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Orlando City vs. New York Red Bulls: Player Grades and Man of the Match

How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s season-opening 2-1 loss against the New York Red Bulls?

Published

7 months ago

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Image of Maxime Crepeau making a save against New York.
Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

One half was brutal and the other was better, but unfortunately the half that was brutal was too much to overcome as Orlando City lost its season opener 2-1 to the New York Red Bulls. The one-goal loss was better than last year’s two-goal loss on opening day, but a loss is a loss and Orlando City will need to play much more of its second game like the second half of Saturday’s game, or else the Lions will be staring at a second straight loss to open the season.

I have my purple pen out and I am ready to issue the first grades of the 2026 season, so here we go. Let’s take a look at how Orlando City’s players rated individually in their season opener.

Starters

GK, Maxime Crépeau, 8 (MotM) — A goalkeeper tying the club record for saves in a game is not necessarily a good thing, especially when that record is a big number like 11 saves, but all credit is due to the new Orlando City starting goalkeeper as he made some phenomenal stops against New York. His distribution could have been better, not only the 76.1% completion percentage but also some of the decisions about who to attempt to pass to and when, but if the Canadian is going to be able to fly around the goal and get his hands or feet onto just about every shot, then he will be able to quickly put to bed the concerns about replacing Pedro Gallese. Crépeau also showed an infectious intensity as well, pumping his fists after saves and also constantly communicating with the defenders, and pumping them up after they made good plays. He could have done better to push Emil Forsberg wider on New York’s first goal and perhaps he could have gotten to the cross on the second, but in both cases he was stuck on an island and just was not able to make the play. It is rare that a goalkeeper who gives up two goals is the Man of the Match, but for my money Crépeau was the best Lion on the night.

D, Adrián Marín, 6 — The Spaniard was much better in the second half than in the first half, which perhaps may have been due to feeling the need to compensate for playing alongside a left center back in Iago who only just joined the team towards the end of training camp. New York attacked Orlando City’s left side relentlessly during the first half, and ended up with nearly 40% of its attacks going down that channel of the field for the full game. Marín won some tackles in the first half but was dribbled past twice, and was lucky that the Red Bulls, in particular Cade Cowell, did not capitalize on the chances they kept creating on Marín’s side. On the positive side, he was strong in the air, and tied for the team lead in defensive contributions with two tackles, two interceptions and five clearances. He also got forward a lot more than David Brekalo did at left back for most of the 2025 season, contributing two key passes while completing 82.3% of his passes.

D, Iago, 4.5 — There is no sugar coating it, Iago’s debut was not a great one. Or even close to it. The big Brazilian was strong in the air, winning several headers and leading the game in clearances during his 45 minutes on the field, but aside from that he looked like a young player who had just joined the club recently and was thrust into a starting role with no time to gel with his teammates, which is exactly what he is. That does not excuse his mistakes, and he was majorly at fault for both of New York’s goals, but he will improve with time and will benefit greatly from the early minutes when he was thrown into the fire. It is a long season, and the MLS U22 Initiative player deserves the chance to adjust to a new country and a new team. That said, he will need to improve quickly, or he might find himself on the bench during this adaptation period instead of learning on the job. Iago completed 84.4% of his passes and added one interception and five clearances.

D, David Brekalo, 5.5 — The Slovenian international, like many of his teammates, had a rough first half, but improved quite a bit during the second half. Brekalo got beaten badly by Forsberg for New York’s opening goal and was beaten again by Adri Mehmeti on the second goal, so even though he was much better during the second half, he still was not great overall because of how poor the opening half was. Perhaps he too felt like he had to compensate some for Iago, but that does not excuse some of the poor one-on-one defending and getting dribbled past twice in dangerous areas. Brekalo tied with his left back partner Marín for the team lead in defensive contributions, with two tackles, three blocks, and four clearances, and he completed the second-most passes on the team (37) at an 86% completion rate.

