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Orlando City vs. Charlotte FC: Final Score 1-1 (4-1) as Lions Advance with Penalty Shootout Win

The Lions are through to the conference semifinals with a Cardiac Cats finish and domination in penalties.

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2 months ago

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Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Trailing 1-0, Orlando City was just moments away from exiting the 2024 MLS Cup playoffs tonight at Inter&Co Stadium. But Duncan McGuire earned a late penalty that Facundo Torres converted on the rebound of his saved attempt to tie the game at 1-1. The Lions were clinical in the ensuing penalty shootout moments later, winning it 4-1 over Charlotte FC and advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second straight year.

The shootout win, fueled by two Pedro Gallese saves, gave Orlando a 2-1 series win over Charlotte FC with the final two matches decided from the spot after the Lions opened with the only win in normal time out of the three games.

“I think we were the best team of this series,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “But the game just put us in that situation when they score goals and they sit back, and we couldn’t open those lines. But finally we did, and the (win in) PKs is probably a result that was very fair for the effort that we made during the series.”

Pareja made no changes to his lineup, starting 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, Martin Ojeda, and Torres, with Ramiro Enrique up top.

The Lions won the first half territorially, but sttruggled with the final ball, either leaving shots too close to Kristijan Kahlina or rattling the woodwork. Orlando’s first opportunity came three minutes in when Ojeda made a good cross into the box that hit off Torres and went toward goal, but without much pace, allowing Kahlina to collect it. Three minutes later, Tim Ream tried to chest a cross back to Kahlina and Araujo threw himself forward, nearly getting his head to it and forcing the Charlotte goalkeeper to spill it, but the visitors were able to regroup.

In the 10th minute, Charlotte got its first chance off a corner kick. Kerwin Vargas headed it down at the back post as he was left all alone, but he sent it straight toward Gallese.

Ojeda delivered a great ball on a long-distance free kick in the 16th minute, finding Schlegel in the box. The defender got good pace on his header but left it too close to Kahlina, who made the save. A minute later, the Lions should have scored. Ojeda made a great cutback pass to Torres, who fizzed a shot that hit the right post and stayed out.

Torres found the crossbar in the 21st minute on a header off an Araujo cross. It appeared Kahlina may have touched it off the bar.

Patrick Agyemang sent a soft header to Gallese in the 24th minute, but given the final shots on target in the half, he must not have gotten credit for a shot.

Enrique got onto a good chip pass from Torres in the 33rd minute. The Argentine volleyed a shot toward goal but couldn’t keep it down, sending it high over the bar.

Ojeda nearly got in behind in the 39th minute but the ball took a high bounce. As he waited for it to come down, the defense arrived to knock it out of play.

Torres had a shot blocked in front in the 40th minute that looked as if it might have been a handball. There was no obvious sign of a review, but the ball may have hit the defender’s body before the arm.

Agyemang was sent in behind in the 45th minute, catching Gallese out with a chipped shot, but the flag came up straight away and after review, the offside call was upheld.

That was the final play of note from a first half that had plenty of action but no final product.

At halftime, Orlando City held the advantage in possession (60.7%-39.3%), shots (8-2), shots on target (2-1), corners (4-3), and passing accuracy (86.4%-81%), but the Lions had nothing to show for it.

“We were more offensive. I think we hit the post twice in the first half,” Pareja said. “And we had many other options that were clear.”

Neither team made a halftime change and Orlando got the first half chance of the second period. A weak cross from Thorhallsson looked like it would be an easy scoop for Kahlina, but Enrique got there with a quick, darting run and got a foot to it, poking it just wide of the right post in the 47th minue.

Orlando won a few set pieces but couldn’t make them pay off, coming close in the 56th minute. Ojeda sent in a good corner kick cross and Enrique was unmarked, coming from a deeper position for a free header. However, he sent his effort just wide of the right post.

Angulo saw his shot blocked at the hour mark off a deflected cross from Ojeda.

Vargas shook free on the left side and sent a shot into the outside of Gallese’s left post in the 66th minute.

Second-half sub Luis Muriel tried his luck from outside the area in the 68th minute but it one-hopped into Kahlina’s hands. Two minutes later, he tried again from a similar spot but hit his effort wide to the left of goal.

