Javier Otero Shows Quality, Resilience in Orlando City Win

Sometimes confidence is everything for a goalkeeper. After a poor performance, they can go one of two ways. Either they can continue to slide, or they can bounce back and show resilience.

Javier Otero was put in just that position Saturday night. Maxime Crepeau’s red card for handling the ball outside the box against New York City FC forced the 23-year-old Homegrown shot stopper between the sticks. It was a nightmare that seemed to keep getting worse as the game went on.

Taking over in a scoreless contest but down a man, Otero conceded in the 22nd and 42nd minutes before giving up a third in first-half stoppage time. It didn’t get much better early in the second half as he conceded two more inside the first 10 minutes after the resumption of play.

In addition to the five goals conceded, Otero didn’t make a single save.

The embarrassing 5-0 loss could’ve been the downfall of the young goalkeeper. Crepeau’s red card meant the veteran would miss Saturday night’s game against CF Montreal, forcing Otero into his fifth appearance and third start for the senior team.

Fortunately, Otero didn’t have a lot to do for most of the game. The opposition only put five shots on frame in the 90 minutes and the Lions had the best chances. But when the young goalkeeper was asked to step up, he did.

The only concession came in the 24th minute, five minutes after Orlando City took the lead. Prince Osei Owusu outjumped center back Iago to win a ball and head it past Otero. There was little he could do to prevent the goal with most of the blame falling on the defender.

Apart from that, Otero was solid throughout the game. He showed some indecisiveness in the early minutes, especially when looking to distribute the ball from inside his own box. But that’s to be expected by a young goalkeeper who has seen minimal MLS action.

As the game went on, Otero was a stronger presence in his own box. After the goal, the Venezuelan international came out on set pieces to collect, climbing over attackers and defenders alike with little care about who he took out in the process.

It’s a necessary trait for quality goalkeeping, especially at the professional level.

After only needing to make one save in the first 67 minutes, he was forced into three in the final 22 minutes. And they weren’t all easy to deal with.

Despite only leading by a goal, Lions interim head coach Martin Perelman went defensive in the 61st minute by replacing Duncan McGuire with Zakaria Taifi. While Taifi played forward initially, he’s a natural right back and eventually dropped further to create a back five with about 15 minutes to go.

Otero’s first crucial moment came in the 68th minute when Ivan Jaime cut inside and fired between Braian Ojeda and Colin Guske. The shot had some action and Otero had multiple players in front of him. He pushed the ball to his left and away from danger.

While it might not have been the most aesthetically pleasing stop, his ability to push the ball wide instead of in front of him was essential. Orlando City’s first goal illustrates how rebound direction can impact things, as Ivan Angulo’s shot off the left post rebounded to McGuire in the middle for an easy tap-in.

Otero was called into action again in the 83rd minute when Efrain Morales got his head to a Jaime corner kick. While Otero didn’t catch the ball, he kept it under his control and pounced on it before Samuel Piette could knock it in. Piette was whistled for fouling the goalkeeper on the play, but Otero still did well to collect it.

The final stop came in the 87th minute when Olger Escobar sent a knuckling ball towards goal. Otero got down and blocked it to his right, getting it away from danger rather than knocking it in front of the goal where it could end up behind him.

Otero could’ve done better with some of those shots, and the young goalkeeper will continue to improve with experience. But after a game in which he gave up five goals, he kept his composure and didn’t let the ghosts of his previous performance come back to haunt him. Instead, when his team needed him to keep the ball out of his net late with a one-goal lead, he did just that.

This game showed that Otero is able to do one of the most important things for successful goalkeeping: forget the past. Rather than letting the goals continue to accumulate, he kept his head down and made some big saves, getting better as the game went along.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that Otero will become the starter. With Crepeau’s suspension behind him, the Canadian will once again take his starting spot back. But if he’s suspended, injured, or away on international duty, Orlando City can rest assured that the team has a backup that can come through when needed.