D, Griffin Dorsey, 6.5 — Orlando City’s most recent acquisition nearly had a dream debut, but the shot he put into the back of the net early in the second half came after the ball had hit his arm, and so it was correctly, although disappointingly, waived off. It was still a strong debut performance for the former Houston Dynamo player, especially considering he only arrived in Orlando just days prior to the season opener. Dorsey got forward frequently and was dangerous when he did, though he did not track back quite as well as Alex Freeman was doing by the end of last season. Dorsey needs time to integrate into the team’s system and develop chemistry with his teammates, both those who play further forward on the right side of the field as well as those who play with him on the back line, and if he can continue to attack up the right the way he did on Saturday while also ensuring that the opposition cannot take advantage of his forays forward, Orlando City will be in good shape. Dorsey’s almost-goal did not officially count, but he was able to put another shot on target, one that required a fantastic save by New York’s Ethan Horvath, while completing 74.3% of his passes and adding three tackles and one interception on defense.

MF, Tyrese Spicer, 5 — Saturday night was a rough night for Orlando City’s starting left wing. While he was on attack mode throughout his minutes on the field, he missed wide-open teammates multiple times while going for goal himself. Being that his passing completion percentage was only 53.9%, perhaps he would not have completed those passes anyway, but Duncan McGuire was wide open on two occasions and Spicer never even looked in his direction while the Lions were on the break. The Trinidad & Tobago international’s work rate was strong, as he led the team in tackles with four while also adding one clearance, but according to sofascore.com’s tracking, he lost the ball 25 times during the game, which was by far the most of any player, and that, combined with some tunnel vision when he had the ball, hurt the Lions as they tried to climb back into the game.

MF, Braian Ojeda, 6 — The man we call “Defensive” Ojeda played, like so many of his teammates, much better as the game went along. However, as one of the two central midfielders, he was responsible for Forsberg, one of the most dangerous players on New York’s roster, being wide open in the middle of the field for the game’s opening goal. Mistakes happen, especially with defensive groups that have not played together before, but that was an egregious one and he will need to work with his partners in the middle to ensure those mistakes are few and far between. Aside from that, Ojeda was solid, though not spectacular, in the middle, completing a team-leading 42 passes at a 91.3% completion rate, and adding three tackles on defense.

MF, Wilder Cartagena, N/A — It was not the return that Cartagena had hoped for, as after just 14 minutes he was clutching his hamstring and walking directly into the tunnel with his hands on his head. Let’s hope that it turns out not to be serious. He completed six of his seven passes while on the field for an 85.7% completion percentage and also had one tackle and one clearance.

MF, Marco Pašalić, 5 — Orlando City struggled to keep any possession during the first half, and that rendered the Croatian nearly invisible while he was on the field. When he did see the ball, he was not on top form, losing 10 possessions and completing only 12 passes, at an 80% completion rate. Pasalic wasn’t the only one doing it, but he dribbled into double teams on multiple occasions, helping New York turn defense into transition opportunities. He put one shot on target but it was from distance, a little rushed, and fairly tame, and he was removed at halftime for Iván Angulo.

MF, Martín Ojeda, 6.5 — Although he, too, was mostly invisible in the first half Orlando City’s other Designated Player had a much better second half. The Argentine came inches away from getting the Lions on the board with a well-struck free kick that was just tipped wide. He also fired a thundering attempt from close range that was blocked. “Offensive” Ojeda led the team with three key passes, but he only completed 10 passes in total (71.4% completion percentage) and Orlando City needs him to have a lot more of the ball if the team is going to have a successful season. Credit New York’s marking in the first half for starving him of the ball, but that’s also partially a failure on the part of Spicer and Pasalic to find him before being closed down. Playing in an advanced position, Ojeda recorded zero defensive contributions, though he had six recoveries of loose balls and put in work on both sides of the ball despite not tallying any defensive statistics.

