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Orlando City vs. New York Red Bulls: Five Takeaways

Here’s what we learned from Orlando City’s scoreless draw at home against the New York Red Bulls.

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1 year ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

After capturing four out of six points during a modest, two-game road swing, Orlando City returned home riding a four-game unbeaten streak. Entering Saturday afternoon’s match even on points and record with the New York Red Bulls, it was a chance for the Lions to get a leg up on one of their Eastern Conference competitors and extend the streak to five.

Things changed early in the second half that left Orlando with a tall order just to scratch and claw for a single point, which the Lions did, making it a five-game unbeaten run (2-0-3) with a 0-0 home draw against New York.

What follows are my five takeaways from the match.

Improved Midfield Engine

Although Cesar Araujo and Eduard Atuesta were upgraded to questionable after missing last week’s match, both starting central midfielders were on the bench at the start of Saturday’s game. Joran Gerbet and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson started together for the second straight game. Their growing comfort level showed against the Red Bulls, as they not only helped the Lions lock things down on the back line, but they also did a far better job of turning takeaways into transition opportunities than they had at Philadelphia a week ago. Finding ways to turn defense into offense is crucial to Oscar Pareja’s system, and while the young duo were understandably defense-first-minded against the Union, they showed more confidence against New York. Orlando finished with more possession, shots, shots on target, and corners won, despite being down a man for almost the entire second half. That’s a good sign, even if the team ultimately didn’t win.

Lions Lack Lethality

Carlos Coronel is a difficult goalkeeper to beat for a goal, but (like any goalkeeper) he’s impossible to beat if your shots aren’t on target. The Lions generated a few top-notch scoring chances against the Red Bulls — far more than they typically have over the past few years. Marco Pasalic, Luis Muriel, and Ivan Angulo all had good looks at goal in the first half from in and around the box, only to miss the target. Martin Ojeda put his best chance on frame, but he unwisely tried to beat Coronel from the left with a near-post shot with far more room to put it inside the far post. That lack of precision was costly, as when the game changed early in the second half, the Lions were even instead of leading.

Schlegel Gonna Schlegel

Whether Orlando City would have eventually found a way to put the ball in the net, we’ll never know. Rodrigo Schlegel saw to that when he took a second unnecessary yellow card in the 56th minute. The Lions had been dominating territorially and conceding almost no space at all for New York’s attack to work in to that point in the match. Orlando City had come close to opening the scoring several times, and it seemed to be one of those nights when either the Lions would eventually get that all-important goal or the Red Bulls would find a way to eke out a smash-and-grab a road victory. But this night ended differently when Schlegel was booked for a high boot early in the second half on a routine throw-in. It did not seem like referee Chris Penso was initially going to book him for it, but when he examined Eric Choupo-Moting, he pulled out his cards and the Lions had to play a man down for about 40 minutes.

There was no reason for Schlegel to be so aggressive that far from goal on a throw-in, especially when he was already on a yellow from an unnecessary pull-back of Emil Forsberg in the 31st minute. That foul was let go by Penso to see who gained advantage, but when Schlegel made a good, clean, sliding tackle to break up New York’s attack seconds later, Penso halted play, gave Schlegel his first yellow card, and awarded a free kick. Neither foul was necessary in the moment, and while the sending off didn’t prevent Orlando from having a few moments of attacking promise, it severely crippled the Lions’ momentum and chances of taking all three points. Schlegel is a capable defender, but even in the midst of a good run, such as the 2023 MLS playoffs against Columbus, he’s prone to making critical errors that cost his team.

Find the Balance

Orlando City’s offense came out of the gates flying in 2025, but the defense did not look up to snuff. For the second consecutive match, the Lions looked more like themselves defensively against New York. The visitors were frustrated repeatedly into trying hopeful, long-range shots. A single redirect in front of goal that Pedro Gallese saved was the only spot of danger from the Red Bulls all night. However, for the second straight game, a defensive clean sheet was matched by the offense producing no final product. There was the aforementioned improvement, however. The Lions generated shots and chances to the tune of 1.4 expected goals to just 0.7 for New York. Whether intimidated into trying to be too perfect against Coronel or simply a bit off their game, the attacking players failed to show the clinical finishing that helpd the Lions to jump out to a league-best 15 goals scored through the first six games. The return of the starting central midfielders should help create better opportunities for the front four, but the team must also find its balance between offense and defense to take the next step forward.