Pep Biel tried his luck from long range in the 71st minute but sent his shot well over.

Muriel tried to send fellow sub McGuire in behind down the right side in the 76th minute. McGuire saw his shot saved but he was offside anyway and likely knew it. The flag came up after the shot.

Charlotte broke the deadlock in the 81st minute and it was a bit unlucky for Orlando. A ball over the top bounced over Jansson’s head, putting the visitors in on the attack. Liel Abada found Swiderski in front and the striker’s shot deflected past Gallese to make it 1-0.

“They wait for a mistake and we made one,” Pareja said.

“I ended up in between, not reaching it,” Jansson said. “And Swiderski was more just being in behind me. So, that was just a bad move on that one. But I do think that it was not that he just took the ball and run through the goal. I think we could have stopped it anyway. But that’s things that happen sometimes in the game, and it has to be better in the in the coming game.”

Jansson tried to get the goal back in the 85th minute, getting his head to a recycled ball and deflected it on goal, but Kahlina made the save.

The Lions had a chance to tie it up in the 90th minute when Santos sent a perfect cross from the left to the back post to substitute Kyle Smith, who merely needed to touch it home. Instead, Smith tripped over the ball and ended up knocking it backwards.

Orlando didn’t quit. In the 93rd minute, Araujo smashed a shot that fizzed just inches wide of the left post. Moments later, the Lions got the break they had been pushing for. Cartagena sent a ball into the area, and Djibril Diani pulled McGuire down. The big center forward went down hard on his shoulder. He sprinted to the sideline looking to get his shoulder fixed, but he was unable to return to the match, leaving his team short. The play was reviewed and the call on the field was upheld, with Orlando awarded a penalty.

Torres had to wait a long time to take the spot kick between the injury to McGuire and the video review. When he finally took his shot, Kahlina made the save, but the rebound came right back out front where Torres buried it to tie the game at 1-1 in the 102nd minute.

“Today, I think everyone saw like the mentality when they scored from our side,” Jansson said. “Directly when we got the ball, we wanted to try to do something, push forward.”

Moments after the restart, Pekmic blew the whistle and sent the game to penalties to decide things.

The Lions dominated the stat sheet, finishing with the advantage in possession (60.9%-39.1%), shots (21-6), shots on target (6-3), corners (9-3), and passing accuracy (86.7%-82.2%).

Orlando shot first and Muriel froze Kahlina to start things off with a goal for the Lions. Biel stepped up to shoot first for the visitors. He sent his shot to Gallese’s left, but El Pulpo guessed correctly, fully extended, and made the save.

Kyle Smith calmly blasted the second shot into the net to put Orlando up 2-0, and Swiderski stepped up for Charlotte. He sent his shot to Gallese’s right, but the Orlando goalkeeper again went the correct way and stuck out a fist to keep it out. Torres pushed the Lions’ lead in the shootout to 3-2 and Ashley Westwood answered for the visitors, making it 3-1 after three rounds. Any Orlando goal or Charlotte miss and it was over.

Santos slowly walked up and placed the ball, then took a wild, sweeping, stop-start run-up. Kahlina guessed correctly, but the Brazilian’s shot was precise, slipping inside the post to push Orlando through to the next round.

“I studied a little bit more, really focused in on the PK takers of our rivals tonight,” Gallese said of his preparation. “We knew that the way that they played, there was a good chance that we would go to penalties again, so we were all putting in the extra effort to make sure that we were ready for that. And thankfully, it paid off.”

“I have to congratulate the coach (Dean Smith of Charlotte). I thought he complicated things with a system that I respect,” Pareja said. “I think he made the movements and made our game model more complicated in some moments. Today, they defended with a line of five, and it was a surprise for us, because I have not seen it before when we faced them. But we adapted well.”

Next up for Orlando City is a rematch from Decision Day. Atlanta United’s first-round upset will have the Five Stripes visiting Orlando City Sunday, Nov. 24 at 3:30 p.m.

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Orlando City

Orlando City Forward Jack Lynn Announces His Retirement

Orlando City forward Jack Lynn retires from professional soccer.