F, Duncan McGuire, 5.5 — Big Dunc went the full 90, and went hard for the full 90, but came out with nothing to show for it, despite making some of the game’s most impressive runs both offensively and defensively. Spicer missed him twice when he was alone and in a great position to score, and then Angulo played a ball over the top to him but he ended up needing to use his weaker left foot to get the shot off, and it was blocked. Despite playing the whole game, McGuire ended up with fewer touches in the box than second half substitute Tiago and the same amount of touches as midfielders Braian Ojeda and Pasalic, and he needs better service if he is going to be able to get back to his goal-scoring ways of 2023 and 2024. I thought the effort was supreme, especially some of the runs he made while tracking back on defense, but aside from that it was a quiet day for the former Creighton Blue Jay. He completed eight of his 12 pass attempts (66.7%) and added one interception on defense. But he could have done more to clear the ball prior to New York’s second goal.

Substitutes

MF, Colin Guske (14′), 6 — The Homegrown midfielder was thrust into action far earlier than anyone expected. With Eduard Atuesta out with hamstring tightness, Guske was on the bench and forced to come in just 14 minutes into the game after Cartagena went off injured. He showed once again that he is ready to play at the MLS level, and during the second half in particular he dropped back more to help out the defense, which in turn helped his teammates better link to the attacking players. Guske finished with the third-most completions on the team (34) and completed those passes at an 89.5% completion rate while also adding one interception and one clearance. He also made a couple of strong tracking runs in transition to prevent dangerous counters.

MF, Iván Angulo, (46′), 7 — The Colombian came on for Pašalić to start the second half and he played one of his best halves of soccer in his Orlando City tenure, making plays all over the field and really changing the game for the Lions. He did it despite playing more centrally than normal as part of the club’s tactical change at the break. The great pass he played to McGuire could have led to an assist and the pass he played to Zakaria Taifi in stoppage time did lead to an assist. Despite playing for only 45 minutes, he completed the same number of passes (18) as Martin Ojeda and McGuire combined, even though both went the full 90. Angulo completed those passes at an 85.7% completion rate with two key passes, and he nearly scored a goal himself after getting his head on a great cross from Dorsey, but it was just deflected by Justin Che and bounced harmlessly to Horvath. Angulo also added one interception and six loose ball recoveries, and after this performance, I expect we will see him back in the starting lineup shortly.

D, Nolan Miller, (46′), 6 — The rookie from the University of Michigan made his MLS debut, coming on for Iago to start the second half, and he looked completely comfortable on the field. His entrance onto the back line helped steady the ship, and while he did not produce any spectacular plays, he was steady, solid, and composed, helping the Lions deliver a significantly better performance in the second half than the first. Miller completed 80.8% of his passes and had one shot attempt, a header on a corner kick that went over the bar. Defensively, he added one tackle and one clearance, but his most important contribution was his cohesiveness with the back line, which played much better with him in the left center back slot.

MF, Tiago, (76′), 6.5 — Tiago entered late in the second half, coming on for Spicer, and he had a glorious chance to score a goal on his debut but he scuffed the shot, putting it on goal but weakly. He made up for it just moments later, making an excellent off-ball run to put himself in a perfect position to finish a pass from fellow sub Taifi, cutting the lead to 2-1. Aside from those two shots on target, he took a third shot that did not go on target, completed his only pass attempt, and added one tackle and one interception on defense.

D, Zakaria Taifi, (87′), N/A — The Homegrown defender came on late for Dorsey and kept the high level of play at right back trend going by creating Orlando City’s only goal after he made a great run up the right side, took Angulo’s through ball well, and one-timed a perfectly weighted pass across the goalmouth for Tiago to slot home. It was the only pass attempt he made on the night, but it was a key pass, literally and figuratively, as he picked up his first MLS assist and spoiled the shutout on one of the last touches of the match. Taifi made an impact, but he didn’t quite play enough minutes to fairly grade the performance.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in Orlando City’s disappointing 2-1 loss against the Red Bulls. 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. Toronto FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The (finally) rolling Lions host the red-hot Reds as both teams try to continue climbing the Eastern Conference table.

