Orlando City
Orlando City vs. CF Montreal: Player Grades and Man of the Match
How did your favorite Lions perform in Orlando City’s 2-1 home win against CF Montreal?
Orlando City won 2-1 over CF Montreal at home in the first match following the parting of ways with longtime head coach Oscar Pareja. A strong first half was enough to see the Lions through against a Montreal side that is having struggles of its own. The Cardiac Cats were true to form though, as some desperate defending was needed right up to the end to secure the result.
The grades below come against less-than-elite competition, but the Lions should still be judged on their efforts regardless of the opposition. So let’s take a look at how the Orlando City players performed individually in this game.
Starters
GK, Javier Otero, 6 — In his first start of the year, due to a Maxime Crepeau red card earned in last week’s match against New York City FC, Otero put in a respectable shift. Montreal was not exactly clinical, but when Otero was tested he was up to he challenge — four out of five times anyway. He was generally aggressive, defending his goal on corners and free kicks suffering two fouls in the match. His distribution was something I cant recall thinking about, which is a good thing. A few of his saves were on ping pong balls that he had to react quickly to, which he managed well. For me, one highlight was a tactical “cramp” he incurred which allowed time for Tyrese Spicer to get on the pitch who was waiting out a delayed entry due to Marco Pasalic taking too long to get off the pitch when he was subbed out. It was a good heads-up play by the keeper. Overall, a respectable bounce back after an abysmal match in New York. His pass accuracy was not great, especially for a goalkeeper at 63% on 28 passes. He completed seven out of 15 long balls. There’s no doubt Crepeau will be back between the sticks next week, but you learn by doing, and nothing beats a real match. Oteror did well this time out and that gives a little hope for the next time he’s called into action.
D, Adrian Marin, 7 — In one of his best, if not the best, performances as an Orlando left back, Marin made several key plays throughout the match and, significantly, did not commit any major mistakes. In fact, he had the most tackles of any Orlando player (4), including an absolute clutch tip of the toe tackle on Hennadii Synchuk and a nice steal off of Prince Owusu when he was threatening from the end line. He also had the most fouls on the team at three, suffering one, but given the defensive nature of much of Orlando’s play, that’s kind of understandable and none were considered card worthy. He had five clearances and a blocked shot. He also had an abysmal 52,2% pass accuracy on 12 attempts and did not connect on any of six long balls. Better but not great.
D, Iago, 6.5 — It’s just one game, but Iago acquitted himself much better this time out than in his previous Orlando City matches. He was proactive and anticipated dangerous situations on a few occasions. He had two interceptions and was second only to David Brekalo for the most clearances (8). He also tallied one block and he committed one foul. He passed at 94.1% and hit on three out of five long balls. Iago appeared much more competent and alert in this match and we can, hopefully, take this as stepping stone along the path to greater things. It was against a struggling side in Montreal, but Iago’s play seemed to justify a little more breathing room on its own merit. He is a young player in an alien land and is showing improvement, which might be all we can hope for at this point.
D, David Brekalo, 6 — Brekalo spent most of his time involved in emergency defending. He did not seem to anticipate a lot, and was mostly invisible. It wasn’t a terrible outing, and maybe his assignment was to hold down his piece of real estate? If that’s the case, then he did pretty well and only committed one foul. He cleared what came his way — a team-high nine clearances — and managed a header on a set piece in the first half. He also recorded a block and hit on three out of four long balls with a passing accuracy of 90.9%.
D, Griffin Dorsey, 6.5 — This match seemed like a slight regression for Dorsey to me, at least in the attacking phases. It was a good match though, and maybe it’s a function of the rest of the team making more of an impact themselves. He did defend well against Prince Owusu and Ivan Jaime, Montreal’s two most effective attackers on the night. Jaime was a handful in the second half and got past Dorsey on at least one occasion, but overall Dorsey did pretty well against he and Owusu. He committed one foul and suffered one foul. He passed at an 88.9% accuracy with one key pass. Defensively, he had one tackle, three clearances, and a block.
