Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Necaxa, Leagues Cup: Final Score 5-1 as Muriel’s Hat Trick Leads Lions to Dominant Victory
Lions run rampant over Necaxa in a dominating win led by Luis Muriel’s hat trick and two more goals from Martin Ojeda.
Orlando City needed to win and get help entering the last match day of the opening phase of Leagues Cup, and the Lions played like a desperate team in a 5-1 destruction of Liga MX side Necaxa at Inter&Co Stadium tonight. Luis Muriel scored a hat trick in a span of 11 minutes to close the first half, with Martin Ojeda contributing a brace in a dominating display to finish the League Phase of the competition at 2-0-1. The Lions did what they had to do and must now wait for other results to see if they can advance to the quarterfinals.
Orlando City improved to 3-2-6 in competitive matches against Liga MX sides and the club put itself in position to advance to the quarterfinals if other results can go the Lions’ way.
“I think their commitment with the game I saw, with the opportunity that we had, and I saw the group with a lot of desire not just to win it but trying to push as hard as they have done,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “Today things bounced our way. We were lethal in our chances. We had our players with a lot of clarity and that gave us this opportunity to keep going.”
Pareja’s starting lineup included goalkeeper Pedro Gallese behind a back line of David Brekalo, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Alex Freeman. Cesar Araujo and Kyle Smith started in central midfield between wingers Ivan Angulo and Marco Pasalic, with Martin Ojeda and Luis Muriel up top.
There wasn’t much action before the opening goal, with each team taking turns possessing the ball but breaking down in the attacking third.
Ojeda opened the scoring at the quarter-hour mark on one of the best-struck goals of the season. Freeman sent a cross from the right to the Argentine, who volleyed it first touch and sent a screamer into the top left corner to make it 1-0.
“Me and Martin were talking about it before game, just our connection. I had given him like two assists in last three games,” Freeman said. “I was looking for him. I chipped it to him and he made one of the best goals I’ve ever seen in my life.”
“The service on that first goal, it was as good as Martin’s finishing, for sure,” Pareja said of Freeman’s effort on the assist. “That quality of how Alex plays that ball, it was great to see it, and not to mention that keeps on elevating Martin’s confidence.”
Just two minutes later, Ojeda came close to doubling the lead, making a good move to blow past a defender on the left and firing on target, but Necaxa goalkeeper Ezequiel Unsain made the save.
Gallese made his only save of the first half on a header from Tomás Badaloni in the 18th minute.
Freeman tried a volley of his own off an Ojeda service on a long-range free kick in the 20th minute, but the young fullback sent his shot off the left post and it stayed out.
Agustín Palavecino tried his luck from long range with a sneaky fast shot in the 21st minute, sending it just wide of the right post.
Orlando should have doubled the lead in the 23rd minute when Angulo got down the left and found Muriel in front. The Colombian’s shot dinked off the left post and stayed out. Pasalic then picked up the rebound near the top of the box and fired, but his shot was saved.
The Lions nearly paid for not taking that chance when Johan Rojas sent a shot that deflected off Brekalo in the 24th minute. The rebound carried over Gallese but went wide to the left of goal. Necaxa couldn’t do anything with the ensuing corner. Díber Cambindo then fired wide in the 30th minute and Kevin Rosero missed wide in the 34th as the visitors seemed likely to equalize.
Muriel then began to assert himself a minute later.
Freeman made a nice move and brought the ball up the left channel before finding Araujo out wide. The Uruguayan saw Muriel making a run and delivered a perfect ball for the Colombian to head home, making it 2-0 in the 35th minute.
“I see every day in training that (Muriel) has talent. You know, he has the possibility of scoring every game, getting opportunities and just creating what he can do,” Freeman said. “And today he just displayed it. He was very clinical in the final third.”
The buzz from the crowd had hardly abated when Muriel did it again. Ojeda took the ball into the corner and dropped it off for Angulo out on the left. The winger made a shake-and-bake move to lose two defenders and then found Muriel, who had gotten lost between the two center backs. The cross was perfect and Muriel’s second headed goal in two minutes made it 3-0 in the 37th minute.
