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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Charlotte FC: Final Score 2-1 as Lions Fall to League’s Bottom Team

The Lions wasted an opportunity to get points against cellar-dwelling Charlotte at home.

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2 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Orlando City’s Champions League hangover was on full display in a poor performance against the league’s worst team (so far) at Exploria Stadium. The Lions (1-1-2, 5 points) conceded twice in the first half and fell 2-1 at home to Charlotte (1-3-0), a team that had scored once and conceded a league-high seven times in its first three matches. The second half was much better than the first, but the hole was too deep to dig out of by then.

Enzo Copetti and Kerwin Vargas put the visitors up 2-0 by halftime. Martin Ojeda pulled one back for the Lions and there were opportunities to equalize but the tying goal never materialized in a game in which Orlando had two would-be goals denied for being offside. It was Charlotte’s first win in the series after Orlando took both matches by identical 2-1 scores last year.

“Very proud of our players in this moment, where we lost three points at home with a match that we all assumed that we should win,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the game. “Seeing the two halves and the way the game turned, I have to say that I’m very proud of these players. It’s my responsibility to create a lineup and create a game plan, and that part I have to analyze what (happened) in the first half. I did not help the boys, but their effort in the second half was fantastic.”

Pareja’s lineup was a strong one, considering the team was playing its fifth match in 15 days and suffered through a physical and emotional battle against Tigres UANL just three nights ago. Pedro Gallese started in goal behind a back line of Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, and Michael Halliday. Cesar Araujo and Mauricio Pereyra played in central midfield behind an attacking line of Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, Ojeda, and Facundo Torres, with rookie Duncan McGuire up top. Ercan Kara picked up a knock late in the week according to a team spokesman and did not dress, with further evaluation needed to determine the extent of the injury.

Charlotte switched things up from its 3-0 loss to Atlanta. Karol Swiderski started on the bench despite the team having a regular match week. George Marks started in goal behind a back line of Harrison Afful, Bill Tuiloma, Adilson Malanda, and Jaylin Lindsey. The central midfield of captain Ashley Westwood and Derrick Jones was unchanged from last week, behind an attacking line of Vargas, Brandt Bronico, and McKinze Gaines, with Copetti up top in the 4-2-3-1.

The Lions were once again wasteful with opportunities in the first half and Charlotte topped its goal-scoring total from the first three matches of the year in less than half the game. Orlando City was incredibly sloppy at the back and was fortunate not to be punished even more than the two goals conceded.

The sloppiness started early with a turnover by Schlegel in the third minute that gave Charlotte an opportunity to break. Jansson did well to get back and deflect the shot back off the attacker and out for a goal kick.

A minute later, a good switch sent Halliday down the right in acres of space. The fullback’s cross was good and Ojeda knocked it in but he was offside on the play.

Charlotte had a couple of good chances to counter against the sloppy Lions over the next few minutes but couldn’t do much more than put a weak Vargas header out in front for Gallese to pick up.

Orlando’s first shot of the game came in the eighth minute when Torres was sent down the left side. The Young Designated Player smashed a shot toward the far post but Charlotte goalkeeper Marks stuck out a hand and made the save.

Ojeda tried a shot from outside the area in the ninth minute but it was deflected out for a corner. On the ensuing corner kick, Jansson had a free header but hit it just over the bar.

Charlotte switched the ball right to left in the 16th minute to free up Vargas for a shot but he missed wide of the right post. The Lions immediately turned over the ball in their own third and were fortunate that a heavy touch sent the ball back out for a goal kick rather than leading to a dangerous shot.

Orlando City had a good spell over the next few minutes, with McGuire getting into the box in the 18th minute. He fired a shot that took a slight deflection, which took some of the steam off of it and helped Marks make the save. Two minutes later, Thorhallsson was loose down the middle and had options in the box. He chose to shoot instead and sent it just over the bar.

A Schlegel mistake in the 25th minute gave Charlotte a transition opportunity but Gallese made a huge stop on Gaines’ shot to keep it scoreless.

That didn’t last long. A minute later the Lions were beaten over the top on a good long ball from Lindsey to Copetti, who slipped the ball past Gallese to make it 1-0 with his second goal of the season. Charlotte actually had two players who burned the back line, as Jansson and Santos both got torched.

“We need to get better,” Pareja said of the play by the defense. “Those plays obviously show us that we have a lot of work to do defensively, especially defending our crosses in.”