Published

8 hours ago

on

September 12, 2026

By

Image of Martin Ojeda taking a shot against Toronto FC.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your preview and match thread for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City (9-11-4, 31 points) and Toronto FC (6-7-11, 29 points) at Inter.co Stadium in Orlando (7:30 p.m., Apple TV). It’s the first of two scheduled meetings between the Eastern Conference rivals this season, with the return fixture in Toronto scheduled for Oct. 14.

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

History

Orlando is 10-10-3 in the evenly split all-time, regular-season series. The Lions are 6-5-0 at home. The teams split their two meetings a year ago, with the home side claiming all three points in each.

The last time Orlando City faced Toronto FC was on Decision Day 2025 — Oct. 18 — with the Reds running rampant in a 4-2 win over the Lions. Djordje Mihailovic scored in each half, with Jonathan Osorio and Deandre Kerr adding a goal apiece to more than offset Orlando’s strikes by David Brekalo and Duncan McGuire. The loss knocked Orlando into the final position in the Wild Card play-in game, so it was costly.

The teams first renewed acquaintances in 2025 on March 1 in Orlando, with the Lions winning 4-2. Cesar Araujo and Alex Freeman scored moments apart, with Martin Ojeda and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson chipping in goals, while Sigurd Rosted and Deybi Flores scored for the visitors.

The teams met at BMO Field in Toronto on July 3, 2024, with the Lions earning a 2-1 revenge win on an Ojeda goal and an own goal by Nicksoen Gomis forced by Facundo Torres, coming from behind after Derrick Etienne, Jr. had given the Reds an early lead.

The Lions and Reds met in Orlando on April 27, 2024, and the Lions led most of the match on a McGuire goal. However, the Reds flipped the game on its head late, scoring twice in the final three minutes of normal time. Former Red/current Lion Tyrese Spicer and Prince Owusu scored to lift Toronto to a 2-1 win.

The final meeting of 2023 took place in Toronto on Decision Day, Oct. 21, when McGuire came off the bench and scored twice to beat the Reds 2-0. The teams met in Orlando on July 4, 2023, with Orlando City putting the Reds to the sword on Independence Day, beating the Canadian side, 4-0. Cesar Araujo, McGuire, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, and Ercan Kara scored for the Lions, and Toronto finished with 10 men after Federico Bernardeschi was shown his second yellow card just past the hour mark.

Orlando City also romped 4-0 over the Reds in the previous meeting, Sept. 17, 2022, at Exploria Stadium. Torres, Kara, and Tesho Akindele scored for the Lions to go along with a Lukas MacNaughton own goal. The Lions also won 1-0 on May 14, 2022, at BMO Field, thanks to a 92nd-minute goal from Kyle Smith, who flicked a header from a corner kick cross inside the far post to lift Orlando City to victory.

The Lions went 2-0-1 in three meetings with Toronto FC in 2021. The teams played to a 1-1 draw at BMO Field on July 17. Jozy Altidore came off the bench to score the opener but Nani equalized from the penalty spot minutes later. Benji Michel drew the penalty, which was originally ruled a foul on the Orlando winger but was overturned after video review by referee Marcos de Oliveira.

The other Toronto “home match” in the 2021 season series came on June 19 at Exploria Stadium. The Reds were dealing with pandemic restrictions in Canada that forced the team to play home games in the United States. Orlando City built a 2-0 early lead on goals by Akindele and Nani, only to see Toronto tie the match by halftime on goals by Ayo Akinola and Osorio. Junior Urso scored late to lift the Lions to a 3-2 victory. The teams first met that year on May 22, with Orlando City claiming a 1-0 win on Akindele’s goal.

The teams did not play in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to the MLS stoppage for the pandemic, the teams met most recently in Toronto on Aug. 10, 2019, with the Lions grabbing a point at BMO Field in a 1-1 draw. Michel opened the scoring in the second half, but the Reds equalized off a scramble following a set piece just eight minutes later. The other matchup between the sides that season came on May 4, 2019, when the Reds walked out of Orlando with a 2-0 win on goals by Osorio and Jay Chapman.

