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Orlando City vs. Columbus Crew: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s 1-1 draw against the Columbus Crew?

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10 months ago

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Image of Marco Pasalic scoring against the Columbus Crew.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

Orlando City hosted the Columbus Crew and neither side was able to claim all three points in a 1-1 draw between two Eastern Conference teams that have already qualified for the postseason. Andres Herrera struck first for Columbus, but the Lions responded well and Marco Pasalic leveled things shortly after with his 12th goal of the season. Both sides had chances to win it but have to settle for a draw as the regular season nears its end.

Let’s dive into how each Lion individually performed in this home game.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 7.5 (MotM)— El Pulpo was denied a clean sheet due to poor defending once again, but he had a great game. Gallese had five saves, including a vital one on Max Arfsten right in front of goal amid a Columbus barrage of attacks near the end of the match. He also did well to come out and deny Diego Rossi early in the match to prevent a disastrous start. The goal that he did concede would’ve required an impressive reaction for him to stop Herrera’s shot while tracking the cross. As far as his distribution went, three of his eight long balls found their target and he was accurate on 78.3% of his 23 passes. Ultimately, Gallese was cool, calm, and collected in goal and helped the Lions avoid defeat at home.

D, Adrian Marin, 6 — With Rodrigo Schlegel suspended due to yellow card accumulation, Marin filled in on the back line and had a game with highs and lows. On the Crew’s goal, he allowed Herrera to cut in front of him and get goalside with ease to connect with Lassi Lappalainen’s cross, tapping it in. Marin redeemed himself soon after though by intercepting the ball and storming forward before laying it off for Luis Muriel in the buildup of Pasalic’s goal. He looked comfortable in those moments when the Lions were on the attack, contributing two key passes and a blocked header off of a corner kick. His only cross was inaccurate, but four of his seven long balls were successful. Marin won all four of his aerial duels and led the Lions with three interceptions, helping out defensively with two clearances and a tackle. His 57 touches were the second most on the Lions and he attempted 43 passes at an 81.4% success rate.

D, Robin Jansson, 6.5 — Orlando City’s captain put in a decent performance, stopping Crew attacks by getting in the way of shots and making himself difficult to get past. The Beefy Swede blocked three shots to prevent Columbus from challenging Gallese, and he also racked up four clearances and a tackle. Only one of his four long balls was successful, but he completed 93% of his 43 passes. As the game wore on and Columbus pushed for a win, the visitors had to find ways around Jansson to create chances and he kept pace when defending on breakaways.

D, David Brekalo, 6.5 — It wasn’t always pretty when going up against Rossi, but Brekalo was solid enough defensively and took care of the ball. He completed all but three of his 42 passes for an excellent 92.9% rate, but he didn’t attempt any long balls. His five clearances and two blocked shots helped put out fires. All three of his shots in the match came from corner kicks, with one saved by Patrick Schulte and the other two going off target. Like Marin, he was a force in the air and won four of his five aerial duels.

D, Alex Freeman, 6 — It was a mixed bag for Freeman, as he led the Lions with six clearances and blocked a shot but faded down the stretch. He had a tough matchup against fellow USMNT defender Max Arfsten, who beat him to a cross and put a shot on target. Gallese bailed him out, but Freeman was sluggish late in the match and the Crew went after him. Freeman didn’t have a shot in this match but did have a nice key pass by lobbing an expertly weighted ball to Martin Ojeda before halftime. His lone cross was inaccurate though, and only one of his three long balls was successful. Freeman’s 59 touches were the most on the team and he attempted 38 passes at an 89.5% success rate. Referee Victor Rivas showed him a yellow card following a foul on Arfsten near midfield, with Freeman’s dissent likely being the reason for the booking.

MF, Ivan Angulo, 6 — The highlight of Angulo’s night was his vital defending to poke the ball away from Herrera before he could take a shot late in the first half. It was nice to see that from him after Herrera raced past him to score the opening goal. Although Angulo didn’t have any shots or key passes, things opened for the Lions a bit once he started playing higher up the pitch, as he did well to stretch the defense and press when needed. He only attempted one cross, which missed its mark, but both of his long ball attempts were accurate. Subbed off in the 80th minute, Angulo finished the game with 33 touches and 19 passes at an 89.5% success rate. Defensively, he blocked a shot and also had an interception and a tackle. Angulo needlessly conceded a foul in a dangerous area, but Dylan Chambost’s shot hit the wall.