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17 hours ago

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January 18, 2025

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image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City announced this morning that forward Jack Lynn has retired from professional soccer to explore opportunities outside of the game. The striker was the Lions’ first-round pick in the 2022 MLS SuperDraft.

“Jack is a player who always gave 100 percent for us here in Orlando both in training and every game that he played,” Orlando City Executive Vice President of Soccer Operations and General Manager Luiz Muzzi said in a club press release. “He is someone who was always a positive to have as a part of the group and was ready to do whatever was asked of him for the team. We want to thank Jack for these last three years of hard work and professionalism and wish him nothing but the best in this next step of his life.”

The 25-year-old was selected with the 18th overall pick out of Notre Dame and the Lions signed him to a one-year deal on Feb. 16, 2022, with club options for 2023, 2024, and 2025. Orlando City exercised its option on Lynn following the 2022, 2023, and 2024 seasons, so he was set to enter his final option year in 2025.

Lynn quickly became a regular starter for Orlando City B, playing 53 games with 45 starts and recording 3,950 minutes. He scored a team-record 38 goals and added five assists over three seasons with the second team.

After scoring 15 goals for OCB during his rookie season, Lynn won the Golden Boot with 19 goals in 2023. His play that season earned him the title of MLS NEXT Pro MVP, making him the first OCB player to win the award.

The third-year forward saw his role with the first team increase significantly in 2024. He only made seven total first-team appearances in his first two seasons, but appeared 14 times in 2024 with his only two starts. In his three seasons in Orlando, Lynn played in 22 games with two starts and recorded 326 minutes. He scored twice, with both goals coming in MLS action.

Prior to joining the Lions, Lynn was a standout forward at Notre Dame, playing 79 times with 57 starts while scoring 31 goals and adding eight assists. He scored 10 goals with four assists during his senior year, helping the Fighting Irish win the ACC Championship before losing to eventual champion Clemson in the NCAA College Cup semifinal. He was a three-time All-ACC selection and All-Region selection during his collegiate career.

What This Means for Orlando City

Lynn played sparingly during his professional career but saw his role increase last season. An injury and subsequent surgery for Duncan McGuire meant he was likely to see even more time in 2025 had he continued playing. However, he would’ve been the third or fourth choice on the roster.

The retirement means the Lions will likely be on the lookout for another striker as they attempt to add some depth to the position. Ramiro Enrique will be the starter as the season begins and Luis Muriel can play up top if needed, but there was already a need for depth up top. That need is even more urgent with Lynn’s departure.

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Orlando City Signs Colombian Winger Nicolas Rodriguez

The Lions add a skilled young winger ahead of the 2025 season.

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2 days ago

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January 17, 2025

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,
Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Orlando City has announced the previously reported signing of Colombian forward Nicolas Rodriguez from Fortaleza CEIF through 2027 with a club option for 2028. Rodriguez, 20, will occupy an MLS U22 Initiative slot.

“We’re very excited to have Nico join us here in Orlando. With the characteristics he has as a player, he’s someone that we feel really fits our model and culture at the club,” Orlando City Executive Vice President of Soccer Operations and General Manager Luiz Muzzi in a club press release. “Nico has a skilled left foot that makes him a challenge to defend, likes to take defenders on one-on-one, and has a promising future. We’re excited for all he’ll achieve here during his time in purple.”

Rodriguez made 19 appearances (all starts) in the 2024 Primera A Clausura season with Fortaleza, compiling 1,607 minutes, scoring five goals, and adding three assists.

“It’s an honor and a point of pride to be able to wear this kit, to be able to represent this badge, and it’s very important to me and to my family,” Rodríguez said in the club’s press release. “I’m excited about this next step along my journey.”

The San Jose del Guaviare, Colombia native joined Fortaleza’s youth team in 2021, making his debut in the Categoria Primera B against Boyaca Chico. After rarely appearing in his first two years, the 5-foot-8 winger became a regular starter in 2023, appearing in 44 matches and scoring eight times, helping the club earn promotion to Primera A. He played in 42 games in all competitions for Fortaleza in 2024, scoring eight goals.