The teams split their season series in 2018. Orlando City captured a 2-1 win at home in James O’Connor’s first home game as head coach of the Lions on July 14, 2018. Chris Schuler and Dom Dwyer staked City to a 2-0 lead and Nick Hagglund ruined the shutout in the 94th minute off a Sebastian Giovinco free kick delivery. The 2018 meeting in Toronto saw the Reds get a 2-1 win at BMO Field on Ryan Telfer’s 87th-minute goal.

Toronto shredded Orlando in a 3-1 win on July 5, 2017. Altidore and Giovinco combined to score Toronto’s three goals. Carlos Rivas gave Orlando a consolation goal. In the first meeting of 2017, Orlando out-possessed, out-shot, and out-passed the hosts and played like the better team on the night. However, the Lions could not overcome a two-goal deficit and Giovinco’s first-half brace led Toronto to a 2-1 win.

The Lions got their first victory in the series on June 25, 2016, winning 3-2 at Camping World Stadium. Kaká scored from the spot in the 10th minute of stoppage time to win it. Cyle Larin and Adrian Winter each gave OCSC leads in the game, only to see Jordan Hamilton and Justin Morrow equalize until the captain’s late winner. The Reds took the second 2016 matchup in Orlando with a 2-1 victory and the teams also drew 0-0 on Sept. 28 of that year.

In 2015, Toronto took home all nine points in the three meetings, beating Orlando by a combined score of 11-1.

Overview

The Lions enter tonight on their best run of the 2026 season, having gone unbeaten in four matches (3-0-1). That includes Wednesday’s 3-2 win at Atlanta United in which Orlando City scored all five goals, unfortunately and accidentally putting two in the back of its own net. Antoine Griezmann has been on fire almost since his first minute on the pitch for Orlando, having contributed to 10 goals (7 goals, 3 assists) in his first nine MLS matches, including the opening goal and winning goal on Wednesday. Martin Ojeda made his first start since the World Cup break on Wednesday, contributing an assist and wreaking havoc with his off-ball movement throughout the night. He continues to lead the Lions with 11 goals on the year.

That said, it’s unclear how Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman will approach tonight’s match, considering the team flies to Columbus in a couple of days to face the Crew on the road in the U.S. Open Cup semifinals. It seems likely there will be at least a partially rotated squad tonight, with key starters in the midfield or attack likely being limited to 45 minutes. On the other hand, it’s a vital, six-point-type match between two teams fighting for an Eastern Conference playoff spot. The Lions, who carry a 6-4-2 home record into tonight in league play, have climbed from outside the playoff places to sixth over their four-game unbeaten streak and sit four positions — but only two points — ahead of tonight’s visitors from the shores of Lake Ontario (sic).

Toronto FC is unbeaten in its last seven games (3-0-4) and has lost just once since the league’s restart, beating the New England Revolution, Inter Miami, and Nashville SC by identical 2-1 scores and playing to a wild 4-4 draw against the Chicago Fire in that span. Those are the top four teams in the Eastern Conference, and the Nashville win came just three days ago, so the Reds will carry a lot of momentum and confidence into tonight. They’ll also have a full week off after tonight, so they can go for it with their best lineup. Toronto, however, is 2-5-3 away from home this season.

One of the keys to Toronto’s recent success is USMNT striker Josh Sargeant getting on track. The big target forward has four goals in the last four games and has crept to the top of Toronto’s scoring list with seven, tied with former Sporting Kansas City star Dániel Sallói, who has chipped in a team-high nine assists.

To win tonight, Orlando must deny service to Sargeant, try to keep Sallói and new arrival Lewis Morgan off the ball, and find ways to beat Walker Zimmerman and the Toronto defense. Whoever plays left back and left wing for Orlando will need to track former Lion Richie Laryea. City must also be smart and not cost itself for Wednesday by running players ragged on short rest.

Orlando City will be without Braian Ojeda (foot), while Adrian Marin (thigh) has been upgraded to questionable. Toronto will be without Osorio (knee), Nelson Palacio (thigh), and Mihailovic (thigh).

