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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. FC Cincinnati: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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1 year ago

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Orlando City continued the 2023 MLS Regular Season campaign with a 0-0 draw against visiting FC Cincinnati. Orlando City rolled out a heavily rotated squad for the match against the Orange and Blue ahead of the first leg of the club’s Concacaf Champions League match-up Tuesday at Tigres. Let’s take a look at how each Lion performed individually in week two.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 7.5 (MotM) — Gallese made four saves to earn his second clean sheet of the season and to help salvage one point at home. Facing a trio of dangerous attackers, Gallese did well to save four shots on the night in a myriad of different ways. His best save of the night came in the 29th minute on a Luciano Acosta free kick from just outside the box. He was successful on 80.8% of his passing attempts, including six long balls. On a night when there was very little help on the offensive side of the pitch and the visitors controlled the possession for a majority of the match, El Pulpo came up big when the club needed him most.

D, Kyle Smith, 6 — Smith was inserted into the starting XI at left center back for the first half as Oscar Pareja played a three-man back line for the opening 45 minutes. He then played fullback when Robin Jansson came on to start the second half, departing when Luca Petrasso was brought on as the final substitute of the night for OCSC. Turning in a performance that one has come to expect from Smith isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but there were several times when Smith found himself beaten down the sideline. To his credit, he was often able to recover, but he did get burned badly by Luciano Acosta in the 54th minute and luckily watched the shot go wide. Smith passed at 82.7%, was accurate with two of three long balls, and was responsible for one turnover. He did not attempt a shot but did provide one key pass. He also recorded three tackles, one interception, and two clearances and won 33% of his headed duels.

D, Abdi Salim, 5.5 — MLS SuperDraft pick Salim logged his first official MLS start, going the full 90 minutes. It was a bit of a mixed bag debut for the young draft pick who started with Smith and Rodrigo Schlegel as one of the three center backs. After the break, he played a more traditional center back role on the right, paired with Jansson. A little inconsistency is to be expected from a rookie when facing a team with the attacking options that FC Cincinnati has, and at times Salim seemed to be caught off guard and out of position by the pace and explosiveness of Cincinnati’s attackers. He recorded two tackles, a team-high three interceptions, and a clearance. He passed at 87% on the night, completed his lone long ball attempt, and was responsible for one turnover.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 6.5 — With an injured Antonio Carlos and a starting squad with heavy rotation, Schlegel functioned as the de facto leader of the back line in the first half and was mostly solid in his 45 minutes on the pitch. Passing at a 93% rate in the first half, Schlegel was a stead force and logged his second straight match without recording a foul. He did not record any defensive statistics but had one off-target shot attempt and completed one of his two long-ball attempts.

WB/D, Michael Halliday, 6 — Halliday logged his second straight start at right back (more of a wingback for the opening 45 minutes) and continued to show growth and development. He logged 71 minutes and his brightest moment was running onto a laser of a pass from Robin Jansson in the second half and then laying a pass off for Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, who put his shot attempt just above the bar for one of the best scoring chances of the night. At times, Halliday was caught up field and out of position, which is part of playing wingback — especially against a good transition team like Cincinnati — but he looked more comfortable than last week. Halliday logged one interception and committed one foul while passing at an 83% clip. He did not record an accurate cross on one attempt and was inaccurate with his one long ball. He finished with a team-high four tackles, an interception, and two clearances.

MF, Wilder Cartagena, 5.5 — It wasn’t a perfect night for the defensive midfielder who was inserted into the starting lineup to provide rotation and rest for Ceasar Arajuo. While Cartagena passed at a decent 88% on the night, going 0/1 on crosses and 1/2 on long balls. He had a few too many careless giveaways or simply inaccurate passes which prevented the Lions from breaking out of their own end. He was booked for a questionable yellow in the 28th minute and was successful on two of his four tackle attempts. Cartagena also recorded one interception and logged two clearances.