What It Means for Orlando City

The Lions get a talented, young offensive-minded player who can help the club while developing. If things go well, Orlando City will be able to move him in the future for a great deal more than what the club is investing in him now, which is good business, but not at the expense of the team on the field. Rodriguez isn’t a like-for-like replacement for Facundo Torres — at least not yet — but he doesn’t have to be. The Lions could play Martin Ojeda or Luis Muriel opposite Ivan Angulo, allowing Rodriguez time to develop with minutes off the bench and spot starts during heavy fixture congestion. And, with an open Designated Player slot, there may still be a forward or winger brought in before the 2025 season starts.

In addition to playing right wing, Rodriguez can also play the right side in a three-man midfield and even the No. 10 spot. In Oscar Pareja’s system, he would likely project as the right attacking midfielder in the 4-2-3-1.

Rodriguez will occupy an international and U22 Initiative slot for the Lions. He’s a player with a lot of upside and with the financial investment of the transfer fee, coupled with the reports that Fortaleza will retain as much as 30% of a future sale, the club must feel good about his future. Fans should as well after seeing the video below, which shows Rodriguez has plenty of confidence and finishing ability, even from outside the box.

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Opinion

Likes and Dislikes from the First Week of Orlando City’s Preseason

Here are a few things that stood out from the first week of preseason — some good and some bad.

Published

2 days ago

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January 17, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

The 2024 Major League Soccer season has barely had time to breathe, but Orlando City opened preseason training on Monday. If it feels like time has flown by, that’s because it has. Hell, we’ve already got a whole working week’s-worth of practices in, and things are only going to pick up from here. With that being the case, I wanted to stop and reflect on a couple things that I liked, and a couple things that I disliked from the first week of the Lions’ preseason.

Likes

The Boys Are Back in Town

First and foremost, it’s good to be back in soccer mode. Its always nice to reflect on fond memories from the most recent season — particularly when its a successful one like the Lions just had, but reminiscing only takes you so far. But now we’re getting daily looks at OCSC’s preseason work and are able to check in with the familiar faces we know and love while also getting to know a few new ones. Videos like this one are always nice and help build excitement for the games to come.

Games Just Around the Corner

Speaking of games, we aren’t too far from Orlando’s first game of 2025. The Lions will play a preseason match a little over a week from today on Jan. 25, when they take on Atletico Mineiro at home in the FC Series. It may be only a preseason game but it still provides us with our first glimpse of what Orlando City will look like during the 2025 season. We’ll presumably get to see some of the team’s draft picks in action and should get some clues as to how the positional pecking order is starting to shape up.

Dislikes

The Wait for Reinforcements

It isn’t out of the norm for Orlando City to take its time making off-season signings when compared to its fellow MLS teams, and that’s been the case once again this year. Granted, there are plenty of teams that have more spots to fill than the Lions and some teams are in the midst of outright rebuilds. Still, OCSC has several spots that are in need of strengthening, depth, or both, not to mention a Facundo Torres-sized hole out on the right wing. There’s absolutely work to be done, and while I’m all for taking the time to make sure you sign the right players, there’s also something to be said for giving those players as much time in preseason as possible to adapt to their new teammates and unfamiliar surroundings. Here’s hoping that some moves start getting made soon.

The Departure of Mason Stajduhar

I won’t lie to you guys, when the news came through on Wednesday afternoon that the Lions had traded Mason Stajduhar to Real Salt Lake for General Allocation Money and a draft pick, it was a tough blow and one that I’m still having trouble coming to terms with. Professional soccer is a business, and I understand that, but it’s tough to see a guy like Mason head out the door. The team’s fourth Homegrown Player had been around since 2015 and beat cancer, made his MLS debut, got his first MLS wins and shutouts, helped OCSC hoist the club’s first silverware as an MLS team, and got engaged and then married — all while wearing Orlando purple. As our editor Michael Citro put it, we watched him grow up from a teenager into a young man, and it’ll always be tough to watch someone leave who has been around for 10 years and has been a consummate professional for each one of them. I’ll miss him but wish him all the best.

What did you guys make of the first week of the 2025 preseason? Are there any things that you’re keeping a particularly close eye on as we begin building towards the match against Atletico Mineiro? Be sure to have your say down in the comments, and I’ll see you next week. Vamos Orlando!

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