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Orlando City vs. CF Montreal: Player Grades and Man of the Match

Here’s how your favorite Lions performed in Orlando City’s 2-0 loss to CF Montreal.

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5 months ago

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Image of Griffin Dorsey trying to send the ball upfield against a Montreal defender.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

If you play Football Manager enough, you play plenty of games where the after-match comment is “a bore draw.” That appeared to be where Orlando City’s road game at CF Montreal was headed until a mistake by Robin Jansson in added time led to a penalty which opened the scoring for the hosts. They tacked on another late in stoppage time and the Lions will return home for a three-game set (one of them in the U.S. Open Cup) sore from Saturday’s 2-0 loss to CF Montreal.

Let’s take a look at how Orlando City’s players rated individually in their matchup with the Quebecois.

Starters

GK, Maxime Crépeau, 5.5 — With 25 shots by Montreal, one would’ve figured Crepeau was busy. Not really — he finished with three saves. A goalkeeper is almost never responsible for being scored on from the penalty spot, but Dagur Dan Thorallsson’s goal at the death is one Crepeau will want back, although in fairness it was perfectly placed. The Canadian goalkeeper finished with a 72.7% passing rate and was helped out after being rounded by Prince Owusu in a 1-v-1 opportunity that his teammates should never have allwoed for what would have been a goal if not for Iago’s sliding block to clear it off the line.

D, Adrián Marin, 5.5 — Marin got caught ball-watching in the 34th minute to allow a Wiki Carmona rocket that just went wide. Otherwise, he just didn’t impact the game one way or the other. Marin completed 87.8% of his passes and added one tackle, one block, and three clearances.

D, Robin Jansson, 5 — Jansson played his normal emergency role all game. Unfortunately, he got put off-balance in the first minute of added time in the second half and fell into the legs of Luca Petrasso, giving a penalty. It was a rough ending for the captain, but Orlando left the door open for Montreal and the hosts took it. The Swede also couldn’t close down Thorhallsson to prevent the second late Montreal goal. Jansson completed 78.7% of his passes, with one tackle, 10(!) clearances, and one block.

D, Iago, 6 — We saw both sides of Iago. He had a really nice pass in the 17th minute to free up Eduard Atuesta on goal but the Colombian missed the target to waste Orlando’s best chance of the game. The Brazilian’s biggest highlight moment was in the 76th minute, when Owusu dribbled past Crepeau for an open look at goal but Iago was there to clear it off the line. On the flip side, he also had a dangerous header defending a corner that almost created an own goal, instead hitting the left post. He got pulled wide in the first minute of the second half, allowing a dangerous shot by Owusu. On the offensive end, he got on the end of a corner but headed it right at Thomas Gillier. He was all over the place, which you can expect from a young player. He would’ve gotten a higher grade had the game finished scoreless because of his goal-line clearance and a couple of sparkling long balls that should have led to more. Alas. He finished with zero interceptions or tackles, three blocks, six clearances, and a 92.3% passing rate. He also picked up a yellow card in the sixth minute of added time in the second half preventing a counter on one of his attacking teammates’ many turnovers.

D, Griffin Dorsey, 5.5— While Orlando City was heavily weighted to the left side all game, when the Lions went down the right, it was through Dorsey. He led the break down that side multiple times but had trouble connecting. Dorsey finished with one tackle, three clearances, and one cross while passing at a 79% rate.

MF, Iván Angulo, 4.5 — When Angulo whiffed on a ball in the second minute which caused a Montreal counter, it was an indicator of the night to come. He was sloppy all game long and, by The Mane Land’s unofficial tally, turned the ball over eight times, with the majority of those coming in his own defensive half. It was an ugly night that looked a touch better when Tyrese Spicer departed, changing Angulo’s duties, but it didn’t wipe out a forgettable match. He finished with 90.2% passing, despite being loose with the ball. He was two out of six for successful dribbles and two out of seven in winning ground duels.

MF, Eduard Atuesta, 5.5 — A major part of the toothlessness of the Lions in the match was the midfield play. While Atuesta had a 95% passing rate, the only real impact he had was in the 17th minute, when Iago broke him free with a great pass. Atuesta made a well-timed run, but he ended up doing nothing with it when he sent his shot wide of goal. He had a turnover in the fourth minute to leave Montreal with a 3-on-2 break, leaving me to wonder if it was going to be one of those nights for him. Luckily no, but there was no real contribution either. He picked up a yellow card in the 62nd, was dispossessed once, and committed four fouls.

MF, Braian Ojeda, 5.5— Atuesta’s midfield partner also had trouble linking the play but contributed a touch more defensively. His sloppy handling in the 41st minute allowed Montreal to keep possession and created a corner. In the end, he finished with one tackle, one block, one clearance, and a 90% passing rate.