Orlando had a chance to pull that goal right back, with Torres bombing forward on a 2-v-1 break. The Uruguayan slowed as he was having trouble controlling the ball and he was bowled over from behind by Afful, who picked up a yellow card. However, the transition chance was gone and Ojeda smashed the ensuing free kick off a defender after taking a pass from Pereyra.

The switches to Halliday were open the entire first half and he again got forward in the 34th minute, sending a ball into the box that came off a defender and forced Marks to stop it. Three minutes later, Charlotte doubled its lead.

A switch to Vargas on the left beat Halliday and the Charlotte attacker fired a shot that deflected inside Gallese’s post off the defense, making it 2-0.

Neither team fashioned another good chance over the final minutes of the half and Charlotte took its shocking two-goal lead into the break.

Charlotte held a slim advantage in possession (50.6%-49.4%) at the break and passed more accurately as well (81.7%-78.5%). Orlando City had more shots (8-7) but the visitors put more on target (4-3). Each team earned one corner kick.

“We started the game off really strong. We were making the right decisions,” Santos said. “The game was going our way, according to our plan. And then once we hit around the 15-minute mark, they started to really put us in danger on the counter attack, primarily. And from that point on, we really just got caught out and then they punished us as a result of that.”

“In the first half we tried to congest the middle. We needed some solidarity there and just tried to use the spaces to control (the game), but things didn’t work that way,” Pareja said. “Things worked the other way. There was more space for them. The connections between all the defenders and the midfielders was bigger than we thought it was, or could be, in the game, and the second half we fixed it.”

Pareja sent on Kyle Smith and Ivan Angulo for Santos and Thorhallsson to start the second half and Orlando won a couple of early corners but didn’t do anything with them. Torres had a chance on the recycle of the second one but waited too long to shoot and had it poked away.

Things almost got worse for Orlando in the 50th minute. Gallese punched away a corner kick cross but it only reached the top of the box. Afful collected it there and fired a shot off the right post that nearly made it 3-0.

Angulo cut across the top of the box but kept it for himself and sent a weak shot dribbling wide of left post in the 54th minute. A minute later, Jansson won a ball in the air and no one pressed him so he came forward and smashed a shot but got under it, sending it into the upper deck.

The Lions finally got on the board in the 56th minute. Torres unlocked the defense with a pass in behind, and McGuire did well to get into the box on the left. The rookie sent a shot that Marks stopped. The ball came back to McGuire and the rookie squared it out of traffic to Ojeda, who fired into an empty net to make it 2-1.

“It was a play that Facu had started and hit up to Duncan behind the center backs,” Ojeda said. “Duncan was one on one with the goalkeeper, like it has to be with a forward, and it was initially saved and then Duncan was able to lay the ball off for me. Thankfully I was able to score. So, happy for the goal but we’re hurting that we weren’t able to get the victory tonight. But, we continue on.”

Orlando’s energy picked up with the goal and it seemed the Lions would go on to get an equalizer but it somehow never materialized. Torres sent a cross in for Ojeda in the 62nd minute. The Designated Player took his shot on the volley but got under it and lofted it out of play.

In the 68th minute, Ramiro Enrique nearly scored just a minute after subbing on, sending a header just inches over the bar from a good Torres cross. Moments later, substitute Gaston Gonzalez sent a ball across the face of goal but none of his teammates could get the touch needed to send it home.

In the 79th minute, Enrique was able to chip Marks and put the ball in the net but the flag came up and the call was confirmed by the video assistant referee for the second time in the match.

Ojeda smashed a ball that was headed under the bar in the 82nd but Marks got a hand to it to keep it out. Three minutes later, substitute Jack Lynn had a golden opportunity when he got down the right but his near-post attempt was at a comfortable height for Marks to save.

The final chance for City to tie the match was a good one. Torres sent a good ball into the area for Ojeda in stoppage time but he couldn’t make good contact at the back post and the ball skipped wide on what could have been the equalizing play. Ojeda finished the night with a game-high seven shot attempts, putting two on frame.

Orlando turned around the stat sheet in the second half, even if the Lions couldn’t turn around the scoreline. They finished with more possession (55.4%-44.6%), passing accuracy (80.8%-77.1%), shots (19-8), and shots on target (7-4), not allowing anything more than Afful’s shot off the post shortly after the restart.

