Orlando City vs. Philadelphia Union: Photo Gallery

After dominating the first part of the game, including scoring the first goal early, Orlando City allowed the Philadelphia Union to climb back into the season-opening match Saturday with a costly mistake in the 24th minute. The Lions then made several mistakes at the back early in the second half, digging a huge 4-1 hole that was too much to overcome, despite a brace on his debut from Marco Pasalic, allowing the Union to leave Orlando with a 4-2 win.

The Lions created enough chances to climb back into the match, but Andre Blake was outstanding in the Philadelphia goal, denying nearly everything thrown at him. Pasalic was a bright spot for Orlando City, and Martín Ojeda also had a strong match, assisting on the first Pasalic goal and putting two shots of his own on target. Alex Freeman also played well, coming off the bench for meaningful minutes and putting a headed shot from an Ojeda delivery off the crossbar.

Joran Gerbet and Nicolas Rodriguez both made their MLS and Orlando City competitive debuts, but nothing was quite able to dig the Lions out of the hole they’d dug with catastrophic defensive-third turnovers. Orlando City suffered its first opening day loss and will enter Matchday 2 without a point for the first time.

We hope you enjoy these images from the season opener more than the match. The Lions will look to get on track Saturday when Toronto FC visits Inter&Co Stadium.