff game, and they’ve been shut out on two occasions. OCSC has played seven postseason games in the last four years and has only scored five goals, for an average of 0.71 goals per game. Yes, it’s a relatively small sample size, but that is…not great.

To refresh memories, Orlando’s maiden playoff game took place in 2020, and finished in a 1-1 draw with NYCFC, but the good guys got through on penalties courtesy of the Hand of Godrigo. That postseason journey ended the following game, courtesy of a 3-1 defeat to the New England Revolution. In 2021, a brutal 3-1 loss on the road to a Nashville team that gave Orlando all sorts of hell that year ended the dance early, while in 2022 the Lions dropped a 2-0 decision on the road to CF Montreal.

Last year, Orlando got a measure of revenge by beating Nashville home and away 1-0 to get through to the second round, but couldn’t make home field advantage count against the Columbus Crew, and fell 2-0 to the eventual champions in extra time after Rodrigo Schlegel was sent off late in regulation.

The New York City draw saw Orlando record 16 shots but only put three of them on target, and the goal came courtesy of a Nani penalty kick. In the following match, Orlando outshot New England 11-9 but only put three shots on target to the Revs’ six. In the 2021 loss to Nashville, the Lions matched the hosts’ shot total with nine apiece, but again only recorded two shots on target to the opposition’s six. The 2022 loss to Montreal was a particularly painful affair, as Orlando’s lack of regular-season goals carried over into the postseason, and Montreal put two of its 11 shots on goal and scored from both, while the Lions only attempted five and didn’t put any on frame.

In the first playoff game last year against Nashville, Orlando City took a whopping 25 shots but only put five on target, and it took a wondergoal from Wilder Cartagena to get OCSC on the board. In the away leg, Ivan Angulo capitalized on an early mistake in the Nashville box and opened the scoring, but the Lions once again outshot their hosts 16-10 and put five shots on target to their four but could only muster the lone goal. Their season then ended against Columbus in a game in which a red card hampered Orlando greatly, but didn’t prevent the Lions from creating 13 chances, with several good ones coming on the break. Only three of those resulted in shots on target though, and none found a way past Patrick Schulte.

That makes a total of 95 shots taken in seven games with 21 on target and five goals. Orlando has put 22% of its shots on target and scored on 23% of those shots on target. Essentially, creating chances, or at least taking shots, hasn’t been the issue (usually). The problem has been getting shots on target and making the goalkeeper work. Failing to do so makes it hard to actually put the ball in the back of the net. Scoring hasn’t been a difficulty for Orlando in 2024, as the Lions have bagged 59 goals in 34 games, which is a club record. At first glance, OCSC is well-positioned to end its postseason scoring difficulties.

Unfortunately, Orlando drew a pretty tricky first-round opponent in Charlotte FC. Dean Smith’s team has the second stingiest defense in the league with only 37 goals given up in 34 games, which is good for a 1.08 goals-per-game average. Charlotte doesn’t score a ton of goals either, scoring only 46 during the regular season, but Sunday’s visitors put a strong season together by being tough to score against. Orlando put two goals past them in each of the meetings between the two teams this year, and doing so again would be a great start to getting out of the first round.

To do that, the Lions are probably going to need to be good in the proverbial “halfcourt” against a team that will likely look to sit deep and be difficult to play through. Passing will need to be sharp and quick, movement will need to be creative, and players will need to make the right decisions and execute them well. We’ve seen this year that the Lions are capable of doing all those things, and if they can put it all together when it matters, then they’ve got a great chance of advancing past the first round.

History is against the Lions, but there’s no time like the present when it comes to writing a new chapter.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 10/25/24

Orlando City will host FC Series, the USWNT defeats Iceland, the MLSPA releases salary list, and more.

Published

3 days ago

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October 25, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Welcome to Friday, Mane Landers. Congratulations on making it through another week. Hopefully, you’re in the type of job that allows you to have weekends off. If not, then I share your pain. Regardless, there’s plenty of soccer coming up this weekend to watch, including your very own Orlando City. Before we get started today, remember to schedule some time to celebrate, as today marks the anniversary of the USL announcing Orlando City joining the league. OCSC started play in 2011, won a bunch of trophies, later joined MLS, and the rest is history.

Now, let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Will Host FC Series

Inter&Co Stadium will be the site of a special edition of the FC Series in January. In addition to Orlando City, three Brazilian clubs will take part: Cruzeiro, São Paulo, and Atlético Mineiro. The competition will consist of three matches, with Orlando City playing Atlético Mineiro in the third match. The event will celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the series going back to its Florida Cup roots.

USWNT Defeats Iceland

The USWNT won the first of two friendlies against Iceland with a 3-1 victory Thursday night in Austin, TX. The U.S. struck first on an excellent shot by Alyssa Thompson, who netted her first international goal. Iceland equalized in the second half. Jaedyn Shaw gave the U.S. a 2-1 lead late, and Sophia Smith added another goal minutes later. Emily Sonnett earned her 100th cap, while Hal Hershfelt and Yazmeen Ryan made their debuts. Sadly, Emma Hayes didn’t see fit to give the Orlando Pride’s Emily Sams her debut. Hopefully, that is remedied in Sunday’s match.

MLSPA Releases Salary List

The MLS Players Association has released salary data for all the players in MLS. Unsurprisingly, Lionel Messi tops the list at $20.5 million which is more than the entirety of Orlando City’s roster put together. The only surprising thing is that Inter Miami doesn’t have more than two names in the Top 10. Luis Muriel is Orlando City’s highest paid player, followed by Facundo Torres. Duncan McGuire rounds out the top three for the Lions, thanks to his new contract.

Dike Returns from Injury

Former Orlando City striker Daryl Dike is finally making his way back from a ruptured Achilles tendon injury suffered last season. His time at West Bromwich Albion has been marred with injuries that have kept him on the sidelines for the majority of his tenure with the club. Dike is training with the club’s Under-21 squad. He’ll next train with the senior squad before getting playing time with the Under-21s and finally making his return to play for the senior team. We wish him luck.

Free Kicks

That will do it for today. Check back as we get you ready for Orlando City’s upcoming playoff match against Charlotte FC on Sunday. Vamos Orlando!

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