Getting Something from the Game

Considering the game circumstances — playing a man down for almost the entire second half and still using Pareja’s fourth and fifth choices in central midfield (though Atuesta did come on as a sub in the second half) — it was important for the Lions to take something from the match. Orlando City scratched and clawed for a single point with the odds heavily stacked in New York’s favor. It’s a testament to the recent defensive improvements that the visitors weren’t able to generate much danger either before or after going up a man early in the second half. The back four did just enough to see out the clean sheet, and while things got a little dicey on Rafael Santos’ side once he came on to slide David Brekalo into Schlegel’s hole at center back, the introduction of Kyle Smith helped calm things down a bit. Getting anything from a match in which a player is sent off is just as good as finding a way to eke out a road point was last week. These are the kinds of points that allow the team to progress forward when it’s not the Lions’ best night. As long as the team can take advantage and get all three when the situation is more favorable, Orlando City can continue to make progress as a contender in the Eastern Conference.

Those are my takeaways from Orlando City’s best performance (if not best result) against the New York Red Bulls in quite a while. Keeping all 11 players on the pitch may have yielded a better result, but for now, the Lions will take a point through adversity and try to make up for dropping two points by focusing on a critical away match against CF Montreal on Saturday.

What stood out to you? Let us know in the comments below.

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Orlando City

Flashback Friday: June 10, 2023 vs. Colorado Rapids

Let’s take a trip down memory lane to a booking-laden match at home that took place a little less than three years ago.

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5 hours ago

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June 12, 2026

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

The World Cup is now officially underway, and while that means Orlando City is on break, we can’t have you forgetting about the Lions while all the international action is taking place. That means its time for another edition of Flashback Friday, where we hop in the trusty time machine and reminisce on OCSC matches of yesteryear.

Last week we relived a rousing road win over the New York Red Bulls from June, 3 2023, and this week, we actually pick up right where we left off, on June 10, 2023 as the Lions returned home to take on the Colorado Rapids.

Coming off a 3-0 win over the Red Bulls in the previous match, Oscar Pareja decided to not mess with a good thing, and kept Orlando City’s same starting XI from that victory. Pedro Gallese was in net behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Kyle Smith. Wilder Cartagena and Cesar Araujo played the double pivot; Ivan Angulo, Mauricio Pereyra, and Facundo Torres were the attacking midfielders, and Ercan Kara was deployed as the striker.

In typical June fashion for the City Beautiful, kickoff was delayed by just under an hour as the stadium was pounded by storms, and the delay did not look to have done any favors for Orlando’s sharpness. That said, OCSC did win a corner kick less than a minute into the game, and Torres had a tame shot saved in the eighth minute, but the Lions weren’t consistently sharp with their passing in the early moments of the contest.

The teams traded chances just before the 15-minute mark, with Kara sending a header too high before Cole Bassett sent a shot straight to Gallese. Carlos then picked up a yellow card in the 24th minute, which evened things out between the two teams after Lalas Abubakar was cautioned for the Rapids after just six minutes. Those two bookings proved to be a harbinger of things to come, because Colorado went down to 10 men in the 39th minute after midfielder Braian Galvan caught Angulo with a high boot while his studs were showing.

Pereyra had Orlando’s best chance of the opening 45 minutes in stoppage time but could only send his effort right at goalkeeper Marko Ilic, and that was the last significant action of the half. The Lions ended the half with an edge in possession (59.7%-40.3%), shots (7-2), shots on target (2-1), and passing accuracy (85.3%-79.4%), while both teams won two corners.

Pareja made two moves at halftime, bringing on Rodrigo Schlegel for the once-booked Carlos, and Martin Ojeda for Cartagena in an effort to go more offensive against a shorthanded Rapids side. The Lions certainly looked brighter going forward as the second half got underway and had a few dangerous moments before finally breaking the deadlock in the 55th minute.

Pereyra played a ball across the top of the box for Torres, who took a couple of touches before sending a ball to the net that took a wicked deflection off Andreas Maxsø that carried it past Ilic.

It wasn’t the prettiest goal the Lions have ever scored, but for a team that was guilty at times of passing up good shots in favor of the perfect look at goal, it was proof that sometimes you just need to take shots in dangerous areas.

Fortunately, Orlando seemed to take that lesson to heart. Kara went close in the 65th minute despite shooting through traffic, Angulo had a shot deflected by Abubakar three minutes later, and Torres had another deflected effort go just wide of the post four minutes after that.