“I have to move forward Once again, I take that responsibility. I didn’t like that first half — very unorganized and I think I didn’t (coach) well that half,” Pareja said.

The Lions can get some rest now with the schedule settling down a bit, but will need to make up some points for the ones dropped tonight. That won’t be easy with several international absences next Saturday at Philadelphia.

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Orlando City

Orlando City Showing Signs of Adjusting to Eduard Atuesta’s Absence

The Lions have looked much better on offense the last two games, and there’s a couple of reasons why.

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2 days ago

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May 16, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Much has been made of Orlando City’s difficulties in creating chances and scoring goals when Eduard Atuesta has been unavailable due to injury. It’s not hard to understand why either. The Colombian was unavailable for three of Orlando’s four scoreless draws this year, and he only played nine minutes as a substitute in the stalemate against the New York Red Bulls on April 12.

When he was healthy and got the start against Atlanta United two games later, the Lions won 3-0 and he created the most chances of anyone in the game with three. Orlando then promptly reverted to being offensively stunted in the following game against the Chicago Fire, and was only able to manage its fourth scoreless draw of the year, despite playing over a half the game with a man advantage.

There certainly seemed to be plenty of evidence pointing towards Atuesta being the missing cog in Orlando City’s offense. While he only has two assists in eight games, he does a ton of work in linking the defense to the attack and is great at finding attacking players in dangerous areas, as evidenced by his 17 key passes. In the 0-0 draws with the Philadelphia Union, CF Montreal, and the Fire, Orlando just didn’t look right without him, although the Red Bulls game was a much better performance that was ultimately derailed by Rodrigo Schlegel’s sending off.

While he hasn’t played in either of Orlando’s last two league matches, a 3-3 draw against the New England Revolution, and a 3-1 win against Charlotte FC, the offense clearly hasn’t had any problem creating chances. If anything, the Lions should have scored more goals if not for a couple instances of less-than-crisp finishing in each match.

So, why the sudden change?

Well for one thing, the Designated Players are firing on all cylinders again. Martin Ojeda scored a hat trick against New England, and he and Luis Muriel scored Orlando’s first two goals against Charlotte. Ojeda didn’t start either of the two games against Atlanta and Chicago because he was dealing with a minor injury, but now that it’s in the rearview mirror, he’s been a man possessed. Muriel probably should have had at least one goal of his own against the Revs but seemed oddly reluctant to shoot, although he still completed three dribbles and delivered three key passes. The Charlotte game was then his turn to come out of the gate swinging, as he narrowly had a goal ruled out for offside just two minutes in, before hammering a venomous shot from distance just six minutes later that gave Kristijan Kahlina all sorts of trouble and opened the scoring.

It isn’t just getting contributions from the big guns though, because we need to acknowledge the play of rookie Joran Gerbet in these last two games. He’s the man who’s been asked to fill in for Atuesta next to Cesar Araujo, and he’s getting more and more comfortable in that role. Against the Revs he had an interception, a key pass and an assist, and completed a long ball and a through ball while recording a passing accuracy of 86.5%. Against Charlotte, he recorded an interception, three clearances, a completed dribble, and two successful long balls, and he had an outstanding passing accuracy of 98%. They weren’t all simply backwards or sideways passes either. There were plenty of times when he progressed the ball upfield to an attacking player and helped keep the Lions moving forward, and that’s exactly what you want out of the guy playing that position.

He still has a way to go before reaching Atuesta’s level, but that’s to be expected for a guy that’s playing the first professional season of his career. What’s most important is that he’s getting more comfortable, contributing, and proving that he can be a legitimate option to rotate into the starting XI when Atuesta is unavailable or when fixture congestion dictates changes to the lineup.

It’s worth mentioning the caveat that the last two games haven’t been against the strongest opposition the league has to offer. The Revs were on a four-game winning streak before playing Orlando, but three of those four wins were against weak or shaky teams in Atlanta, Toronto FC, and Charlotte, while the fourth team (NYCFC) has been difficult to get a read on. I’m not saying the Revs are a paper tiger, but it’s tough to know how good they really are despite a good run of recent form. Then you have Charlotte, which was above the playoff line but also on a three-game losing streak coming into the match that has now been convincingly extended to four.

At the end of the day, you can only beat who’s in front of you, but I’d encourage us all to not get too carried away until we see the same results against sterner opposition. For better or worse, that’s exactly what we’ll get in the Lions’ next three matches, which will be against a capable, albeit flawed, Inter Miami side on the road, at home in the U.S. Open Cup against a Nashville SC team that’s fourth in the East, and at home against the Portland Timbers, who are currently fourth in the West.