MF, Joran Gerbet, N/A — The rookie’s night came to an unfortunate end early due to an injury. There wasn’t much contact involved in the incident, which usually isn’t a good sign. Gerbet wasn’t stretchered off and left the field with the assistance of the team’s trainers in the fifth minute. Kyle Smith came on to replace him as Orlando’s injury woes in the midfield continued.

MF, Eduard Atuesta, 6.5 — It was another solid performance from Atuesta, who fought hard on defense and delivered some nice passes to spark counter attacks for the Lions. He was accurate on six of his eight long ball attempts and completed 93% of his 43 passes in this match. Defensively, Atuesta had a tackle, an interception, and two clearances, but the stats don’t reflect just how much of a pain in the Crew’s side he was in the midfield. There was a chance for him to get an assist on a counter, but Nicolas Rodriguez got closed down quickly after receiving the pass with a heavy touch. Atuesta also sent a lovely ball over the top for Muriel to go score, but that chance was squandered as well. Regardless, Orlando needed Atuesta to have a good game after Gerbet’s injury and he delivered.

MF, Marco Pasalic, 7 — After a fairly quiet start to the match, Pasalic made his presence known by scoring Orlando’s only goal of the match. Muriel fired a low, driven shot at Schulte from distance and the goalkeeper couldn’t handle it, with Pasalic darting toward goal to put away the rebound. His only other shot in the match was blocked, but that talented left foot of his still generated some good chances. Pasalic had a key pass, was accurate on his one attempted cross, and was successful on three of his five long balls. He was subbed out for fresher legs in the 80th minute, but momentum shifted in the Crew’s favor once he was off the pitch. Of his 21 passes, 71.4% of them were successful and he contributed defensively with two interceptions. Orlando looked dangerous when Pasalic was on the ball and forcing Crew defenders into tough decisions, it just didn’t happen often enough for him to really bend the game to his will beyond the goal.

F, Luis Muriel, 5.5 — He reasonably won’t be credited with an assist on Pasalic’s goal, but his shot created the chance, and it was a nice effort from distance that Schulte couldn’t deal with. Muriel showcased his skill by being able to quickly control the ball and set up the shot before the Crew could do anything about it. Unfortunately, it was his only shot of the night, despite a pair of great opportunities to score in the second half. He lost a duel in the box to Sean Zawadski by trying to outfox the defender and later tried to slip a pass through to Ojeda rather than just smashing the ball towards goal from pretty close range. The Designated Player was subbed out shortly after that chance. He didn’t have any key passes in the match and had just 13 passes at a 61.5% success rate. It wasn’t exactly the performance one would expect from a star forward, but he did make an impact. It was his reluctance to shoot that leaves fans wondering what could have been.

F, Martin Ojeda, 6 — It was an off night for Ojeda, who only completed 63.9% of his 36 passes and had three unstable touches. Of his three shots, two were blocked and the one on target was comfortably saved by Schulte on a free kick. Ojeda could have given Orlando the lead on a breakaway, but decided to pass instead of shoot and his pass missed an open Duncan McGuire charging towards goal. All of that being said, an off night for Ojeda is still a pretty productive one. He led the Lions with four key passes and four of his eight crosses were accurate. Of his four long balls, two were successful as well. The Argentine playmaker also had a team-high three tackles to help win the ball back for Orlando. The opportunities for goals and assists were there, Ojeda just needed to be a bit more clinical in this one.

Substitutes

MF, Kyle Smith, (5’), 6 — Smith came on much earlier than expected to replace Gerbet due to his injury. He did well enough, completing 94.1% of his 34 touches and chipping in defensively with a tackle and an interception. He didn’t block any shots or kickstart counter attacks with long balls, but Smith was there to help out with the little things and stabilize things at a position ravaged by injuries this year. Smith was subbed out himself in the 80th minute for some fresher legs.

F, Duncan McGuire (64′), 5 — The American came on for Muriel and had a couple of chances to score a winner but the final product just wasn’t there. The first was on a breakaway with Ojeda, with McGuire open in the box but just unable to get on the end of the pass. He had a similar opportunity later with Tyrese Spicer, but McGuire’s attempt at chesting down the pass sent it skidding away from him for Arfsten to knock away for a corner. In the end, McGuire finished without any shots or key passes and had just six touches while completing two of his three passes.

