Orlando City announced today that Duncan McGuire has undergone arthroscopic surgery to repair the labrum and rotator cuff in his right shoulder. The surgery, which the club called “successful,” was necessary to repair damage from an injury McGuire sustained in Orlando City’s playoff match against Charlotte FC Nov. 9 when he was pulled down by Djibril Diani.

Orlando City Chief Medical Officer Dr. Craig Mintzer of the Orlando Health Jewett Orthopedic Institute performed the surgery.

McGuire’s injury occurred in the decisive Game 3 in the first round in the seventh minute of stoppage time, with the Lions trailing 1-0. Diani tugged McGuire’s shirt as he made a run that would have seen him have a play on a set piece cross in the penalty area. The striker went down hard and was visibly in pain on the ground, before getting to his feet and sprinting to the trainers in the technical area. The training staff appeared to be trying to pop his shoulder back into place but McGuire was unable to return to the match.

Facundo Torres’ subsequent penalty attempt was saved by Charlotte goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina, but before the crowd could fully absorb the missed opportunity, Torres scored on the rebound to level the match at 1-1, ultimately sending the game to a penalty shootout, which Orlando won, 4-1, advancing to the Eastern Conference semifinals.

McGuire was seen lobbying to come back onto the pitch for the penalty shootout in the Charlotte match, but trainers would not clear him to return. The 23-year-old came off the bench in Orlando’s remaining playoff games against Atlanta and the New York Red Bulls despite the injury, playing a total of 50 more minutes in the playoffs.

The Creighton product did not register a goal contribution or put any of his three postseason shot attempts on frame. However, he was a key contributor to the Lions reaching the playoffs for the fifth straight year, providing 10 goals and three assists in the regular season across 27 appearances (18 starts), despite missing a chunk of the season with the U.S. Olympic Men’s Soccer Team.

Orlando City drafted McGuire in the first round (No. 6 overall) in the 2023 MLS SuperDraft. After a breakout rookie campaign, in which the Omaha, NE native scored 13 goals and added three assists, he was courted by several teams in Europe. In fact, McGuire’s presence in Orlando this season was an unexpected delight for City fans, as he had agreed to a deal with Blackburn Rovers, only to see the transfer rejected by the English Football League due to an administrative error by the EFL Championship club. After returning to Orlando, McGuire signed a new deal on Aug. 22 to remain a Lion. The new contract runs through 2027 with a club option for 2028.

What It Means for Orlando City

The club puts McGuire’s timeline on recovery at four to five months, which would mean he won’t return to training until at least mid-April and as late as mid-May. If his rehab goes well, and factoring in about a month of training to regain his full fitness, that would likely mean his availability won’t come until somewhere between the middle of May and the middle of June.

While Oscar Pareja has been starting Ramiro Enrique up top in his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation, McGuire brings size and strength and an ability to occupy center backs that the Argentine can’t replicate. There are times when Enrique’s game is better suited to the opponent, but without McGuire there will be no ability to pivot. Jack Lynn is also under contract, and he can do some of the things McGuire does, but not at the same level.

Without McGuire available for the first half of the season, Orlando City has some options on a replacement. The Lions may opt to draft a striker, start using Luis Muriel in that role more, sign an available free agent, or simply roll with Lynn as the primary backup.

Orlando City announced the signing of Luis Muriel back on Feb. 15. The Colombian international arrived from Serie A side Atalanta on a three-year deal and slotted in as the team’s third Designated Player alongside Facundo Torres and Martin Ojeda. The club began looking for another striker when it appeared that Duncan McGuire would be on the move to England, and when he stayed, Muriel found himself in a crowded striker depth chart with he, McGuire, Ramiro Enrique, and Jack Lynn all competing for minutes.

The logjam at forward, combined with a late arrival to camp and missing preseason with the team, meant that Muriel took a little time to get going. As a result, he had a fairly worrying start to the season. He settled in after a few months though, and began turning in some much-improved performances off the bench.

Let’s take a look at how Muriel performed during the 2024 season.