Ultimately, we can only judge this team on what we’ve seen from it, and over the last two games we’ve seen a side that’s had no trouble creating chances. Despite the continued absence of the important Atuesta, the Lions are adjusting thanks to contributions from their heavy hitters and the improving play of the rookie Gerbet. Only time will tell if those improvements are sustainable, but for now its a hell of a lot of fun to enjoy.

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Lion Links: 5/16/25

Orlando City players make MLS Team of the Matchday, Luis Muriel focused, Orlando Pride plays tonight, and more.

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2 days ago

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May 16, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Happy Friday! I’ve had a pretty good week so far and am looking forward to three straight days of Orlando soccer. The Orlando Pride will get us started tonight and then we have Orlando City B on Saturday before Orlando City plays on Sunday. It should be a fun next few days, and hopefully one filled with celebrations too. Let’s dive into today’s links!

Lions Make MLS Team of the Matchday

There’s plenty of purple in the latest MLS Team of the Matchday following Orlando City’s 3-1 win over Charlotte FC. Martin Ojeda and David Brekalo were both selected, while Oscar Pareja was chosen as the top coach from the midweek slate. Ojeda’s strike in the first half is also up for Goal of the Matchday as his strong run of form continues. The only outfield player on this Team of the Matchday that didn’t score is Brekalo, who had two assists, so it’s nice to see him receive deserved recognition for an excellent performance that included a great setup on Orlando’s third goal. Pareja has the Lions on an 11-game unbeaten streak across all competitions and is managing things well so far during this busy May.

Luis Muriel Staying Focused in Sophomore Season

With five goals so far this season, Orlando City forward Luis Muriel has already mirrored his scoring total from all of last season. Staying mentally prepared has been key for the 34-year-old in his second year with Orlando, and he spoke about what’s changed for him after not quite reaching expectations in his first year.

“Coming to a league like this isn’t easy. A lot of times from the outside, you aren’t able to measure up or really see what the league is. Sometimes you can underestimate things, thinking it’s easy,” Muriel said. “That leads you to take things on in a different way, the work, the matches.

“When you go into ‘MLS Mode’ you realize how good the league is, how competitive it is, how demanding the league is to be able to do things well. That’s when things start to flow, to go well. I think that’s the difference between this year and last.”

He’s finding his footing in the league now and was a force to be reckoned with against Charlotte on Wednesday. Muriel is aware that the Lions will need him to be at his best when they travel to take on Inter Miami on Sunday for an important rivalry clash.

Diving Into Justin Ellis’s Ascent

Victor Olorunfemi of Top Drawer Soccer gave a great profile on Orlando City B forward Justin Ellis and his growth with the club. Ellis, who just celebrated his 18th birthday on Wednesday with his MLS debut, is having a great year after a solid season with OCB last year. The high school senior was the top scorer at this year’s Generation Adidas Cup with six goals to help Orlando’s U-18 team win the tournament. He can create chances just as well as he can convert them and is quick to give credit to the coaches and staff that have helped him develop. The U.S. youth pool is deep, but Ellis could be a name to keep an eye out for ahead of the U-20 World Cup in September.

Orlando Pride Match Headlines NWSL Weekend

The Orlando Pride’s match tonight against the Kansas City Current is the premier matchup this week in the NWSL. While I wouldn’t call it a rivalry just yet, these two teams had great games last year. The Current are still out for revenge after Orlando beat them while shorthanded last summer and won again in the NWSL playoffs in Orlando before winning the NWSL Championship in Kansas City. First place in the league is on the line and it should be a thrilling match featuring the league’s top two defenses and attacking threats like Barbra Banda, Temwa Chawinga, Marta, and Debinha.

NWSL Contenders and Underperformers

We’re about a third of the way into the NWSL season and ESPN‘s Jeff Kassouf dove into how each team is meeting its expectations so far. Despite their stumbles in recent weeks, the Pride are near the top of the table and have plenty of time to get things firing on all cylinders. Two of the California teams are enjoying surprising success so far, with the San Diego Wave up in fourth while Angel City FC is in fifth and could become a real contender once Alexander Straus takes over as head coach. NJ/NY Gotham FC and the North Carolina Courage are sleeping giants of sorts, so it will be interesting to see when they start climbing up the table.