Match Content

Official Lineups

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Ivan Angulo, Iago, David Brekalo, Zakaria Taifi.

Midfielders: Tyrese Spicer, Joran Gerbet, Luis Otavio, Marco Pasalic.

Forwards: Martin Ojeda, Antoine Griezmann.

Bench: Javier Otero, Bernardo Rhein, Robin Jansson, Wilder Cartagena, Eduard Atuesta, Justin Ellis, Harvey Sarajian, Tiago, Daryl Dike.

Toronto (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Luka Gavran.

Defenders: Matheus Pereira, Benjamin Kuscevic, Walker Zimmerman, Richie Laryea.

Midfielders: Dániel Sallói, Markus Cimermancic, Niklas Dorsch, Theo Corbeanu.

Forwards: Derrick Etienne, Jr.,Josh Sargent.

Bench: William Yarbrough, Jackson Gilman, Nicksoen Gomis, Zane Monlouis, Alonso Coello, Kobe Franklin, Emilio, Raheem Edwards, Malik Henry.

Referees

REF: Jon Freemon.
AR1: Corey Rockwell.
AR2: Ben Pilgrim.
4TH: Sergii Demianchuk.
VAR: Kevin Stott.
AVAR: Robert Schaap.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter.co Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Streaming: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish).

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 match. Go City!

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Toronto FC: Three Keys to Victory

Here’s what the Lions need to do in order to have a good chance of knocking off Toronto at home.

Published

1 day ago

on

September 11, 2026

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Following Wednesday’s 3-2 road victory against Atlanta United, Orlando City has quietly put together a run of four games unbeaten and has won three of those four games. Up next is a Toronto team that hasn’t tasted defeat in its last seven matches, and with fixture congestion once again an issue during September, OCSC will need to be at its best if it wants to come away with three points against a direct rival for the Eastern Conference playoff places. What follows are my three keys to victory against the Reds.

Ring the Rotations

Not only will the Lions be coming off short rest following a midweek match, but there’s another extremely important midweek contest looming on the horizon in the form of Wednesday’s U.S. Open Cup semifinal in Columbus. Playing an unrotated XI against both Atlanta and Toronto would be tantamount to suicide, even without the extra game thrown in, but with the semifinal to consider, rotation is going to be key. We saw around this time last year and again in August how difficult it can be to win games when the team either can’t or simply doesn’t rotate, and this stretch of games is too important to keep asking the same 11 guys to play a highly physically demanding style every single match.

A number of OCSC players have begun to look leggy in recent weeks, and I don’t think it was an accident that Griffin Dorsey and David Brekalo didn’t play the full 90 minutes against Atlanta. They’ve barely come off the field this year and absolutely needed a little extra recovery time, but they aren’t the only ones. In an ideal world, we see guys on Saturday who haven’t been starting much lately, like Marco Pasalic, Tiago, Tyrese Spicer, Luis Otavio, Wilder Cartagena, Zakaria Taifi, and Iago; while guys who are coming back from injury or have lots of minutes on their legs like Dorsey, Robin Jansson, Antoine Griezmann, Joran Gerbet, and Martin Ojeda get some rest to start the game even if they’re subbed on in the second half. No such luck for Ivan Angulo, who will play the full 90 in every game until the end of time.

Be Better on the Back Post

Lately I’ve felt like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day when watching Orlando City play, because I’m watching the Lions’ defense get repeatedly exposed in the same way: a ball is played in from a wide area, across the defense to the back post, and there’s at least one free man to get on the end of it. That’s how Orlando gave up a goal against Real Salt Lake and how it conceded both goals against Atlanta. If not for some wayward finishing by the Five Stripes, OCSC likely would have given up more goals in a similar fashion during Wednesday’s contest. The word is very much out on how to score against this team: put in either a cross or a diagonal switch that bypasses the nearest part of the defense and requires the team to pick up runners on the back side. That’s it. In theory, it shouldn’t be a difficult thing to fix, but if it isn’t cleaned up — and soon — then teams are going to continue making Orlando pay for that particular flaw and it’s going to cost the Lions points. Toronto is unbeaten in its last seven games and just put a couple goals past the best defense in the league. No need to make the Reds’ job any easier for them.