MF, Ivan Angulo, 8 (MotM) — Well that’s two weeks in a row that Angulo managed a Man of the Match effort! Pretty low bar this season, but this match was Angulo’s for sure. From my point of view, there’s something not quite intangible, but close to it about the Colombian. He’s absurdly fast, that’s obvious. His effort is off the charts. He does not generally have the greatest touch when he needs it the most. What he has though, is a pretty good ability to snuff out danger and turn it into an attack. His usual downfall is his inability to maintain composure in and around the 18-yard box. Against Montreal though, he was excellent. He was chasing down broken plays, he was anticipating attacks, and he was precise and thoughtful in his buildup play, even in front of Montreal’s goal. He only took one shot, which pinged off the post and rebounded for Duncan McGuire’s goal, but he was a major factor in both Orlando City goals. He finished with three key passes, two dribbles, and passed at an 87.1% accuracy on 32 attempts. He connected on three of four long balls as well. He was dispossessed twice and had three unstable touches, but at least this time those were offset. He suffered one foul and committed two. All things must be taken with a grain of salt in this early, difficult, and unprecedented season, but Angulo has shown some growth in his game and I think he deserves a lot of credit for that. Let’s hope he can sustain it.
MF, Eduard Atuesta, 5.5 — I’m typically a fan of Atuesta. He was not on LAFC’s cup-winning roster for nothing, but Atuesta gave a lot away in his minutes on the pitch in this one. This was his first start of the season and there has been a lot of change on this roster, which should not be underestimated. However, he had a couple of pretty gnarly give aways and some tortoise-like slowness at times even though he did not lack for overall effort. He had only one interception on the night, committed one foul, and had no other defensive contributions. He passed with 81.8% accuracy on 22 attempts and connected on one long ball in three attempts. He picked up the game’s only yellow card with a late and clumsy challenge. Atuesta just did not seem to be up to the speed of the match this time out and tired notably in the second half, but I expect him to return to form soon after kicking some rust off.
MF, Braian Ojeda, 7 — Defensive Ojeda did a great job…especially on offense! He had three key passes and two successful dribbles, and he was fouled four times to slow him down. I really liked his play in this match, and he did a lot to facilitate the success of Angulo, Martin Ojeda, and McGuire. He committed one foul, passed at 92.1% on 38 attempts, and had one long-ball attempt that did not connect. Stats are essential, but they only tell you what they can tell you. The midfielder showed an aptitude for positive passes. That’s what impressed me, not just the success or otherwise of the execution, nor defensive stats, but that he could see what needed to be done in the moment to facilitate the attack. This could just be a one-off case, but he picked out multiple passes that looked to unlock the defense from deep lying areas, and that’s fairly rare. Defensively, he finished with one interception, two clearances, and two blocks. I liked what I saw on this one, so I’m rating him pretty high.
MF, Marco Pasalic, 6 — Pasalic had two early misses, the second of which he had a half second more or so to settle than he seemed to think. He had four shots on the night, but they weren’t on target, and he got dispossessed three times, had two unstable touches, and suffered one foul. His passing was very good at 91.7% although his one long ball did not connect. Importantly, he played a major role in both goals. His blast from outside the area pinged off mutliple defenders before finding Angulo in front on McGuire’s goal. On the second, it was his give-and-go with Angulo that resulted in Martin Ojeda’s game-winner, with Pasalic picking up a secondary assist.
F, Duncan McGuire, 7 — McGuire had a good night. He only had two shots, but both were on target and one was an opportunistic goal off of an Angulo rebound that hit the post. It was his first goal of the season, and it must be good to get on the scoresheet. He helped out in defense, as usual, with a couple tackles, a clearance, and a block. But he also made some nice flicks to help build up the attack. I think he showed some real vision in this one and he executed it well. He passed at a 58.8% rate, not great but he is a striker, and suffered one foul and committed none. This was a good outing for Duncan in my opinion and it was mostly his help in the build up that impressed me in this one.