MF, Mauricio Pereyra, 5 — The Orlando City captain logged his 100th competitive match in purple across all competitions, but the century mark match proved to be one of Pereyra’s shakier games in recent memory. The Uruguayan passed at an abysmal 74% success rate (his lowest percentage since Aug. 13. of last season against the New York Red Bulls). He recorded no key passes and was 0/1 on crosses and 3/5 on long balls. He had two shot attempts on the night, which were both blocked, including a poor attempt on a dangerous free kick chance in the 14th minute, and was only successful on one of his five tackle attempts. Ultimately, this will be a match to forget for a handful of reasons and Pereyra’s first-half effort will be among that list. The captain was subbed off at halftime for Araujo.

WB/MF, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson, 6 — Another Lion logging his first official MLS start, Dagur Dan went the distance for Orlando City in the midfield, playing out on the left and switching spots with Gaston Gonzalez often. The Icelandic midfielder passed at an 86% success rate, was inaccurate on his one cross attempt but completed his only long ball. Thorhallsson was dispossessed twice and could have done better on his one shot attempt, which sailed over the bar. He drew one foul, recorded two successful dribbles, and logged two tackles.

MF, Gaston Gonzalez, 5.5— Orlando City fans were able to see Gonzalez in action for the first time as the MLS U22 Initiative signing from last season has finally rehabbed from an ACL tear. Any fitness concerns should be squelched as Gonzalez went the full 90 for Orlando City in his debut match. He connected on 19 of his 21 passing attempts for a 90% success rate, however, he was just 1/3 on crosses and did not complete his only long ball. Gonzalez committed three fouls, and won Orlando City one corner but otherwise did not log too many other meaningful stats in his inaugural match, although he had one clearance defensively. There were attempts at breaking down opponents 1-v-1, but it appears for now Gonzalez needs more time to develop chemistry with his teammates and more game time to get back to his former self, as he attempted no shots, provided no key passes, was dispossessed once, and had three unstable touches.

MF, Facundo Torres, 5.5 — It felt like watching the game live that for most of the first half, Orlando City could have done a better job at trying to find Torres in space. The Young Designated Player — and the offense as a whole — struggled for the second straight game. Torres only logged one shot, which was off target, and only recorded 47 total touches for the match. He passed at a 78.6% rate on 28 attempts, providing two key passes and went 1/2 on crosses and completede his only long ball. Torres was dispossessed once, had one unstable touch, and completed three of five total attempted dribbles, but again there seemed to be some disconnect in the attacking third. The attack needs work and Orlando City needs Torres to be a catalyst to get in back in gear. Defensively, Torres supplied one interception and one clearance.

F, Ercan Kara, 4.5 — Stop me if you have heard this one before, but Kara needs accurate service to be the most effective version of himself, and for the second match in a row Orlando City struggled to get the striker involved. Some of that is a credit to 6-foot-4 center back Matt Miazga’s play for FC Cincinnati. Kara recorded only 17 touches in the match, showing how starved for service the Lions’ center forward was on the night. His isolation limited him to 46.2% passing as he struggled to find teammates in traffic. He won two aerials but recorded no shots or key passes in 65 minutes of gameplay before being subbed off for Ivan Angulo. Defensively, he contributed a blocked shot.

Substitutes

D, Robin Jansson (46’), 6 — Coming out of the halftime break, Jansson replaced Schlegel as the team transitioned to a more traditional four-man back line. After a shaky debut match last week, Jansson seemed more settled and had the best long ball out of any player on the pitch when he sprung Halliday down the right side of the field, ultimately resulting in an open look for Dagur Dan. He passed at a 79% success rate, completed three of six long balls, won one aerial duel, and did not record a tackle but did log a vital blocked shot near the end of the match and finished with two clearances.

MF, Cesar Araujo (46’), 6.5 — Out of the starting lineup presumably to remain fresher for the upcoming trip to Mexico, Araujo entered the match after the break and demonstrated much better form than in the season opener. Araujo passed at a 91% clip in the second half and was successful on both of his attempted long balls and his one through ball. Defensively, Araujo drew two fouls on Cincinnati, recorded one successful tackle, and added an interception. Towards the end of the match, Araujo could be found drifting more into the attacking third of the match where he was credited with one shot attempt and had the Lions’ only shot on target of the evening, albeit a weak dribbler that offered no trouble to Roman Celentano. While the offense figures out that the ball is supposed to go in the back of the net, it will be imperative that Araujo continues to lock down force in the defensive midfield.

