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Top Ten Moments of 2025: Pedro Gallese’s Shootout Heroics Lead Orlando City to Leagues Cup Semifinals

Our No. 2 moment of 2025 is Pedro Gallese’s iconic penalty shootout performance as both a shot stopper and scorer to lead the Lions.

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5 months ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

As we count down to the new year of 2026 — which will be Orlando City’s 12th in MLS, the Orlando Pride’s 11th in the NWSL, and OCB’s fourth in MLS NEXT Pro — and say goodbye to 2025, it’s time to look back at the club’s 10 best moments of the year as selected by The Mane Land staff via vote.

Go with me on this, because I’m talking a little baseball before getting to the soccer. With their move in 2022 to allow Designated Hitters in both the American League and National League, Major League Baseball (MLB) essentially abolished the concept of pitchers who also hit. There have been a few exceptions since — notably four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani, who is basically a unicorn as an elite hitter and pitcher, but aside from Ohtani, pitchers simply do not bat anymore. Baseball-reference.com‘s tracking shows 322 pitchers who logged at least one at bat in 2021, but during the four seasons since, it was a total of 13, and only Ohtani had more at bats than he could have counted on his fingers.

As a huge baseball fan, I understand why MLB leadership wanted to install the Designated Hitter in both leagues, but I also miss the pure form of baseball that I grew up reading about from the early days of baseball and watching in the National League until 2022. I also miss a phrase that I heard for years when I was playing baseball myself, a phrase that was often shouted out by a coach or a parent when the pitcher would come up to bat late in a game with a chance to get a hit to give their team the lead: “win your own ballgame.”

Pitchers still earn wins in MLB, but they almost never have the opportunity to drive in runs to help themselves achieve those wins. Goalkeepers in soccer operate in a similar manner, though there was not a time, recently or ever, when goalkeepers used to score lots of goals. Major League Soccer has been around since 1996, and there have only been two goals scored by goalkeepers in regulation play — one on a long ball that got caught up in the wind and took a huge bounce over the opposing goalkeeper, and the other on a stoppage-time corner kick when every player was in the box trying to score a last-minute equalizer.

Goalkeepers contribute to goals every season with their passes (there were five goals scored in MLS in 2025 that came directly off a pass from a goalkeeper), but goalkeepers scoring goals is extremely rare except in one circumstance: penalty kick shootouts.

And that brings us to Orlando City’s Leagues Cup quarterfinal game against Deportivo Toluca of Liga MX on Aug. 20. It was a matchup of a team from Florida against a team from about an hour west of Mexico City, which for obvious reasons was played at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, CA, approximately 2,000 miles away from each team’s home base.

Orlando City came into the quarterfinal after finishing fourth among the 18 MLS teams that participated in Leagues Cup, winning two of its three group-stage games and drawing the other, but losing in the penalty shootout. Toluca earned its way into the quarterfinal with the same record in the group stage, except the Mexican side earned an extra point by winning the penalty shootout after drawing.

The 90 minutes of regulation play did not produce many highlights, as both teams looked a little weary from the travel and having played just a few days earlier in their respective leagues. Toluca had a little more possession (51%-49%) but played a lot more of the game in the Orlando City half of the field, doubling up the Lions on touches in the opposition’s box (25-12) and taking 15 shots to Orlando City’s four. Both teams struggled to put shots on target, however, with Toluca unable to put any shots on goal and Orlando City only managing one, and thus normal time ended scoreless, sending the game straight to penalties.

It was Orlando City’s second shootout of the competition, and while El Pulpo had not been having an elite season in 2025, he was still difficult to score on via penalty kicks, as he had shown by saving the first attempt in the first shootout against Pumas. Everyone’s favorite soccer stat, xG (expected goals) codes penalty kicks in most models with an xG of 0.79, meaning that a penalty kick taker is expected to convert 79% of the time, or one out of every five shots. Gallese had hit the average against Pumas, saving one of the five, but his teammates had let him down by only converting three of their five, leading to a shootout loss.