MF, Tyrese Spicer, 6— Unfortunately, most of Spicer’s contributions came on the defensive end this game because he could never get himself in the flow offensively. While he was 10-for-11 passing, he attempted two shots, one right at the goalkeeper and the other that missed so badly it almost went behind the net without hitting anything. He had just two touches in the opposition box. His biggest highlight was a tackle in the 23rd minute to end a dangerous Montreal possession. He was replaced in the 67th minute by Duncan McGuire. Spicer finished with a 91% passing success rate, led the team in tackles with four, and added two interceptions.

F, Martín Ojeda, 5 — This grade may be a bit harsh. However, when you are a Designated Player, you have to contribute, and Martin Ojeda was invisible at best. With 44 total passes, he was the one having to compensate for the lack of midfield control and it showed by his lack of offensive contribution. He had zero touches in the opposition box, which is not going to be a recipe for Orlando City success. Martin took one shot that was on target and passed at a 91% rate.

F, Justin Ellis, 6.5 (MotM)— Someone has to win Man of the Match. Ellis almost wins it by default as his overall play was the only positive thing all game. While his stats were mediocre, and there was not one moment you can pick to point to, he was the most talented when on the ball, tracked back to collect the ball occasionally, did more to link play than the midfield did, and just didn’t have a negative impact. He was replaced in the 80th by David Brekalo and finished with a 94% passing rate, was four-for-four on successful dribbles, and went five-for-six on ground duels won.

Substitutes

F, Duncan McGuire (67′), 5— McGuire started out playing out of position on the wing and while asked to pick up the offense, McGuire was unable to show anything of promise. Dorsey found him in the 88th minute with a cross, but McGuire turned down a quick shot and held the ball too long while deciding, and he ended up taking a low angle shot that had been there from the beginning that ended up harmless. He passed at a 75% rate and had three touches in the opposition box, turning those into a measly 0.05 expected goals. One of his touches on a promising attack was heavy and wasted the opportunity to get a shot off late in the game.

D, David Brekalo (80′), N/A — Brekalo came on for Ellis with a few minutes remaining, maybe a tactical choice to see out the draw. He completed all seven of his passes and had one clearance. He was not able to do anything to prevent Montreal’s two late goals, but he wasn’t the only one.

MF, Tiago (90′+5), N/A — Tiago entered right after the penalty to try to claw back a goal. Unfortunately, he whiffed on a 50/50 ball just moments before Thorhallsson ended up scoring the game’s second goal. He wasn’t on long enough to issue a grade, however.

D, Zakaria Taifi (90′+5), N/A — The best thing you can say about Taifi’s time is that he didn’t turn the ball over conceding a goal in the five minutes he was on the field.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in Orlando City’s loss to CF Montreal. 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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Lion Links

Lion Links: 10/5/26

Pride fall to San Diego Wave, Tyrese Spicer has successful foot surgery, USMNT beats Mexico, and more.

Published

12 hours ago

on

October 5, 2026

By

Image of Haley McCutcheon wearing a protective mask on her face playing against San Diego.
Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Justin Glatt

Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been busy at work covering high school soccer and flag football throughout the week. We only had the Pride in action over the weekend, but we’ve got plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Pride Fall to San Diego Wave at Home

The Orlando Pride fell 2-1 to the San Diego Wave on Friday at Inter.co Stadium in the latest in a series of games that they had to have. Orlando trailed 2-0 in the first half, conceding twice on defensive errors. In the second half, Barbra Banda pulled the Pride within one after she buried a penalty kick that she won herself. However, it wasn’t enough, as Orlando couldn’t find a late equalizer and San Diego took all three points. The Pride are off this weekend due to the international break but will return to action on Oct. 18 to face the Houston Dash on the road.

Tyrese Spicer Has Successful Foot Surgery

Orlando City forward Tyrese Spicer underwent successful foot surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his right foot, the club announced on Friday. Spicer had suffered the injury while away on international duty with Trinidad & Tobago in a Concacaf Nations League match against Haiti on Sept. 24. We at The Mane Land wish Spicer a speedy recovery, but his 2026 MLS season is likely over.

USMNT Shuts Out Mexico in Friendly

The U.S. Men’s National Team defeated Mexico 3-0 on Saturday at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, AZ. Orlando City forward Justin Ellis came off the bench to make his second USMNT appearance in the second half, playing 25 minutes. Former Lion Alex Freeman started and played 90 minutes. Julian Hall scored the opener in the first half for the Yanks. In the second half, Cavan Sullivan doubled the Americans’ lead to become the USMNT’s youngest scorer in team history just four days after Mathis Albert set that mark with his goal against Chile on Tuesday. Malik Tillman added the final goal as the Yanks have won three consecutive matches during the international break. The USMNT will close out this round of friendlies on Tuesday, taking on Canada at Allianz Field in Saint Paul, MN.