Statistical Breakdown

Muriel appeared in 33 regular-season games for the Lions, starting 14 of those and playing a total of 1,582 minutes. He scored five goals and added seven assists, attempting 55 shots and put 17 of them on target. The veteran forward completed 81.3% of his passes, including 37 key passes, two successful crosses, and 22 long balls, while also amassing 43 dribbles. Defensively, he totaled 25 tackles, three interceptions, and seven clearances. He committed 30 fouls, suffered 23, and received two yellow cards.

He also played in three Concacaf Champions Cup matches for Orlando, starting the home match against Cavalry FC and both matches against Tigres, logging 223 minutes. He didn’t score in the competition but provided an assist, attempting four shots and putting two on target. He passed with 82.4% accuracy and played one key pass. On defense, he contributed three clearances. The Colombian forward committed two fouls, drew three on his opponents, and he was not booked.

Muriel made two Leagues Cup appearances — both as a substitute — appearing for 39 minutes in total. He did not provide a goal contribution, although he scored his penalty attempt against Cruz Azul in the postgame shootout after the teams drew. He attempted two off-target shots, passing with 88.9% accuracy, and he did not record any defensive statistics in the competition.

Finally, he appeared as a substitute in all five of OCSC’s postseason games, and logged 89 minutes in the process. While he didn’t record an official goal contribution, he scored on both of his penalty shootout attempts against Kristijan Kahlina in the opening series against Charlotte FC. Muriel attempted six postseason shots, putting one on target, and passing with 79.5% accuracy, including three key passes. He didn’t register any defensive stats. Muriel did not commit a foul and drew five on his opponents and was not booked.

Best Game

There were a couple of candidates for Muriel’s best performance, but I went with Orlando’s 3-2 road win against the Philadelphia Union. The Colombian started that match at striker and played 85 minutes as part of a 3-5-2 alongside Duncan McGuire. The formation was one that was necessitated due to injury as both Rafael Santos and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson were unavailable. The unfamiliar formation didn’t seem to bother Muriel as he opened his Orlando City account in style, cutting onto his left foot in the 41st minute and unleashed a rocket into the top corner.

He followed that up with the eventual game-winner just seconds after halftime. He managed to find a pocket of space in the Union’s back line and Nico Lodeiro’s pass was perfectly weighted to put him in on goal. Muriel used one touch to get the ball out from his feet and his second touch to slide the ball beyond a helpless Oliver Semmle.

His involvement went beyond the two goals though. In addition, he played two key passes, completed a game-high five dribbles, drew two fouls, took three shots (two on target, one off target), completed three long balls, and passed with 85.2% accuracy. On defense, he contributed one tackle and committed one foul, but was not booked.

In the Player Grades piece penned by yours truly, I graded Muriel as an 8.5 out of 10, as he narrowly edged out a superb Nico Lodeiro, who was given an 8.

2024 Final Grade

Our staff here at The Mane Land awarded Muriel a composite grade of 6 out of 10 for his first season wearing purple. It was a difficult start to the season for him, much as it was for most of the team, but he showed some improvement as the season went on and did some good things while being asked to come off the bench.

2025 Outlook

Muriel is under contract through the end of the 2026 season and is on some pretty big money, so barring something very unforeseen he’ll be back next year. He’s a particularly interesting case. His talent and ability is obvious whenever he steps on the field, but we didn’t see a ton of him leading the line in a full-strength team. His vision, passing range, and dribbling ability are among the best on the team, and he probably should have had at least six more assists but was held back by his teammates’ finishing.

There’s no denying that he had a pretty dreadful start to the year, but he quietly morphed into having a pretty fantastic end to the season. The duality of that shows in his final grade for 2024. The main issue is that by the time he started to heat up, Enrique and McGuire were bagging goals, and Oscar Pareja almost always goes with whoever the hot hand is. Going forward, I’d like for the coaching staff to find a way to get him on the field, whether that’s as part of a two-forward system, or he’s slotting in as a no.10, as we often saw him do off the substitutes’ bench. A full off-season will hopefully do him good and help justify the big contract that OCSC gave him.