MF, Martín Ojeda (60’), 5.5 — Ojeda entered the game in the 60th minute to relieve Torres and recorded one shot in the 79th minute which was a scorcher that missed the target high and left from outside the 18 as he tried to catch Celentano off his line. He was accurate on 85.7% of his 21 passing attempts and his only long ball but his one cross attempt did not find the target. He contributed one interception. Due to player rotation in this match, very little was accomplished in terms of gaining experience and building chemistry between the three Designated Players as Ojeda replaced Torres, and Kara was subbed off five minutes after Ojeda entered the field.

MF, Ivan Angulo (65’), 5.5 — Angulo replaced Kara in the 65th minute and was largely ineffective for the final 25 minutes of the match, He was dispossessed twice, completed 86% of his passes, and did not record a shot attempt. He finished with one tackle and just 15 total touches.

D, Luca Petrasso (71’), 6 — Petrasso came into the match in the 71st minute for Halliday, which sent Kyle Smith to the right side of the pitch. There was some early aggression and concentrated efforts to get into the attacking third from Petrasso but he failed on a few occasions to link up with teammates or to send the ball into the box. He passed at 85.7%, but his only cross attempt was inaccurate. He did not record a tackle, interception, or shot attempt.

That’s how I saw the individual performances in the first draw of the season for the Lions. Let me know your thoughts in the comments and be sure to vote for your Man of the Match below.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Rodrigo Schlegel11
Robin Jansson17
Dagur Dan Thorhallsson1
Pedro Gallese139
Cesar Araujo1
Someone Else (tell us in the comments)1

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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Philadelphia Union: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More

The Lions look to right the ship on the road in Philadelphia.

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3 hours ago

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May 11, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Welcome to your match thread for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City SC (2-5-3, 9 points) and the Philadelphia Union (3-2-5, 14 points) at Subaru Park (7:30 p.m., MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+). This is the first of two regular-season meeting between the Eastern Conference clubs in 2024, with the Union scheduled to make the return trip to Orlando on Oct. 2.

Here’s what you need to know ahead of the match.

History

Orlando City is 5-7-6 in the 18 MLS meetings with the Union since the club joined Major League Soccer in 2015, and 6-8-6 in all competitions. The Lions are 3-5-1 against the Union on the road in league play and 3-6-1 away against Philadelphia in all competitions.

The teams last met on June 21, 2023 in Orlando, with the Lions blowing a two-goal lead in a controversial 2-2 draw. Duncan McGuire and Martin Ojeda scored early in each half, only to see Jack McGlynn score on a cross into the box that missed everyone and got past Mason Stajduhar at the far post, followed by a rocket shot by Jose Martinez from distance. Ivan Angulo’s would-be game winner by Ivan Angulao was chalked off after a questionable foul call in the buildup against Ercan Kara.

The teams met in Philadelphia most recently on March 25, 2023 with the Lions jumping out to a 2-0 lead on goals by Angulo and Ojeda. Former Lion Andres Perea pulled one back but the Lions held on for a 2-1 road win. The victory snapped Philadelphia’s incredible 24-match home unbeaten streak.

The Union put the Lions to the sword in the last meeting of 2022, a dominant 5-1 win by Philadelphia on Sept. 10 of that year. That was Orlando’s first match since winning the U.S. Open Cup title three days earlier. Joao Moutinho’s own goal started the scoring and the Union got goals from Mikael Uhre, Daniel Gazdag (penalty), Alejandro Bedoya, and Jack Elliott. Perea, who was then still a Lion, scored for Orlando but the team was trailing by 4-0 at the time.

The Eastern Conference foes met on July 23, 2022 at Exploria Stadium. Two controversial video review decisions went against Orlando that night and the Lions were wasteful with their chances in an evenly matched 1-0 Philadelphia win. Gazdag scored the game’s only goal off a set piece.