F, Martin Ojeda, 7.5 — Offensive Ojeda was his typical effective-attacker self against Montreal. He was all over the pitch facilitating and getting results on his own. He took two shots, both on target, including scoring the winning goal. He recorded two key passes and was fouled once. He passed at a 62.5% rate on 22 attempts, three of his six crosses found a target, and he connected on his lone long ball as well.
Substitutes
D, Zakaria Taifi (61′), 6 — I’ll give Taifi some credit for his efforts in his second appearance this year. He was getting involved and clearly put in some hard work in his limited time in this match. He even managed to put his lone shot on target, although Montreal goalkeeper Thomas Gillier saved it easily and a pass to Dorsey or back to Angulo may have been the better decision. Going for goal was understandable though, given the limited opportunities for the substitute. Taifi did pretty well in defense as well contributing two clearances and a vital block late in the match on Jaime, committing one foul. He attempted seven passes with 57.1% accuracy.
MF, Colin Guske (61′), 6.5 — Guske did well in his minutes, helping to snuff out Montreal’s efforts in what had become a pretty defensive posture for Orlando. On the offensive side of things, he took one shot in the 90th minute that was blocked and he was fouled once. He connected on his one long ball attempt and completed all eight of his pass attempts. Defensively he managed one tackle and four clearances, and he committed one foul.
F, Tyrese Spicer (71′), 4.5 — Spicer came on for Pasalic and brought his usual energy but did not produce much. He only attempted three passes and did not connect on any of them, nor his lone long ball attempt. He attempted two shots with one on target, but it was on a breakaway after a bad Montreal giveaway. He should have done better with his 1-v-1 opportunity against the goalkeeper to put the game out of reach. His other was a free kick right into the wall. He was dispossessed once as well. He managed two tackles and a clearance with his defensive efforts.
D, Tahir Reid-Brown (84′) N/A — Reid-Brown did a decent job in this one given his limited minutes. He made three pass attempts completing two (66.7% accuracy) and attempted one cross and one long ball, neither of which found a target. He had no defensive contributions to speak of and wasn’t on long enough to fairly earn a grade.
F, Pedro Leao (84′) N/A — In a bit of a surprise substitution, Orlando City B’s Pedro Leao got his first minutes for the first team. He hit the ground running immediately, getting involved in the attack and earning a free kick just outside the 18-yard box. Not much else came from his efforts though, and he suffered two fouls and was dispossessed twice and he attempted two passes with one complete. He also had no defensive contributions.
That’s how i saw the individual performances in a much-needed Orlando win. Let us know how you saw the game in the comments below, and don’t forget to vote for your Man of the Match.
Lion Links
Lion Links: 7/13/26
Pride and OCB win, Maxime Crepeau to compete in MLS All-Star Skills Challenge, Latest MLS transfer roundup, and more.
Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been very busy at work, but I look forward to watching the 2026 FIFA World Cup semifinals and final this week. We’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.
Pride Shut Out Kansas City Current at Home
The Orlando Pride defeated the Kansas City Current 3-0 at Inter&Co Stadium Friday night, bouncing back from a tough outing at Angel City the previous week. After a scoreless first half, Marta scored the opener from long distance to give Orlando the lead. Hannah Anderson and Barbra Banda added a goal apiece as the Pride have won three out of their last four league matches. Goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse earned a clean sheet in her 100th appearance for the club. Orlando remains eighth in the NWSL table with 20 points. The Pride will be back in action at home Wednesday, taking on Boston Legacy at Inter&Co Stadium.
OCB Wins at FC Cincinnati 2
Orlando City B beat FC Cincinnati 2 by a 2-1 scoreline at NKU Soccer Stadium in Highland Heights, KY on Sunday. Issah Haruna’s goal gave the Young Lions the lead in the first half. In the second half, Cincinnati leveled the match, but Matthew Belgodere scored the winner on the road. That result pulls the Young Lions into third in the MLS NEXT Pro Eastern Conference standings with 33 points, just one point off leaders Chattanooga FC. OCB will be away for another road test Saturday against Chattanooga FC at Finley Stadium.