Óscar Pareja had a different group of players available to him for shootout selection than he did after full time against Pumas. In that game he had included Eduard Atuesta and César Araújo in his opening five, but against Toluca, Atuesta had already subbed out and Pareja decided not to include Araújo, likely because the Uruguayan had missed his attempt in the Pumas game. Pareja also did not have Designated Players Marco Pašalić or Luis Muriel available, as they both had subbed out already as well. After consulting with the coaches and available players, he selected Martín Ojeda, Robin Jansson, Alex Freeman, Joran Gerbet, and Kyle Smith for his initial five shooters, leaving Iván Angulo, Araújo, Ramiro Enrique, Gallese, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Tyrese Spicer in reserve for if the shootout went beyond the initial five shooters.

Spoiler alert, it did.

Toluca went first in the shootout, and through two shooters it appeared like the Diablos Rojos had Gallese’s number, as on each they sent him the wrong way and converted. Ojeda and Jansson were up to the task though, and so deuces were wild as it was 2-2 after two rounds. Starting in the third round, El Pulpo locked in though, as he exploded to his right and just missed saving a well-placed kick that was in the upper corner. Freeman equalized, and then on the fourth shot, Gallese once again nearly made the save, going low and to his left this time, but again coming just inches away from making the save. Gerbet and his unusual penalty kick style went next and he converted, and so it was effectively do-or-die starting in the fifth round, as each team had been perfect through eight shots.

Toluca’s Franco Romero sent Gallese the wrong way on the fifth shot, but Smith did the same to Luis García, and it was on to sudden death. At this point the player selections for the kicks moved to being on a one-by-one basis, and Nicolás Castro was up for Toluca. Gallese had correctly gone the right way on two of the last three attempts, and he made it three out of four on Castro’s shot, leaping to his right and getting a big right hand out to deny the ball from going into the corner, making the first save from either goalkeeper during the shootout. Orlando City had an opportunity to win the game, but Enrique could not convert, and the shootout continued to a seventh round.

El Pulpo was radiating with self-confidence going into the seventh round, and he once again read the shot correctly, leaping to his right again to stymy Juan Domínguez, giving the Lions the chance to put the game away once more.

Coming off of back-to-back saves, it was clear that Gallese was in the zone, and he stepped up to take the next kick himself.

“When I saw that he was so convinced to take it, it was no doubt that he was going to do it,” Pareja said after the game about the decision for Gallese to take the next shot.

The Peruvian called game with his shot, using his usual mini-step routine from goal kicks and free kicks to get his feet set and then sending García the wrong way to win his own ballgame and put the Lions into the Leagues Cup semifinals.

In a season of hat tricks by Orlando players (see top 10 moments numbers nine, eight, and three from the list at the bottom of this article), Gallese’s three consecutive monster plays to produce save, save, goal and win the shootout himself were nearly enough for Orlando City’s No. 1 to earn the number one spot on our top 10 list for 2025.

El Pulpo sadly has moved on to the greener pastures of Deportivo Cali in Colombia, but when he inevitably returns to Orlando for his induction into the Legends’ Terrace, they will surely play the clip of him making that final save and following it by scoring the walkoff winner during the 2025 Leagues Cup quarterfinals, our number two moment for the 2025 season.

Come back through New Year’s Eve as we count down the remainder of the top 10 moments of 2025 for Orlando City, the Orlando Pride, and OCB.

Previous Top Moments of 2025

10. Orlando City clinches a playoff berth for a sixth consecutive season on Alex Freeman’s late game-tying goal.

9. Luis Muriel’s hat trick powers Lions to Leagues Cup knockout rounds.

8. Martin Ojeda scores Orlando City’s first hat trick since Cyle Larin did so all the way back in 2015.

7. Orlando City sweeps rival Inter Miami during the regular season, winning both games by three goals.

6. Martin Ojeda breaks Orlando City’s single-season record for goal contributions.

5. Orlando Pride midfielder Luana returns to the pitch after being out for a year due to cancer treatment.

4. Alex Freeman has a breakout season, winning MLS Young Player of the Year and becoming the first Orlando City player to be named to the MLS Best XI.

3. Barbra Banda makes history by scoring the first hat trick by an Orlando Pride player.

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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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7 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.

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10 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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