Orlando City’s Defensive Unit Primary Concern Heading Into Regular Season

Orlando City is going through a major transition entering the 2026 MLS season. Multiple players who were key to the club’s recent success departed, leaving clear gaps in the starting lineup. But one position group is more troubling than the rest.

Pedro Gallese, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Cesar Araujo are among the cornerstones of the most successful era of Orlando City’s MLS history. The group won the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup — the first major trophy in club history — and was a significant part of the team’s six-year playoff streak.

Unfortunately, all three departed this off-season. Additionally, the club lost its starting right back, selling 21-year-old U.S. international Alex Freeman to La Liga’s Villarreal CF, and Designated Player Luis Muriel departed for Colombian side Junior.

The return of Wilder Cartagena from a season-long injury in 2025 will definitely ease the loss of Araujo, as he will start alongside Eduard Atuesta.

Also, little has changed in the attack. Ivan Angulo, Martin Ojeda, and Marco Pasalic are all back, and while Muriel is gone, Duncan McGuire will likely slide into the starting striker position.

The defensive five is another question. The club agreed to a deal with former New York Red Bulls shot stopper Carlos Coronel, seemingly an upgrade from Gallese. But the Paraguayan reportedly ghosted the club after agreeing to a deal and instead signed with Sao Paulo FC.

The delay caused the Lions to miss out on Dayne St. Clair, landing on Canadian international Maxime Crepeau instead. While a quality starting goalkeeper himself, Crepeau wasn’t the club’s first choice to replace its long-time leader.

There are also questions in front of Crepeau. At this point, the center back pairing will be Robin Jansson and David Brekalo. While both are natural center backs, Brekalo has primarily played left back since joining the club in 2024. In fact, the pair has only started 11 times in all competitions and three times last year.

The Lions are reportedly on the verge of signing Dusan Stojinovic from Jagiellonia Bialystok to replace Schlegel, but the 25-year-old would be a new partner for Jansson and would need time to acclimate to his new club.

The fullback position is in even worse shape. Left back Adrian Marin was signed during the 2025 season and played five games with four starts. But he left a lot to be desired on both sides of the field.

But at least there’s some clarity at the position. Currently, there’s only one right back on the first team roster, 20-year-old Zakaria Taifi. The young player came through the academy and played for OCB, but has only appeared nine times in all competitions for the first team.

It’s less than a month until the season begins, and there’s still little knowledge about how the team will line up. Will Brekalo play at left back or join Jansson in the middle? Is Marin the best option at left back, or is there another choice? Should Ivan Angulo make the move to left back as Dagur Dan Thorhallsson did on the opposite side during his tenure?

Defense has rarely been a strength for Orlando City and it certainly doesn’t appear as though it will be this year. In fact, it seems more likely that the team will be in more high-scoring affairs than defensive battles.

Regardless, the back line will be something to watch as the preseason winds down and the regular season draws near. Whether the defensive unit can come together and improve as the season goes on could determine the success of the upcoming campaign.