The teams also met in U.S. Open Cup play on May 10, 2022, with the Lions winning 2-1 at home. Kara and Perea hoisted Orlando to a 2-0 lead. Stuart Findlay pulled one back late, but the Lions saw it out and advanced.

On Sept. 19, 2021 the Union prevailed 3-1 at Subaru Park, largely due to a brace by Kacper Przybylko after he got away with what appeared a clear elbow to the face of Rodrigo Schlegel. Instead of being sent off and/or conceding a free kick to Orlando City, the Union scored on the ensuing play and went on to win the match. The teams met in Orlando on July 22, 2021 and the Lions got goals by Benji Michel and Perea on the team’s only two shots on target to win 2-1. Przybylko, who had feasted on Orlando since arriving in Philadelphia, pulled one back for the visitors but the Lions hung on.

The teams faced each other in the group stage of the MLS is Back Tournament in 2020 in the only meeting to date that did not take place in either side’s home stadium. The game ended in a 1-1 draw after a Mauricio Pereyra goal canceled out a strike by Ilsinho. That draw allowed the Lions to win Group A in the competition and they went on to reach the final.

The Lions and Union tangled in what was then known as Talen Energy Stadium on July 7, 2019, with the teams drawing, 2-2. Dom Dwyer and Santiago Patino brought Orlando back from 1-0 down but Przybylko poached a goal in the 90th to capture a share of the points for the Union. That match was postponed by MLS on the night it was set to take place — a move that Orlando City fought against — and instead was played the next day.

The two teams had met just a few days earlier on July 3, ending in Orlando’s 3-1 home loss against the Union. Chris Mueller and Przybylko swapped goals in the first half before Robin Jansson was sent off just prior to the break. Afterwards, the 10-man Lions gave up two more goals — to Przybylko and Fafa Picault — and then went down another man with Sacha Kljestan seeing red.

The teams drew 2-2 in a wild finish on Sept. 1, 2018 in Orlando. Just when it looked like Picault had lifted the Union to victory with a strike in the 88th minute, Scott Sutter equalized in stoppage time to salvage a point for the Lions. Dwyer and Cory Burke also scored in that match. The Lions prevailed over the Union in Philadelphia on April 13, 2018 by a 2-0 score. Dwyer and Mueller provided the offense. Orlando and Philadelphia also met that season in U.S. Open Cup play, with the Union capturing a 1-0 home win back on July 18, 2018 on a goal by Bedoya.

The teams split their two matches in 2017, with the home side prevailing both times. The Lions won 2-1 at Orlando City Stadium on March 18. The rematch was an ugly 6-1 Philadelphia win in the season finale for both teams.

The Lions were 1-1-1 against Philadelphia in 2016. The team’s first road victory in the series came on Oct. 16, 2016, as the Lions roared, 2-0. The teams played to a 2-2 draw on May 25 in Orlando. Tranquillo Barnetta’s free kick gave Philly a 2-1 win.

Orlando drew 0-0 at home and lost on the road, 1-0 (on a penalty kick), against Philadelphia in 2015.

Overview

Orlando City enters tonight’s match looking to turn things around after two straight losses put a screeching halt to a four-game unbeaten run. The most recent of those was last Saturday’s 1-0 home loss to FC Cincinnati on a goal conceded in the opening half minute. From there, Cincinnati didn’t create a lot, but Orlando struggled to finish and fell at home.

Orlando is 1-2-1 on the road this season, but the draw and the win came in the Lions’ two most recent away matches at Montreal and D.C. United, respectively. One reason for that is that Orlando scored a total of five goals in those two matches, whereas the team has struggled to score for most of the season so far.