Orlando City Reportedly Submits Transfer Offer for Alex Moreno
Orlando City has reportedly submitted a transfer offer to sign Girona defender Alex Moreno. No agreement has been reached between the two sides, and conversations remain ongoing, according to reports. Moreno made 31 appearances for Girona last season in La Liga and recorded three assists. The 33-year-old left back remains under contract with Girona through 2027, but the club was relegated from La Liga to La Liga 2 last season. Several European clubs have also expressed interest in signing Moreno, including La Liga sides Real Betis and Rayo Vallecano.
Crepeau to Compete in MLS All-Star Skills Challenge
Orlando City goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau will compete in the 2026 MLS All-Star Skills Challenge at Truist Field in Charlotte on July 28, the club announced Friday. The competition will feature top players from Major League Soccer and Liga MX competing to test their soccer skills on the pitch. Five skills challenge competitions are featured, including the All-Star Goalie Wars, All-Star Crossbar Challenge, and the MLS vs. Liga MX Relay Challenge. Each competition will crown its own champion this year, switching from the traditional MLS-versus-opponent format used in previous years.
Latest MLS Transfer Roundup
According to Tom Bogert of The Athletic, Sporting Kansas City has emerged as a potential option to sign former Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah.
D.C. United has reportedly acquired forward Nathan Ordaz from LAFC.
Meanwhile, the Seattle Sounders have reportedly traded defender Cody Baker to the New England Revolution.
Free Kicks
- Former Lion Silvester van der Water has signed with Cambodian Premier League side Preah Khan Reach Svay Rieng FC.
- Ted Lasso actor Cristo Fernandez, who plays Dani Rojas in the show, made his professional debut for USL Championship side El Paso Locomotive over the weekend.
- FIFA President Gianni Infantino confirmed that the organization will examine expanding the men’s World Cup from 48 to 64 teams after the 2026 tournament concludes.
- Senegal has fired manager Pape Thiaw following its Round of 32 defeat to Belgium in the World Cup.
That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday, and I’ll see you next time.
Orlando City
Orlando City Trades Duncan McGuire to Houston Dynamo
The Lions send the 2023 first-round pick to Houston for a pile of Garberbucks.
Orlando no longer runs on Duncan as Orlando City has traded 2023 first-round draft pick Duncan McGuire to the Houston Dynamo. The big striker with the even bigger smile and the back flips joins the Dynamo, with the Lions receiving $600,000 in 2026 General Allocation Money (GAM), $400,000 in 2027 GAM, and $250,000 in 2027-2028 GAM. The return could also include up to $1.15 million in GAM add-ons if certain performance metrics are met. OCSC will retain a percentage of any sell-on by Houston.
It became clear that something was up with McGuire, as he did not dress for Orlando City’s friendly against Tampa Bay on Wednesday.
“Duncan has meant a great deal to this club since the day he arrived in Orlando,” Orlando City General Manager and Sporting Director Ricardo Moreira said in a club press release. “His resilience, determination, and willingness to fight through challenges both on and off the field have earned the respect of everyone throughout our organization. He has played a major role in our success over the last several years, and when the opportunity arose, we wanted to ensure it was a move that made sense for both Duncan and the club. We’re grateful for everything he has given to Orlando City and wish him and his family nothing but success in this next chapter.”
The Lions selected McGuire out of Creighton with the No. 6 overall selection in the first round of the 2023 MLS SuperDraft. Although he was not a Generation Adidas player, the striker had signed a pre-draft contract with the league, meaning Orlando City didn’t need to spend time agreeing to a contract. The 6-foot-1 forward quickly became a starter for the Lions during his rookie year, and put together back-to-back, double-digit goal-scoring seasons in his first two professional seasons. Now in his fourth pro year, McGuire has appeared in 85 MLS matches (45 starts) for the Lions, scoring 29 goals and adding eight assists. In all competitions, McGuire has contributed 32 goals and nine assists in 109 appearances (55 starts).