Previous Season in Review Articles (Date Posted)

• Alex Freeman (12/5/24)
• Michael Halliday (12/6/24)
• Yutaro Tsukada (12/7/24)
• Mason Stajduhar (12/8/24)
• Javier Otero (12/9/24)
• Jack Lynn (12/11/24)
• Shakur Mohammed (12/12/24)

Happy Friday the 13th! It’s supposedly an unlucky day, but it’s hard not to just brush superstitions aside as we get ready for the weekend during a busy month. I’ll be spending the next few days shopping with friends, prying gift ideas from my family members who are hard to shop for, and hopefully starting a book or two that I’ve been meaning to read. But for now, let’s get to today’s links!

Orlando City Linked With Luis Palma

The rumor mill is in full swing and Orlando City is reportedly interested in Honduran winger Luis Palma, who currently plays for Celtic in Scotland. According to 67 Hail Hail, which covers Celtic transfer news, Orlando and Atlanta United have the 24-year-old on their radars. Palma is under contract with Celtic until 2028, but hasn’t been receiving much playing time under Brendan Rodgers. Orlando reportedly hasn’t contacted Celtic for a deal. In my opinion, this may just be the kind of interest that could be said of many players Orlando likely keeps tabs on abroad. Palma is talented, but he would be an awkward fit for an Orlando side that has open U22 Initiative slots and could be freeing up a Designated Player slot as well.

Facundo Torres Transfer Saga Rolls On

Would it be an Orlando off-season without some uncertainty over a prominent attacker? Orlando forward Facundo Torres’s potential departure has been the subject of reports this week, with Palmeiras and Cruz Azul as the leading contenders to sign him. According to Fabrizio Romano, Cruz Azul has now submitted a bid to Orlando for the 24-year-old, with Torres accepting the move as well.

But while Romano reports that Orlando is expected to accept the bid, Tom Bogert of Give Me Sport reports that Orlando is keeping its word to Palmeiras after accepting the Brazilian club’s offer.

If these reports are to be believed, it’s smart for Orlando to sit back while Palmeiras tries to work things out with Torres and Cruz Azul waits in the wings if it falls apart. There’s also still a chance Torres winds up staying in Orlando despite all of this. It’s a fluid situation and I’m curious how it will all shake out.

MLS Transfer News Roundup

While most of the excitement of MLS free agency is seeing which players wind up in new places, clubs are also focused on keeping important players around as well. LAFC has locked down defender Aaron Long, re-signing him to a deal through 2027. FC Dallas winger Alan Velasco signed a contract extension through 2028 with the club and will still be a Young Designated Player. Atlanta United re-signed forward Jamal Thiare, who had a brace in Atlanta’s win against Inter Miami in the playoffs.

San Diego FC also officially added center back Andres Reyes from the New York Red Bulls in exchange for $800,000 in General Allocation Money. Reyes should be a great anchor for San Diego’s defense as it prepares for its inaugural season in 2025.

Keeping Up With Europa League

The Europa League wrapped up another round of matches Thursday, and it’s a bit clearer on where each team stands heading into the tail end of the group stage. Rasmus Hojlund came off the bench and scored twice to lead Manchester United’s comeback in a 2-1 win over Viktoria Plzen in Czechia. Tottenham went to Glasgow and salvaged a point in a 1-1 draw thanks to a goal from Dejan Kulusevski. As for the two teams atop the standings, Lazio beat Ajax 3-1 in Amsterdam and Athletic Club won 2-0 against Fenerbahce. Galatasaray had to settle for a 2-2 draw with Malmo after Sergio Peña scored for the Swedish club in stoppage time. While no club has outright earned a spot in the round of 16 just yet, seven teams are assured of at least the knockout phase now, including Manchester United, Anderlecht, and Lyon.

Free Kicks

• CF Montreal and Toronto FC will square off in the first round of next year’s Canadian Championship. Meanwhile, the Vancouver Whitecaps have a bye into the next round.
• Dax McCarty, who retired following this past season, posted on Instagram that he will join the MLS Season Pass crew starting next season.
• Along with the great Champions League goal Weston McKennie and Tim Weah combined for, the returns of Johnny Cardoso and Giovanni Reyna were bright spots from Americans abroad this week.
• FIFA officially announced that the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil will start on June 24 and end on July 25.
• The Orlando Pride don’t just do good things on the soccer pitch. They also do good things away from the field, such as bringing a little joy to local area hospital patients.

That’s all I have for you today. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!