Free Kicks

  • You’ll need a paid subscription for the full details, but Orlando City right back Alex Freeman continues to impress this season. Freeman is finding success in a way different from his father Antonio Freeman, who led the NFL in receiving yards for the Green Bay Packers in 1998.
  • This year’s MLS pre-match jerseys to celebrate Pride month are out and they’re a vibrant and funky design.

Love lifts us up 💜The new 2025 Pride Pre-Match Jerseys are here!🛒 orlsoccer.co/fbpri

— Orlando City SC (@orlandocitysc.com) 2025-05-15T18:56:08.764Z
  • Esther Gonzalez leads the NWSL with seven goals this season and has agreed to a contract extension with Gotham FC that will last through 2027.
  • FIFA representatives, including FA Chair Debbie Hewitt and UEFA President Alexander Ceferin, walked out of FIFA’s annual congress in protest of FIFA President Gianni Infantino arriving three hours late. Infantino has spent this week in the Middle East visiting leaders in Saudi Arabia and Qatar with Donald Trump.
  • FC Barcelona officially won this year’s La Liga title after a 2-0 win over Espanyol. Phenom Lamine Yamal scored a sensational goal in the match, which is fitting considering how crucial he was to Barcelona winning the league this year.
  • Predictable names like Luis Enrique and Antonio Conte are on the list of top European coaches this year, but this article also shines a light on coaches who navigated tough waters in small boats. Alexander Blessin has St. Pauli on the verge of survival in the Bundesliga and Filippo Inzaghi improved Pisa by 30 points in Serie B to secure promotion.

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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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Inter Miami: Three Keys to Victory

What do the Lions need to do to secure a victory in Sunday’s edition of Tropic Thunder?

Published

3 days ago

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May 15, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City / Mark Thor

The first Tropic Thunder match of the season is here. As I recently said on The Mane Land PawedCast, I am both looking forward to and dreading this match. I think that is an appropriate feeling. Orlando City is in the midst of a congested May schedule, but every match matters.

Inter Miami tops my list of hated teams at this point. As such, I very much want the Lions to win and for Florida to be purple. What does Orlando City need to do to earn all three points on the road against their in-state rivals?

Pocket Messi

Orlando City must keep Lionel Messi from having too big of an impact on the match. There are plenty of other players that the defense will need to worry about, and I’ll get to them. What I’m looking for is a frustrated Messi — Messi that feels he should be getting calls on the lightest of touches but is not.

The pair of players that I’m expecting to keep an eye on Messi are Cesar Araujo and Rodrigo Schlegel. The lion’s share of that burden will fall to Araujo. I want him to be hounding Messi every time he gets the ball. If Messi is able to get past Araujo, I want Schlegel to be right in his face. We’re all sick of MLS and Apple TV putting his smug mug in our faces at every opportunity. It’s time for two of Orlando’s defenders to take the shine off of Messi.

Deal with the Rest

Assuming Araujo can limit Messi, Orlando City still has to deal with Miami’s talented attacking players not named Messi. Miami and Orlando entered Wednesday night’s game with the same number of goals scored (21) and allowed (15) this season, although the Herons conceded more at San Jose (3) than the Lions (1) did at home against Charlotte. Each scored three times on Wednesday. However, the memory of the last time the Lions faced Miami at Chase Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale is a 5-0 loss. That isn’t something we want to see again.

Theoretically, no match is more important than another, although an argument could be made that Tropic Thunder is no mere match. I fully expect a starting back line of Alex Freeman, Schlegel, Robin Jansson, and David Brekalo in front of Pedro Gallese to stop Miami’s attack. A clean sheet is the objective.

Alex vs. Alba

As you can tell, this is a very defensive heavy Three Keys, but given what happened in this fixture last year, I don’t think it’s out of line. Alex Freeman has been good this season. He has secured the starting spot at right back and seems unlikely to give it back. One of the things he is good at is getting into the attack with Marco Pasalic. That isn’t what I’m looking for from him this weekend.

Miami’s Jordi Alba is a dangerous player that Freeman will be expected to help contain. Alba has five assists, seven successful crosses, and 13 key passes so far this season. If Freeman is still getting up the pitch to assist in the attack, he will need to make sure he isn’t allowing Alba free rein to get behind him and serve as a provider in Orlando’s half of the field.

That is what I will be looking for Sunday night. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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