MF, Tyrese Spicer, (80′), 6 — Spicer was once again electric off the bench, driving Orlando’s attack forward in the latter stages of the match and nearly recording his third assist in as many games after finding McGuire open in the box. He didn’t have any shots himself, but was successful on both of his long ball attempts and had two successful dribbles while completing all three of his passes. For a player who only had five touches in the match, he was impactful.

MF, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, (80′), N/A — Thorhallsson only had one touch in the match, blocking a shot by Herrera in stoppage time. The versatile player mostly served as fresh legs and another body for the Crew to have to work around when attacking. It was the latest in a series of late cameos for Thorhallsson in recent weeks, and he didn’t play long enough to warrant a grade.

MF, Nico Rodriguez, (80′), N/A — The MLS U22 Initiative player came on and had two touches in the match. The most notable one was unfortunately a heavy one, as Atuesta got him the ball in the box, but Darlington Nagbe saw it out of play for a corner before he could shoot. Rodriguez also conceded a foul at the end of the game while trying to win back possession, earning a yellow card for angrily booting the ball away after the whistle and giving the Crew a set piece to work with. Thankfully nothing came of it and the whistle blew shortly after. Like Thorhallsson, Rodriguez wasn’t on long enough to evaluate.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in Orlando City’s 1-1 draw at home against the Columbus Crew. Let us know what you thought of the game in the comments below and don’t forget to vote for your Man of the Match!

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Orlando City vs. Nashville SC: Five Takeaways

What did we learn from a hard-fought win over Nashville SC on Saturday night?

Published

8 hours ago

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July 26, 2026

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Image of Antoine Griezmann dribbling the ball past Hany Mukhtar of Nashville.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

Orlando City kept the good vibes rolling on Saturday night, as the Lions fought through tired legs and a weather delay to beat Nashville SC 1-0 and make it two clean sheet wins on the bounce. What follows are my five big thoughts from the victory.

Lions Look Leggy

After playing in California on Wednesday night and missing a number of regular first-team players due to a combination of injuries, suspension, and regaining match fitness, it perhaps wasn’t surprising that a largely unchanged Orlando team looked a little heavy-legged. Bernardo Rhein and Luis Otavio were the only changes from the San Jose victory that saw the Lions play an energetic, high-pressing style, and the team wasn’t able to replicate it on Saturday night. There were moments when the team put together some good passing moves and carved out some dangerous chances, but the execution and fine details just seemed to be missing when they were needed most. In short, OCSC looked like a lowly rotated team playing on short rest after traveling across the country, and it made the win over the Supporters’ Shield leaders that much more impressive.

Bernardo’s Big Night

After making just his second appearance with the first team on Wednesday and signing a Homegrown Player deal earlier on Saturday, Rhein made his first MLS start at left back and turned in a performance that belied his 18 years of age. He helped keep Nashville’s attack quiet by contributing one tackle, one clearance, two interceptions, and five recoveries. He also completed 35 of his 40 passes and created a scoring chance. He played a more balanced role than the offensive minded Griffin Dorsey, and it was notable that Nashville didn’t have much luck when trying to target the youngster’s side of the defense as he went mainly up against former OCB teammate Shak Mohammed. Time will tell if Orlando sticks with Rhein or Marin, or if the club tries to get a new left back in the building, but if nothing else, the team’s newest Homegrown signing has given the club’s decision makers something to think about.

Quiet Evening for Crepeau

Entering Saturday’s game, Nashville had scored 33 goals in 16 games, which was good for the fifth-best attack in the league. Not only did Orlando pitch its second shutout in a row, but it did so in relatively uneventful fashion. OCSC held the ‘Yotes to six shots with just three on target, and neither Hany Mukhtar nor Sam Surridge were able to put a shot on Crepeau’s net. Nashville’s best chances of the game — by Mohammed and Alex Muyl — were right at the Canadian shot stopper, and he had a much quieter game than he did midweek. All six of the Orlando City defenders who played on the night had solid outings, and they played a big part in helping the team pick up its second clean sheet of the year. While Marin looked a little shaky when defending 1-v-1 in wide areas, he still put in two tackles and four clearances in just 20 minutes and rebounded well from a difficult outing against San Jose.