Once one of the most promising up-and-coming American strikers in any league after his 24 goals across his first two MLS campaign, Mcguire underwent surgery on both shoulders in separate procedures after the 2024 MLS Cup playoffs, which have restricted his availability, affected his form, and have limited him to just five goals and three assists in his last 29 matches. He has sat behind various other strikers starting in his place the last couple of seasons, including Ramiro Enrique, Luis Muriel, and Justin Ellis.
After his breakout rookie campaign, in which the Omaha, NE native scored 14 goals, he was courted by several teams in Europe. He signed with Blackburn Rovers in 2024, only to see the transfer rejected by the English Football League due to an administrative error by the EFL Championship club. Upon his return, the Creighton product signed his most recent contract on Aug. 22, 2024, locking him down through 2027 with a club option for 2028. That deal now belongs to the Dynamo.
McGuire’s hot start to his professional career had him climbing the U.S. Men’s National Team player pool. Gregg Berhalter called him up to the USMNT for the first time in January 2024 ahead of the team’s friendly against Slovenia. The striker made his first USMNT appearance in that match, coming off the bench to replace Brian White on Jan. 20, 2024, in a 1-0 loss. That is his only cap to date, although he had previously appeared nine times and scored one goal for the U.S. U-23 side.
The 2022 Hermann Trophy winner spent three seasons at Creighton, where he appeared in 24 games (23 starts) in his final (junior) season, logging 1,591 college minutes. McGuire scored 23 goals and added three assists in 2022.
What It Means for Orlando City
It makes sense to deal a striker making a base salary of $600,000 ($921,000 in total guaranteed compensation) if he can’t crack the starting lineup. While some of that comes down to coaching decisions and other players emerging, it didn’t help McGuire that he struggled to regain the consistent form he showed in his first two years in Orlando. In the end, this is a bit of a blow financially to the club, as the initial agreement with Blackburn was for a reported $4 million. He now departs for considerably less money, but his value understandably dropped with his production and the two shoulder surgeries.
McGuire is still just 25 years old, and sitting out after two surgeries means he has fewer miles on his legs than many players his age. He could still regain the form that saw him score 14 times in 2023 and 10 more times in 2024 and had the USMNT and European clubs paying attention. Orlando City will hope that he returns to form, because that will influence how much GAM the club eventually receives for this transaction.
A fan favorite since his arrival, McGuire will be missed, and while the Lions could perhaps have benefitted from getting a player back in return to bolster an area of need, the influx of GAM can help accomplish the same goal.
McGuire’s departure appears to solidify Justin Ellis’ position on the first team, although his play in the first half of the season likely already did that. It may also open up more minutes for Tiago. But the trade also tells us that unless a new striker is brought in, the Lions will play without a traditional target striker for the time being, allowing players who have typically either played as wingers, attacking midfielders, or false nines to have the freedom to fluidly change positions and force defenders out of their comfort zones when it comes to coverage. Martin Ojeda, Antoine Griezmann, Ellis, Ivan Angulo, Marco Pasalic, and the team’s fullbacks will be harder to keep tabs on under such a system.
Whether it will work or if it will further stress the team’s shoddy transition defense (or both) remains to be seen.
Orlando City
Flashback Friday: July 10, 2022 vs. Inter Miami
Let’s rewind to a match against the Herons that featured the unlikeliest of heroes.
With both the United States Men’s National Team and Colombia suffering World Cup exits that were both agonizing in their own right, this summer’s tournament has lost a little luster for me. Don’t get it twisted, I’m still looking forward to the rest of the games, but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t going to be a little bittersweet.
Fortunately, Orlando City will be back in action before we know it, and in the meantime we can continue our practice of looking back on Lions matches from years gone by. Last week we relived a 4-0 win over Toronto FC from July 4, 2023. This week we go a little farther into the past to July 10, 2022, and a visit from Inter Miami.