Other Lions on International Duty

Multiple Orlando City players represented their national teams over the weekend during the international break. Forward Marco Pasalic was on the bench but did not play for Croatia in a 7-0 defeat to England in a UEFA Nations League match on Saturday. Croatia will face Spain on Tuesday. Lions defender David Brekalo was on the bench but came on after halftime and played 45 minutes for Slovenia in a 2-1 defeat to Switzerland in the UEFA Nations League. Slovenia will take on Scotland on Tuesday. Midfielder Wilder Cartagena started and played 45 minutes for Peru, while former Lion Yoshimar Yotun was also in action in a 2-0 loss to Canada in a friendly. Peru will play Colombia on Tuesday in another friendly match.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando City forward Yutaro Tsukada, who is on loan at Rhode Island FC, notched another assist over the weekend in a 3-1 win against Brooklyn FC in the USL Championship.
  • Check out this piece on the Orlando City website featuring Head of Player Care Pedro Cox and Team Administrator Danny Quesada, who help welcome new players and their families, get acquainted with the club, ensure their needs are met, and thrive off the field.
  • The Lions were at Osceola Heritage Park on Saturday and spent time with the Orlando City U-12 squad during training.

That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday, and I’ll see you next time.

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Orlando City

Flashback Friday: Oct. 2, 2021 vs. D.C. United

Take a trip down memory lane and relive a game that took place five years ago today.

Published

3 days ago

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October 2, 2026

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Having suffered three losses in a row in all competitions, Orlando City’s recent results haven’t exactly made for pretty viewing. Fortunately for us, the Lions don’t return to action until Oct. 10, meaning that we have a brief reprieve from the torment that has been visited upon us for the last 270 minutes. Even more fortunately, we have the ability to reminisce on much happier footballing times in the City Beautiful, and all we have to do is hop into our time machine and rewind to four years ago.

The day was Oct. 2, 2021, and with the Lions sitting seventh in a jam-packed Eastern Conference, the men in purple badly needed points in order to keep pace in the race for the playoffs. The good guys were in the midst of a five-game winless streak, and the season was starting to get dangerously close to going off the rails. Enter D.C. United, a team that Orlando had already beaten earlier in the year but was in the thick of the fight for a postseason place right alongside the Lions.

Oscar Pareja ran out a lineup that featured Pedro Gallese in goal; a back line of Joao Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Ruan; Sebas Mendez and Junior Urso in defensive midfield; Nani, Mauricio Pereyra, and Benji Michel ahead of them; and Daryl Dike leading the line.

Things did not get off to a good start for Orlando. D.C. won the ball in OCSC’s half and got it forward quickly to Julian Gressel in the half-space on the right. He took a shot from distance that Gallese might not have been expecting, and it flew past the Peruvian to open the scoring after just six minutes had been played.

Orlando responded well, with Nani having a shot blocked and Dike putting a decent look over the bar in the 14th minute. Ruan nearly forced an own goal just a couple minutes later, but the corner kick that was awarded when a deflected ball skittered just wide of D.C.’s post proved to be the Lions’ salvation. Pereyra put a high, looping ball into the area that Urso headed toward goal, and Bill Hamid did well to get down and keep the ball out. The rebound was a juicy one though, and Jansson was well placed to pounce and thwack the ball high into the net to level the score with 17 minutes gone.

The rest of the first half was a mostly quiet affair, aside from the 35th minute, when OCSC probably should have gone ahead. Nani played a great ball that put Michel through on the left side of the box, but he curled his shot just wide of the far post after cutting back onto his right foot. The Lions dominated every statistical category but the scoreline at the break, with edges in possession (64.7%-35.3%), shots (7-4), shots on goal (2-1), and passing accuracy (87.1%-76.7%).

Emmanuel Mas came on for Moutinho at the half, and it’s possible that the switch unsettled Orlando slightly, because the team was on the back foot to start the second half thanks to a combination of some bad giveaways and difficulty dealing with the high tempo that D.C. brought out of the break. Paul Arriola put a shot just over the bar three minutes after the restart, and there were some hairy moments after that which forced Urso into a goal-line clearance to keep the game level.