Attacking Trio at it Again

Antoine Griezmann, Justin Ellis, and Ivan Angulo were once again the most impressive starters for Orlando. Griezmann touched the ball a team-high 81 times, Angulo played a game-high three key passes, and Ellis had the all-important assist on the game-winning goal. Griezmann looks every bit the do-it-all Designated Player that he was brought in to be, Angulo has thrived in a hybrid wide midfield/no.10 role, and Ellis was a complete terror with the ball at his feet. The 19-year-old is shifty, physical, an excellent dribbler, and has the vision and confidence to thread passes into tight windows. Enjoy him while you can, because European teams are going to come calling soon, and rightly so.

Spicer Sparks from the Bench

Tyrese Spicer so often seems to thrive when coming off the bench to be a difference maker, and so it was again on Saturday night. He came on for Tiago early in the second half and caused problems for the ‘Yotes with both his willingness to run at the defense and his work rate in pressing and harrying the Nashville players. His three tackles tied Luis Otavio for the most on the team, and he was rewarded for all his hard work when he scored the game-winning goal. Ellis’ no-look through ball was absolutely sublime, and the substitute applied the finish it deserved by smashing his shot past Brian Schwake at the near post before the goalkeeper even had a chance to move. It was the sort of incisive execution that had been missing all night, and he came up big off the bench once again.

Those are the aspects of Saturday’s win that stood out to me. What did you see? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Orlando City vs. Nashville SC: Final Score 1-0 as Spicer’s Goal Sinks League Leaders

The Lions followed up their big win in San Jose by taking down the MLS Supporters’ Shield leaders at home.

Published

19 hours ago

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July 26, 2026

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Image of Tyrese Spicer shooting against Nashville.
Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

The Lions look to be a different team since the World Cup break ended. After beating Western Conference co-leaders San Jose on the road Wednesday, they battled to a hard-fought 1-0 win over MLS Supporters’ Shield-leading Nashville SC at Orlando City’s home stadium tonight.

Second-half substitute Tyrese Spicer scored the game’s only goal in the second half to lift the Lions (6-9-2, 20 points) to their second big win of the week. It was only the second loss of the year for Nashville SC (12-2-3, 39 points) as Orlando avenged its 5-0 loss in Tennessee back on March 21.

“Very happy for everyone here in the club. I think this was a really good victory against a very difficult opponent,” Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman said after the match. “Highlight the effort of our players and highlight the support of our people. Today they brought an amazing energy to the stadium. They filled the stadium. It was a really, really good night. We really enjoyed it.”

Perelman’s side changed out only two starters from Wednesday night’s win at San Jose. Luis Otavio stepped into the midfield for the suspended Eduard Atuesta (yellow card accumulation), while newly signed Homegrown Player Bernardo Rhein made his first MLS start in place of Adrian Marin.

Perleman’s lineup included Maxime Crepeau in goal behind a back line of Rhein, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, and Griffin Dorsey. Ivan Angulo, Otavio, Braian Ojeda, and Tiago made up the midfield four, with Antoine Griezmann and Justin Ellis leading the attack.

After both teams played Wednesday and traveled, it wasn’t surprising that the teams came out after the hour-long weather delay looking to stay organized and prevent chances, leading to a defensive opening half. The Lions started the game with some good pressure early but couldn’t fashion a clear-cut chance.

Nashville’s first opportunity came in the ninth minute, when Hany Mukhtar got forward down the right, but Jansson did well to track back and block his shot out for a corner. Orlando was able to clear the danger to end the threat.

Griezmann was active, spending much of his time out wide on the right, looking to find space to work in against the compact Nashville defense. The Frenchman served in a good cross in the 15th minute, looking for Ellis. The ball was headed weakly goalward by either Ellis or Andy Najar, allowing Brian Schwake to collect it. Ellis got a good look in the 22nd minute after taking a pass from Angulo, but the young forward didn’t make good contact on it. Schwake still had to make a good effort to keep it out, as the placement of the shot was good.

Rhein did well to force a turnover in the 28th minute and Griezmann found space on the left but he fired his shot over the bar.

Nashville came close in the 42nd minute after a long period of back-and-forth possession. He got in behind but Crepeau made himself big and blocked the shot at the end of a sequence in which Angulo looked to get clipped but no call was made, allowing the visitors to break in transition.

Ellis got the last decent look of the half a minute into first-half stoppage time, finding space outside the box. He put his shot on target but right at Schwake.