The game changed again in the 75th minute, when the Rapids had another player sent off. Abubakar lasted for 69 minutes on a yellow card but got burned by Angulo in midfield and hauled him down in order to prevent the Lions from potentially working a transition opportunity. He had some teammates behind him, but the referee showed him a second yellow card. Pareja smelled blood in the water and just three minutes later he brought on Ramiro Enrique for Smith, who had been given a yellow card in the 52nd minute.

Ilic made a great save on Pereyra in the 81st minute to keep the score at 1-0 and keep the Rapids in the game, but Orlando got its second goal just two minutes later. Torres had the ball on the right side of the box with a Colorado player backing off him, and that gave him ample time to get his head up and pick out a man. He played a ball to Enrique at the top of the box, who had plenty of time to take a couple of touches and send a low shot into the bottom corner past a diving Ilic for his first goal as an Orlando City player.

Somewhat surprisingly, the game started to get a little stretched after the Lions doubled their advantage. Colorado had a shot blocked in the 81st minute, Kara sent a shot very close to the post six minutes after that, and Gallese saved a Darren Yapi attempt in the 88th minute to keep his clean sheet alive. Aside from Pareja handing Alejandro Granados his MLS debut, that was the last significant action of the match, which finished 2-0 to the good guys.

Unsurprisingly, considering Colorado’s deficit in players, the Lions dominated all of the game’s most important statistics. OCSC finished with the advantage in possession (65%-35%), shots (15-4), shots on goal (6-2), corners (5-3), and passing accuracy (89.4%-81.5%).

The victory made it back-to-back wins for the first time in 2023, stretched Orlando’s unbeaten run to six, and gave El Pulpo his 100th clean sheet for the team in all competitions.

Marcus Mitchell had the helm for Player Grades in this one, and Torres got his nod for Man of the Match with a goal, an assist, and a grade of 7.5 out of 10. Several other Lions graded out at 7 out of 10, with only one player grading below a 6.

While it was a weird win, it unfortunately was the final game of the unbeaten streak, as the Lions fell to a familiar defeat at Gillette Stadium the following week, although things got back on track soon afterward. I’ll see you back here in a week for another trip down memory lane. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links: 6/12/26

USMNT plays Paraguay tonight, red cards rain down in World Cup opener, Sporting Kansas City linked with Yann Gboho, and more.

Published

9 hours ago

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June 12, 2026

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Image of Alex Freeman sliding in celebration of a goal.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Happy Friday, Mane Landers! The World Cup is in full swing and the U.S. will play today, so it’s a pretty exciting Friday to say the least. I’m a bit of a bundle of nerves about how the team will do, but I’m still looking forward to catching the game. If you have any gameday rituals, be sure to share, so that we can conjure up enough luck and support for the team tonight. Let’s get to the links!

USMNT’s World Cup Campaign Begins Today

The United States Men’s National Team will take on Paraguay at 9 p.m. tonight in its first match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. There’s plenty of pressure on the U.S. to perform well as one of the host nations, and this will also be Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino’s first time coaching at a World Cup. Pochettino stated that all 26 players are available for selection, including center back Chris Richards, although he may not necessarily start. Former Orlando City defender Alex Freeman, who is the youngest player on the U.S. roster, could make his World Cup debut tonight, so be sure to root for our hometown hero should he take the field. Hopefully, the Yanks can start this tournament off on the right foot with a big win in California.

World Cup Opener Features Three Red Cards

This year’s World Cup began in Mexico City, with Mexico beating South Africa 2-0 in a match that included three red cards. All three were straight red cards given in the second half in separate incidents, as Sphephelo Sithole and Themba Zwane were sent off for South Africa before Mexico’s Cesar Montes was shown red in stoppage time. There hasn’t been a World Cup match with that many red cards since the record of four was set in 2006 in a match between Portugal and the Netherlands. As for the game’s goals, Julian Quinones pounced on a mistake by South Africa to give Mexico an early lead and Raul Jimenez doubled that lead while South Africa was reduced to 10 men.

Sporting Kansas City Linked With Yann Gboho

While the World Cup roars on, the rumor mill is in full force as clubs make plans for summer reinforcements. Sporting Kansas City is reportedly pushing to sign Toulouse winger Yann Gboho, who recorded 10 goals and three assists across all competitions this past season. The surprising aspect of this pursuit would be that Toulouse values Gboho at an eye-watering $20 million transfer fee, which would be a club record by a country mile. Kansas City needs all the help it can get on offense, as it has scored just 14 goals in 14 games so far this season.