The game evened out after the shaky start to the second half, but both teams found dangerous chances difficult to come by until the late stages. D.C. made a goal-line clearance of its own in the 88th minute. Silvester van der Water and Dike combined, and while Dike couldn’t get a shot off, he did find Tesho Akindele, only for Hamid to save the Canadian’s effort, which was cleared before van der Water could pounce and put it home.

Ultimately though, OCSC got the late goal it was looking for. The Lions won a corner in front of The Wall deep in stoppage time, and Chris Mueller whipped in a dangerous ball for Dike, who made a run across the near post. The big striker flicked his head at it, and the ball nestled into the side netting at the far post with Hamid helpless. Cue the bedlam in the purple palace.

That proved to be the last action of the game, as the Lions ran out 2-1 winners to put an end to the winless streak and pick up a valuable three points. Similar to halftime, Orlando finished the game with more shots (12-11), shots on target (4-2), corners (9-5), possession (64.8%-35.2%), and passing accuracy (86%-75.3%). Marcus Mitchell was on hand for Player Grades, and he gave the Man of the Match honors to Jansson with a grade of 7.5 out of 10. Other high performers included fellow center back Carlos, who also graded as a 7.5 out of 10, while Mendez and Dike both received a 7 out of 10.

The three points proved to be valuable ones, as the Lions shot from seventh all the way up to third in the Eastern Conference, although they would ultimately finish sixth and exit the playoffs in the first round after a road loss against Nashville SC.

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 10/2/26

Orlando Pride host the Wave, Orlando City’s kit room carousel, analyzing Mexico ahead of U.S. match, and more.

Published

3 days ago

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October 2, 2026

By

Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Happy Friday, Mane Landers! Sports are in full swing this time of year and we have plenty of soccer to look forward to over the next few days. Apart from working and enjoying the upcoming games, I plan on heading to the movie theater to check out the Primetime movie, as I’ve heard nothing but great things. Let’s get to the links!

Orlando Pride Take on San Diego Tonight

The Orlando Pride host the San Diego Wave tonight in a crucial home game as the season winds down. While the Pride are fighting to remain in the playoff hunt, the Wave will aim to close the gap with Gotham FC in the NWSL Shield race. Orlando enters this match on a short turnaround after traveling back from its 3-1 win against Bay FC on Sunday on the other side of the country. Interim head coach Yolanda Thomas spoke on the team’s preparations to deal with San Diego’s pressure and energy ahead of tonight’s home game.

Orlando City Director of Equipment Operations Heads to England

Charles Raycroft is leaving Orlando City as its director of equipment operations after 11 years with the club to become Liverpool’s Head of Kit Operations. He’s been with Orlando since 2016 and the club sent him off in style with a jersey and plenty of thanks for his time in the City Beautiful. With Raycroft heading across the pond, Chafik Tounzit was promoted to become the club’s new director of equipment operations. We wish both the best of luck in their new roles!

Analyzing Mexico Ahead of USMNT Match

The United States Men’s National Team will take on Mexico on Saturday in the first match between the two rivals since the World Cup. It will also be the first time Rafael Marquez will take on the U.S. as Mexico’s head coach rather than as a player. Many eyes will be on 17-year-old midfielder Gilberto Mora, who has already scored once this window, but Luis Romo and Erik Lira are other players the Yanks will need to keep from creating too many chances. MLS players Chucky Lozano and Germán Berterame are attacking options at Mexico’s disposal as well.

Naomi Girma Will Miss U.S. Friendlies

Center back Naomi Girma will be unavailable for the United States Women’s National Team’s matches against Spain this month after sustaining a muscle injury with Chelsea. The injury bug continues to bite Girma, who has yet to play for Chelsea this season. Hopefully she’ll be able to get back to full fitness before the USWNT’s match against El Salvador in the Concacaf W Championship quarterfinals on Nov. 27. Girma’s replacement on the current roster will be named at a later time, so we’ll see if this opens the door for former Pride defender Emily Sams to join the team after not being initially called up.

Free Kicks

  • The Orlando Pride moved up a spot to 11th in All For XI‘s NWSL power rankings after winning 3-1 against Bay FC.
  • American defender Jordyn Bugg signed a new contract with the Seattle Reign that will last through the 2030 season.
  • Ashley Sanchez was named NWSL Player of the Month for the second month in a row after scoring five goals in four games for the North Carolina Courage in September. She now has 20 goals this season, tying the league record.
  • Portugal beat Denmark 4-2 in the UEFA Nations League without Cristiano Ronaldo and Head Coach Jorge Jesus spoke on how one player is not bigger than the national team.
  • We’ll end today’s links with an incredible goal from Detroit City’s Kobe Hernandez-Foster deep in his own half. While it was scored on an empty net, it’s no small feat to get that much accuracy and power on a shot from that far out.

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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