At the break, Nashville led in possession (51.1%-48.9%) and corners (3-1). Orlando City had the advantage in shots (8-3), shots on target (4-1), and passing accuracy (91.4%-88.8%).

As with the first half, the Lions came out and put Nashville under pressure to start the second half. Griezmann found room for a shot from the top of the box on the left side in the 48th minute but Maxwell Woledzi headed it away. Orlando quickly regained possession and Ellis tried a long-range effort but sent it sizzling over the crossbar.

A minute later, Ellis cut inside from the left and fired, but his shot hit Angulo on the way in.

Griezmann sent second-half sub Spicer down the left in the 57th minute. The speedy winger tried to pick out Dorsey in front but the defense arrived at the same time as Orlando’s right back and broke up the play.

Nashville’s first good look of the second half came in the 63rd minute when the visitors broke in transition and a ball deflected into the path of former Lion Shak Mohammed. He took his shot quickly and hit it well, but Crepeau made the save. Nashville broke again four minutes later and Rhein got caught too high, giving the guests numbers in transition. Ahmed Qasem fired from the right side but the defense deflected it just wide into the outside netting, and the Lions cleared the subsequent corner.

The Lions broke the scoreless deadlock moments later. Ellis did well to bring the ball forward and drew the defense before releasing it through traffic to Spicer on the left. The Trinidad & Tobago international angled in from the left and blasted a shot past Schwake and in to make it 1-0 in the 72nd minute.

“Leading up to the goal, I know Justin likes to dribble a lot, and I was just like, you know, let me give it to him and run in the space,” Spicer said. “But I know he was going to cut in, and I was just waiting for it. I was yelling his name as loud as I could, like just give it to me. And as soon as I got that ball, I know I had to go first (touch). It was just like muscle memory, there.”

From there, the Lions did well to see out the game, withstanding some Nashville pressure and several set pieces without allowing anything too dangerous to develop. There were a few nervy moments when clearance attempts didn’t quite go as planned, but it’s a testament to the Orlando City defensive effort that it held to just six shot attempts on the night. The high-scoring duo of Sam Surridge and Mukhtar combined did not manage a shot on target in the match.

In the end, Nashville controlled more of the possession (55.3%-44.7%) and won more corners (7-2), but Orlando City finished with more shots (12-6) and shots on target (6-3). Both teams passed at an 89.7% rate.

“Happy with the win. More than anything, I take away the effort from the whole team — the work we put in from the first minute until the end,” Griezmann said. “We played against the team at the top of the table, a great team. It was difficult for us to create chances because we came up against a very good defense, but we managed to score that goal.”

“I think this is a very big win,” Spicer said. “Just coming into the back to the league, facing San Jose, who was like second in the West, and then facing Nashville. I know we had like a big task against us, but leading up to the game, winning this game is a big momentum to carry us through the season.”

“I think at the end of the day, it is the the players. I mean, we coaches we can do many tactics, but at the end of the day, the protagonists are the players, and I think our players today, they performed really well,” Perelman said. “They did a huge effort both with and without the ball, and I think that’s the reason (for the win). If I need to find one (reason), then again we faced a really, really good opponent that we respect very much, and it was a really tough game. I’m happy we could win it.”

The Lions head back on the road for a match a week from tonight at New York Red Bulls before starting up Leagues Cup play through the middle of August.

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Orlando City vs. Nashville SC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions look to build on Wednesday’s impressive win at San Jose, but it won’t be easy against the MLS leaders.

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1 day ago

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July 25, 2026

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Image of Braian Ojeda dribbling the ball up the field against Nashville.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your match thread for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City (5-9-2, 17 points) and Nashville SC (12-1-3, 39 points) on the Lions’ home grounds (7:30 p.m., Apple TV). This is the first of second of the two scheduled meetings between the Eastern Conference clubs in the 2026 regular season.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of the match.

History

The Lions are 5-4-4 against Nashville in MLS regular-season matches and 7-6-5 in all competitions. Orlando is 3-2-1 at home in the regular season against Nashville and 4-3-4 in all competitions in the City Beautiful against tonight’s visitors.