“The occupation of the area from Luis is what we need to keep doing more often,” Pareja said, “because his quality outside the box is clear. But the occupation that he did tonight in the box, scoring, heading like a true number nine is great and keeps us very optimistic.”
Orlando City’s No. 9 wasn’t done. In the first minute of first-half injury time, Ojeda picked up the ball in the center of the pitch and broke forward. Waiting as long as he could, Ojeda finally sent a ball to Muriel on the left side and the striker hit the ball first time with his right foot, sending it past Unsain and in to complete his hat trick.
“Martin and I had the fortune to score the goals tonight, but I think the work that the team did was so important,” Muriel said. “The assist from Cesar on my first goal was perfect. The assist from Alex on, Martin’s goal was perfect. The assists from Ivan were perfect, and the assist from Martin on my goal was perfect. So I think, you know, the work of the team is just incredible. I think this team is doing things so well and in such a good form, and I really hope that it’s able to continue, because we can achieve a lot of things together, and we deserve to with the way that we’re working together.”
“We are trying to split the energies in those jobs with Ramiro what has come in the games where he has been a tremendous key for us to achieve the results. And tonight, we felt that Luis was the one who came fresh from the past two games,” Pareja said about returning the Colombian to the starting lineup. “I thought it was that quality that he has that we needed. The response from him tonight was exceptional. His quality in that finishing tonight elevated our level as a group. We’re so pleased and I want to congratulate Luis as well. He’s always a good teammate.”
Moments later, the Lions took their 4-0 lead into halftime.
Necaxa held the halftime advantage in possession (54%-46%), corners (3-1), and passing accuracy (84.5%-81%), while the Lions fired more shots (8-7) and shots on target (6-2). Orlando was the much more clinical side, despite hitting the post twice, and therefore held the four-goal lead at the break.
The visitors made five substitutions at the break, and Necaxa was able to get a couple of early shot attempts off. Pavel Perez fired just over the crossbar in the 46th minute and Badaloni missed wide to the right moments later.
Orlando’s lead, however, bulged to 5-0 just after the Badaloni miss. Angulo took the ball down the left and slipped a pass in for Ojeda, who held off a defender and then smashed his shot past Unsain in the 51st minute to complete his brace.
“The response from Martin in the second half when he scored the fifth goal in the moment that we needed — because we were losing again territory and we needed something else and he came up with that one goal,” Pareja said.
After the fifth Orlando goal, the Lions seemed to struggle getting the ball out of their end for a long spell. Necaxa won some corner kicks and sent a couple of shots off target. Rosero and Diego de Buen each missed the target in the buildup to the hour mark.
Pena put Necaxa on the board in the 71st minute off another corner kick. The visitors played it short this time and Franco Rossano played a good cross into the box from the left. Pena outjumped everyone and nodded it just inside the left post to beat Gallese and make it 5-1.
Neither side created much down the final minutes of the game. Rosero turned and fired on target in the 80th minute, but he didn’t get much on his shot and sent it straight at Gallese.
Two minutes later, second-half sub Ramiro Enrique forced Unsain into a near-post save on the right. Ojeda forced a save a minute later after the ensuing corner, but couldn’t complete Orlando’s second hat trick of the night.
The visitors finished with the advantage in possession (55%-45%), shots (18-11), corners (8-7), and passing accuracy (84.7%-80.2%). Orlando put more shots on target (8-4) and, more importantly, in the net.
“Tonight was a great result to put us in a great spot in the tournament,” Muriel said. “You know, we have to wait for a couple more results, but we put ourselves in a great spot tonight, and it leads into a great, tough battle this weekend that’s going to be really important for us.”
Thus concludes Orlando’s participation in the League Phase of the 2025 Leagues Cup. The Lions return to MLS action Sunday night at home against Inter Miami.