Orlando City vs. Philadelphia Union: Five Takeaways

Orlando City won a topsy-turvy and very nervy match on Wednesday night, giving away a two-goal lead but rallying to score a late winner and defeat Philadelphia 4-3. The Lions could have put the game to bed several times, but they clearly wanted kids to stay up extra late on a school night. Wins are wins, however, and earning three points is worth staying up all the way until the final whistle.

Here are my five takeaways from the match.

Ojeda Opened and Closed

Martín Ojeda probably could have scored five goals against the Union, but while he only scored two, the brace was enough to help get the win. Ojeda failed to score on two early breakaways but the third one was a charm, as he ran onto a Justin Ellis through ball and was subsequently fouled by Philadelphia goalkeeper Andrew Rick in the box, earning a penalty kick. The Argentine converted the penalty, giving Orlando City the early lead. Ojeda then had two decent chances to score midway through the second half but failed to convert either, and Philadelphia took that opportunity to score two of its own in rapid succession and tie the game. As the clock ticked toward stoppage time, Ojeda made a near-post run and headed Adrián Marin’s cross past Rick, restoring Orlando City’s lead for good and earning the Lions all three points.

Supersub Spicer Strikes Again

Our Five Takeaways from the previous game against CF Montréal noted that Tyrese Spicer generally performs better off the bench than as a starter, and wouldn’t you know it but the Trinidad & Tobago man came off the bench against the Union and made it four consecutive games with a goal contribution as a sub. Spicer led a three-on-one counterattack with Ojeda on his left and Duncan McGuire on his right, and drew in the defender just enough to open up space for McGuire, who took Spicer’s pass and converted it with a low driving shot to turn that three-on-one on the field into a score of 3-1 on the scoreboard. A dash of Spice was quite nice, as it has been in most of his appearances off the bench since joining Orlando City.

Couldn’t Control Cavan

Philadelphia had to make an early substitution, removing Jovan Lukic and bringing on young phenom Cavan Sullivan. The 16-year-old was electric against Orlando, creating five chances while scoring his first MLS goal and picking up an assist as well. The Lions could not contain him as he attacked down their left flank, and they were lucky that he did not pick up a second assist when Nathan Harriel’s shot beat Maxime Crépeau but was just a bit high and went off the crossbar. Neither David Brekalo or Marin could lock Sullivan down on the left side, and it was easy to see why Manchester City has high hopes for Sullivan in the future. Orlando City did just enough to hold him off and eke out the win, but Sullivan’s entrance changed the game for the Union as they outscored Orlando City 3-2 during his 46 minutes running Philadelphia’s offense.

D&D Played Their Roles Well

I do not play Dungeons and Dragons, but I am familiar with the role-playing game. And speaking of playing their roles, both Griffin Dorsey and Duncan McGuire fulfilled theirs on Wednesday. Dorsey got the start and constantly made aggressive runs up the right side, and could, and perhaps should, have scored two goals on the night. He “only” scored one, but it was a great instinctive play as he took the ball off of Tiago’s foot in traffic and roofed it past Rick to give Orlando City a 2-0 lead. Dorsey stretched the defense in a major way with how he played on the right side, and McGuire did the same when he came on for Ellis. McGuire was all gas during his appearance, scoring his first goal since mid-March and nearly creating a second with a great hustle play to block an attempted clearance from Rick. The D&D boys scored the two non-Ojeda goals and delivered max effort all game long, and if they can produce like this in future games, Orlando City may well be able to get this ship turned around.

Ellis Was On Point

He finished the game with nothing to show for it in the box score, but the Homegrown attacker had one his best games of the season against Philadelphia. Ellis was in complete command of the ball and constantly played dangerous balls to his teammates, giving the Orlando offense a dimension that it did not have early in the season. Ellis created two big chances and three chances total, and had Ojeda not been fouled in the box Ellis would have picked up his third assist, as it was his through ball that put Ojeda in on goal. Speaking of three, the Orlando City Development Academy product produced a moment of magic late in the first half, as he showed all the youthful confidence in the world by beating not one, not two, but three Philadelphia players off the dribble inside his own box (you might say he left them on Ellis Island), and just missed springing a breakaway with the long ball he attempted afterwards. Despite not racking up any goal contributions, Ellis was outstanding, looking completely comfortable running the offense while playing with and against MLS veterans, despite being only 18 years old (until today that is, when he turned 19).

Those are my takeaways from Orlando City’s “drunk OCB”-esque 4-3 victory over Philadelphia. Congratulations as well to Dorsey, who celebrated his goal with a demonstration that usually indicates a baby is on the way, which he confirmed after the game. The Lions do not have a long break, but at least they will play at home again Saturday night, when Atlanta United comes to Inter&Co Stadium in another matchup of teams currently outside of the playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.

Let us know your thoughts about the Philadelphia match in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!