Jose Mourinho Officially Returns to Real Madrid

It’s been a bit of an open secret over the past few weeks that Jose Mourinho would become Real Madrid’s next manager and it’s now official, with the 63-year-old signing a three-year contract with the Spanish club. Mourinho helped Real Madrid win a La Liga title and the Copa del Rey over a decade ago before his departure in 2013 after three seasons with the club. Now, he joins a Real Madrid side that has finished second in the league standings and been eliminated in the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League the past two seasons. I, for one, can’t wait to see how one of the biggest personalities in soccer works alongside a locker room of star players that seemed in disarray this past season.

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

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Lion Links: 6/11/26

Wilder Cartagena linked with move to Sporting Cristal, Orlando Pride hire Dr. Nicole Surdyka, Barbra Banda injury update, and more.

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1 day ago

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June 11, 2026

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jermey Reper

The World Cup is finally here! Today starts what should be an exciting month of international soccer featuring more teams than ever before. While I wasn’t able to part with the arm and leg necessary to afford a ticket to one of the games, I’m still looking forward to watching along when I can with the rest of the world. Let’s get to the links!

Wilder Cartagena Linked With Move to Peruvian Club

You’ll need a translation tool to check out the full details unless you are fluent in Spanish, but Sporting Cristal of Peru’s top flight is reportedly interested in signing Orlando City midfielder Wilder Cartagena. The 31-year-old is currently under contract with Orlando through 2026, with the contact also including a club option for 2027. He was a crucial part to Orlando’s success in 2024, but he missed all of last year and has only started one game so far this season due to injuries. It’s not much more than a rumor as of now, but it’ll be something to keep an eye on during this break in the league schedule.

Barbra Banda Sustained a Hamstring Injury

Zambia Head Coach Nora Hauptle stated that Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda is dealing with a hamstring strain. Banda didn’t play in either of Zambia’s matches during this international break, but Hauptle also noted that she should recover in the next week or two and will be fine for the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations at the end of July. Banda was injured late in the Pride’s 3-1 win against Bay FC on May 29 and it was unclear how severe the injury was. Hopefully she’ll be good to go before the Pride’s match against Angel City FC on July 3.

Dr. Nicole Surdyka Named Orlando Pride Director of Medical & Performance

The Orlando Pride have hired Dr. Nicole Surdyka as their new director of medical and performance. She’ll oversee the Pride’s medical operations, nutrition, and more while also working with Orlando Health. Dr. Surdyka has over a decade of experience that included leadership roles with OL Reign and the LA Galaxy and has studied extensively into developing frameworks for health and performance in women’s soccer.

“Nicole is one of the most respected practitioners in our field, and her expertise in women’s football, return‑to‑play, and high‑performance systems will elevate every aspect of our medical and performance environment,” said Caitlin Carducci, Orlando Pride VP of Soccer Operations & General Manager. “Her leadership, her commitment to evidence‑based practice and her passion for supporting athletes make her an exceptional addition to the Pride.”

Analyzing Paraguay Ahead of USMNT World Cup Match

The United States Men’s National Team will play its World Cup opener on Friday when it hosts Paraguay at SoFi Stadium. It will be the 10th match between the two nations, with the USMNT most recently winning 2-1 against Paraguay in November of last year. There’s a familiar face on Paraguay’s roster in Orlando City midfielder Braian Ojeda, with Miguel Almiron and Andres Cubas as other MLS midfielders called up. Paraguay’s defense is anchored by center back Gustavo Gomez, who you may remember as the player who put former Lion Alex Freeman in a headlock during that aforementioned November friendly. As for Paraguay’s attack, the Yanks will need to keep Julio Enciso and Antonio Sanabria from wreaking havoc. Paraguay is a physical team that’s also strong in the air, so we’ll see how the USMNT deals with that on Friday.

England Beats Costa Rica 3-0 at Inter&Co Stadium

Orlando City’s Inter&Co Stadium hosted a friendly between England and Costa Rica on Wednesday, with England winning 3-0. Declan Rice gave England an early lead, but Costa Rica kept the Three Lions off the scoresheet until the substitutes came on for England in the second half, with Anthony Gordon and Ollie Watkins both scoring. England got the full Orlando experience due to a heavy storm that delayed kickoff, but Inter&Co Stadium earned praise for its drainage system that had the pitch ready to roll in no time. Enjoy this satisfying time-lapse video of the transformation provided by the stadium.

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That’s all I have for you this time around. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and rest of your week!

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