It’s wrong to say the most recent meeting between the sides was a forgettable one for Orlando City fans, as 5-0 beatdowns tend to stick in the memory. That’s exactly what happened on March 21, as Martin Perelman suffered his first loss as Orlando’s interim head coach in his first road match and second game overall. Sam Surridge scored a hat trick, with Cristian Espinoza and Warren Madrigal also finding the net on a terrible night in Tennessee.

The last time these teams met in Orlando took place on Sept. 20, 2025, with the Lions winning 3-2. Martin Ojeda scored two goals two minutes apart to give Orlando a first-half lead, but Hany Mukhtar and Jacob Shaffelburg scored moments before and after halftime, respectively, to knot things up. Duncan McGuire’s goal deep in stoppage time lifted the Lions to all three points. Just a few weeks earlier in Nashville, on Aug. 23, things did not go well for the Lions as Nashville SC blasted Orlando 5-1. Surridge and Mukhtar netted braces and Jeisson Palacios added a late goal. Luis Muriel scored a consolation goal to spoil the shutout.

These teams faced each other in U.S. Open Cup play on May 21, 2025 with Nashville claiming a 3-2 road win. Marco Pasalic provided the Lions with an early lead before an own goal by Rodrigo Schlegel and an Ahmed Qasem goal put Nashville ahead at the break. Ramiro Enrique equalized in the second half, but Wyatt Meyer’s goal knocked Orlando out of the competition.

The teams met at Inter&Co Stadium on Aug. 31, 2024 with the Lions blasting Nashville 3-0. Facundo Torres’ brace and an opening goal by Ivan Angulo led Orlando City to the season sweep. Orlando City visited Nashville SC at Geodis Park on July 17, 2024, with the Lions cruising to a 3-0 road win. Goals by Cesar Araujo and Enrique sandwiched an Alex Muyl own goal as Orlando City got its fourth consecutive shutout victory over Nashville.

The teams met at the end of the previous season on Nov. 7, 2023 in the best-of-three, first-round playoff series. The Lions got an early goal from Angulo in a 1-0 win to sweep the series. Orlando City drew first blood in the series by beating Nashville 1-0 on Oct. 30, 2023 at Exploria Stadium. Wilder Cartagena’s blast from outside the area provided the game’s only score.

The teams met in the 2023 regular season on Oct. 4, with Orlando City stealing a 1-0 win in Music City on McGuire’s goal just before halftime. That was one of only two shot attempts by the Lions all night and the only one on target. Orlando played well defensively and Pedro Gallese didn’t have to make a save as the hosts didn’t put any shots on frame. Nashville visited Orlando on April 1 of 2023 at Exploria Stadium and it was the visitors who made fools of the Lions, as Nashville won, 2-0. Fafa Picault and Mukhtar did the damage for Nashville.

The teams did not face each other in the regular season play the year before, meeting only in the U.S. Open Cup in Orlando on June 29, 2022. Mukhtar scored in the second half, and that looked like it would be enough until Schlegel equalized deep in stoppage time. After a scoreless 30 minutes of extra time, the Lions won the ensuing penalty shootout, 6-5.

These clubs met in the 2021 postseason in Tennessee, with Orlando scoring first through Daryl Dike’s early goal, but Nashville won 3-1 on Nov. 23, 2021 to knock the Lions out of the playoffs. Mukhtar tied it up before halftime on a fluky deflected goal off of Antonio Carlos and then put his team ahead in the second half. Jhonder Cadiz put things away deep in stoppage time.

The teams met in Orlando on Oct. 31, 2021 and ended in a 1-1 draw after referee Allen Chapman’s Halloween Heist chalked off Andres Perea’s apparent stoppage-time winner. The referee’s excuse for overturning the goal was an imagined foul on Dike, who, if anything, was the fouled party. The decision cost the Lions a valuable home playoff match, which instead sent Orlando to Nashville. Mukhtar scored for Nashville to equalize in the second half after Dike’s first-half goal.

The teams met in Nashville on Sept. 29, 2021 with a late rally by the Lions earning the team a 2-2 road draw at Nissan Stadium. The hosts had taken a 2-0 lead on goals by Mukhtar — scoring off the rebound of his own saved penalty — and Randall Leal, but a penalty by Dike and a stoppage-time own goal by Brian Anunga turned the game around. On Aug. 18 of that season, the teams finished in another 1-1 draw. C.J. Sapong put the hosts ahead in the first half and Carlos leveled the score in the second half.