Clinical Finishing

Assuming that Martin Perelman makes significant changes to his starting XI with an eye on the Open Cup semifinal, we’ll probably be in for a rather disjointed offensive performance on Saturday. That means that quality chances will likely be hard to come by, which puts a huge emphasis on finishing the ones that the Lions create. Even if the offense is creating tons of good chances the way it did against Atlanta, the guys on the field need to do a much better job of finishing those chances. On Wednesday, the Lions created a whopping eight chances with an expected goals (xG) value of .25 or higher, meaning that a player taking that shot would be expected to score roughly 25% of the time. Orlando managed to finish just three of those chances, and a game that never should have been in doubt ended up having a nervy finish once Atlanta pulled a goal back in stoppage time. That sort of profligacy simply can’t happen on Saturday, especially in a contest where chances will probably be at a premium.

There you have it folks. Bring on the fresh legs, clean up the back-side defending, and be lethal finishing in front of goal, and the Lions should have a good chance of taking all three points at home on Saturday. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links: 9/11/26

Antoine Griezmann makes Team of the Matchday, reliving the Pride’s win over Houston, academy players head to U.S. training camp, and more.

Published

1 day ago

on

September 11, 2026

By

Image of Antoine Griezmann watching his shot go in the net against FC Dallas in a friendly.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Justin Glatt

Today is the first of three straight days of games featuring Orlando soccer and hopefully the teams can replicate their impressive results last weekend as they push for the playoffs. Apart from working and enjoying the soccer, I plan on making some pasta by hand, so wish me luck in that endeavor. For now though, let’s get to the links!

Antoine Griezmann Makes Team of the Matchday

Orlando City star Antoine Griezmann was the only Lion to make the MLS Team of the Matchday following Orlando’s 3-2 win over Atlanta United. He scored twice and came up with a crucial goal-line clearance to lead the Lions to victory on the road. Griezmann has now scored in four straight games and already has seven goals so far this season despite only playing nine games. Hopefully he can keep finding the back of the net when Orlando hosts a Toronto FC side that has only lost once since the World Cup break.

Reliving the Pride’s Victory Over Houston

The Orlando Pride released a video of the sights and sounds from the team’s 3-1 win against the Houston Dash. It was interim head coach Yolanda Thomas’ first game at the helm and the team was able to get a win after an emotional week. From the different angles of Orlando’s goals to Thomas’ speech to the team following the win, it’s a great watch. The Pride will aim to make it another three points tonight when they play on the road against the Kansas City Current tonight.

Orlando City Academy Players Head to Camp

There are four Orlando City academy players heading to Georgia for the U.S. U-15 and U-16 boys national teams’ training camps at the U.S. Soccer National Training Center. Goalkeeper Luan Silva and defender Zorian Civil were called up for the U-16 team, while goalkeeper Mario Martinez Reyes and forward Molina Baladi will be joining the U-15 team. Hopefully they’ll all be able to impress at camp as they continue to develop for both club and country.

Uncertainty Looms Over Racing Louisville’s Future

Racing Louisville ranks near the bottom of the NWSL in both attendance and spending and there are questions circling the club regarding its investment and future in the league. Along with this, forward Emma Sears reportedly requested a trade from the club this summer and 2025 NWSL Coach of the Year Bev Yanez’s contract is set to end after this season. A sale may very well be in the club’s future, with relocation possibly on the table as well. Louisville made the playoffs for the first time last year, but the club has lost 14 games so far this season and is 13th in the league standings.

Free Kicks

  • The Orlando Pride moved up a spot to 11th in the CBS Sports NWSL power rankings after beating the Houston Dash.
  • American right back Sergino Dest scored the equalizer in PSV Eindhoven’s 1-1 draw against Shakhtar Donetsk.

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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