Going into the match with the Herons, OCSC was badly in need of a result. The Lions were in the midst of a summer slump and had won just one of eight matches since squeaking by Toronto FC 1-0 back on May 14. To try to turn things around, Oscar Pareja sent out a lineup of Pedro Gallese in goal; a back line of Kyle Smith, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Ruan; Junior Urso and Cesar Araujo in the double pivot; Benji Michel, Mauricio Pereyra, and Facundo Torres in attacking midfield; and Ercan Kara up top.
Orlando’s effort to try to pick up a win had to wait a little longer than originally planned, as kickoff was postponed by close to two and a half hours due to lightning in the area. Once the game eventually started, both Orlando City’s fans and players probably wished it had been delayed a little longer. The Lions came out of the starting blocks slow and were guilty of a number of bad passes and miscommunication that made it difficult to get going offensively.
The bad start nearly cost the home side early, as Pereyra played a bad back pass in the seventh minute that was snagged by Indiana Vasilev, who promptly broke toward goal. Fortunately, his shot smashed into Gallese’s face and went wide of the net to spare Mauricio’s blushes. Speaking of the Uruguayan, Miami seemed to have keyed on him as a player to stop at all costs, because whenever the Lions started to get a rhythm in the final third, the Herons promptly fouled him to break up the flow of things.
It took half an hour for the first decent chances to finally surface for Orlando City. When those opportunities arrived, it was in the form of Urso taking a pop from outside the box that got blocked on the way through, and Michel nearly getting on the end of a training ground corner kick routine, only to be let down by a bad first touch.
That was mostly everything of note in a largely quiet first half. Miami had the more dangerous chances, but there wasn’t much to separate the teams in the end. Miami had a slim lead in possession (50.6%-49.4%), and also had more shots (6-3), shots on target (1-0), and corners (3-2). Orlando City was a shade more accurate in its passing (84.5%-83.6%).
Once the second half started, Miami very nearly got an early goal once again, but Robert Taylor didn’t get good contact on a header attempt and the ball went out harmlessly for a goal kick. Vassilev had a much more dangerous effort in the 49th minute, but he put his shot over the bar and wasted a nice passage of play from the visitors.
Orlando carved out an excellent chance of its own nine minutes later. Ruan played a clever cutback for Michel, but like Taylor, he didn’t get good contact on his shot and sent it tamely right to goalkeeper Drake Callender. Torres and Urso sent shots wide and high shortly afterward, before Miami really should have scored from a 72nd-minute corner kick. Aime Mabika found himself all alone in front of goal after the initial ball was played short, but he put his header wide right.
Tesho Akindele was one of the substitutes brought on, and he flashed his fresh legs by getting on a couple of chances as the game wound towards the 90th minute. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to convert either one, and things looked sure to end in a scoreless draw. Enter an extremely unlikely hero: Jake Mulraney.
In the second of four minutes of stoppage time, the winger sent a hopeful cross into the box with just two men in purple to aim for. The ball had relatively little chance of reaching Akindele, who was bracketed by two defenders, but Damion Lowe tried to clear it and instead sliced it off the underside of the crossbar and into the Miami net making it 1-0 to the good guys.
Unsurprisingly, given the state of the game up to that point, neither team managed to muster any real chances after that, and Orlando narrowly came away with three much-needed points.
OCSC ended the game with more possession (54.7%-45.3%) and better passing accuracy (96.6%-82.9%), while Miami took more shots (10-8) and won more corners (6-2). Both sides put just one shot on target, making the final score somewhat unsurprising.
Marcus Mitchell was at the helm for Player Grades in this game, and he gave the outstanding Cesar Araujo the Man of the Match award, with a grade of 7.5 out of 10. The midfielder racked up eight tackles, drew nine fouls, and played a key pass while snuffing out a lot of Miami’s danger before it could truly develop.
Those three points didn’t exactly galvanize the Lions in the short term, as they won just one of their next six games in all competitions, not counting a friendly loss to Arsenal. Fortunately, better times lay ahead in the U.S. Open Cup.
That’ll do it for this week’s edition of Flashback Friday. We’ve only got one more of these before Orlando City returns to action on July 22, so enjoy the reminiscing while you can. Vamos Orlando!
Lion Links: 7/13/26
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