The teams met on Decision Day of 2020 at Exploria Stadium, with Orlando melting down late, allowing two goals from the 88th minute on, and falling 3-2 at home on Nov. 8, 2020 — the team’s only home loss of the season. Dike and Nani goals sandwiched a strike by Daniel Lovitz, giving the Lions a lead until late. Headers by Mukhtar and Cadiz just before and into stoppage time turned the game on its head.

In the Lions’ first trip to Nissan Stadium, the teams played to a 1-1 draw on Sept. 2, 2020. Benji Michel put the Lions ahead with a stunner of a goal, but Leal knotted things up and that’s the way the match ended. That draw came a week after a 3-1 Orlando City win on Aug. 26 at Exploria Stadium. Dave Romney opened the scoring for Nashville, but Orlando scored the last three. Dike scored a brace and Chris Mueller added a goal.

Overview

The Lions are coming off an impressive 4-0 win at San Jose in their first game after the World Cup break. Antoine Griezmann made his MLS debut and opened his Orlando City account, but it was a team effort. David Brekalo and Angulo gave the Lions the lead, with Griezmann and Braian Ojeda ensuring there would be no Quakes comeback. Maxime Crepeau had his best night in goal for Orlando to help the cause. While it was impressive that it happened at all, let alone without the injured Martin Ojeda, Designated Player Marco Pasalic, or newly re-signed Dike, it remains to be seen if it was a one-off after the layoff or the start of something for the Lions.

Orlando City is just 3-3-1 at home this season, but that’s still far better than its road record.

Nashville SC has been dominant all season — maybe not always quite as dominant as it was on March 21 against the Lions, but still quite good. The Coyotes are seven points clear in the Supporters’ Shielf race and lead MLS with both the most wins (12), fewest losses (1), and goal differential (+22). Tonight’s opponent has only dropped points on the road three times, going 4-1-2 away from Geodis Park. Nashville rides a five-game winning streak and nine-game unbeaten run into tonight and hasn’t allowed a goal in its last two outings.

To get anything from this game, Orlando City must figure out a way to stop (or at least significantly slow down) Nashville’s star forwards, Surridge and Mukhtar (I would add Espinoza here but he’s ruled out with a lower body injury). Both Surridge and Mukhtar have absolutely destroyed Orlando City over the years. Surridge has scored 10 goals in MLS play this season, with Mukhtar chipping in six goals and five assists. At the other end, Palacios has paired with Maxwell Woledzi to form a solid central defense in front of emerging goalkeeper Brian Schwake. This second meeting is going to be another difficult matchup for the Lions, who will need their best performance to take anything from this game.

The Lions will be without Martin Ojeda (thigh), Nolan Miller (knee), Joran Gerbet (knee), Eduard Atuesta (yellow card suspension), Colin Guske (international duty), and Clovis Archange (international duty), however, Marco Pasalic has only recently returned to Orlando from the World Cup and Dike is still returning to match fitness, so they may also be missing when the lineup drops.

Nashville will be without Chris Applewhite (international duty), Espinoza (lower body), Madrigal (lower body), Joe Willis (lower body), and Patrick Yazbek (lower body), while Reed Baker-Whiting is questionable with (what else) a lower body injury.

Match Content

Official Lineups:

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Bernardo Rhein, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Braian Ojeda, Luis Otavio, Tiago.

Forwards: Antoine Griezmann, Justin Ellis.

Bench: Javier Otero, Adrian Marin, Tahir Reid-Brown, Zakaria Taifi, Iago, Wilder Cartagena, Gustavo Caraballo, Harvey Sarajian, Tyrese Spicer.

Nashville SC (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Brian Schwake.

Defenders: Daniel Lovitz, Jeison Palacios, Maxwell Woledzi, Josh Bauer.

Midfielders: Alex Muyl, Matthew Corcoran, Edvard Tagseth.

Forwards: Hany Mukhtar, Sam Surridge, Shak Mohammed.

Bench: Joe Willis, Andy Najar, Jack Maher, Thomas Williams, Bryan Acosta, Woobens Pacios, Jordan Knight, Ahmed Qasem, Charles Brunet.

Referees

REF: Ramy Touchan.
AR1: Eric Weisbrod.
AR2: Meghan Mullen.
4TH: Carlos Rodriguez.
VAR: Daniel Radford.
AVAR: Kevin Huet.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter.co Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Live Stream: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the game. Go City!

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