Philadelphia enters tonight also not quite living up to expectations, but at least the Union are currently above the playoff line — in eighth place, which would result in having to start with the play-in game if Philly stays where it is. The Union are just 1-2-1 at home so far this season — a far cry from their long home unbeaten streak the Lions snapped in their 2023 visit to Subaru Park.

coming off a weekend off following a 2-1 road loss at San Jose 11 days ago. The Union are 3-4-1 on the road in 2023, however, Philly had won three straight on the road and was unbeaten in four prior to visiting the Earthquakes. Only three Eastern Conference teams have scored more goals than Philadelphia’s 28, yet only three Eastern teams have conceded fewer than the 17 goals the Union have allowed. Philly enters on a four-match winless skid (0-2-2), which includes losses in the team’s last two home games against Western Conference opponents Seattle and Real Salt Lake.

Typically, the Union like to deploy in a 4-4-2 diamond formation under Jim Curtin. Gazdag is the key man as he can both score and turn provider for others. He leads the Union with six goals to go along with one assist in 2024. Carranza, who is Philly’s second-leading scorere, will miss the match due to yellow card accumulation, but Uhre is another danger man that Orlando City must always keep under wraps. Uhre is third among Union scorers with three goals on the season, and he has one assist as well. The surprise player for Philadelphia in 2024 has been Quinn Sullivan, who leads Philly with four assists on the year. Bedoya has chipped in three assists, and fullback Kai Wagner — always a threat with crosses and set pieces — also has three.

“Philadelphia, a very traditional model they have. They have changed a couple things here and there, but not many changes on the roster,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said ahead of the match. “What I see from Philadelphia is a very traditional team that plays very direct. They are trying to find the best version too. That’s what we see.” 

Orlando City will be without Rodrigo Schlegel (suspension), Ramiro Enrique (ankle), Rafael Santos (shoulder), and Homegrown defender Tahir Reid-Brown (thigh), while Dagur Dan Thorhallsson (concussion protocol) is listed as questionable.

Match Content

Projected Lineups:

Orlando City (4-2-3-1),

Goalkeeper: Pedro Gallese.

Defenders: Kyle Smith, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, Michael Halliday.

Defensive Midfielders: Cesar Araujo, Wilder Cartagena.

Attacking Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Facundo Torres, Martin Ojeda.

Forward: Duncan McGuire.

Philadelphia Union (4-4-2 diamond)

Goalkeeper: Oliver Semmle.

Defenders: Kai Wagner, Jack Elliott, Jakob Glesnes, Nathan Harriel.

Midfielders: Jose Martinez, Leon Flach, Daniel Gazdag, Alejandro Bedoya.

Forwards: Michael Uhre, Quinn Sullivan.

Referees:

REF: Timothy Ford.
AR1: Brian Dunn.
AR2: Ben Pilgrim.
4TH: Marcos DeOliveira.
VAR: Michael Radchuk.
AVAR: TJ Zablocki.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Subaru Park — Chester, PA.

TV/Streaming: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+.

Radio: Real Radio 104.1 FM (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish).

Twitter: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow along at @TheManeLand, as well as Orlando City’s official Twitter feed (@OrlandoCitySC).

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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Opinion

Resetting Expectations for Orlando City in 2024

What expectations are reasonable for Orlando City fans for the remainder of the 2024 MLS season?

Published

5 hours ago

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May 11, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

After another agonizing loss at home a week ago to FC Cincinnati, Orlando City finds itself near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings almost a third of the way through the regular season. For an organization that entered the 2024 Major League Soccer season with lofty expectations, the beginning of the season has fallen significantly short of preseason projections.

For the most part, the facts that supported those preseason projections still mainly hold true. Orlando brought back its core offensive and defensive pieces, made some specific and pointed acquisitions in an attempt to upgrade, and was still managed by a coach who had enjoyed unparalleled success at the helm for the club.

So with all those things holding true, the head scratching question at this point in the season is what has gone wrong? During the first five to six weeks of the season, Orlando had to balance the regular season and Concacaf Champions Cup. Those days are now long past and that excuse for poor on-field performances no longer holds water.

In years past, Orlando has demonstrated its ability to grow into the season and last year’s record-setting team didn’t find its form until after the Leagues Cup competition. Nonetheless, Orlando City fans have not seen a team stumble out of the gate this badly in recent years. It’s time to reset the expectations for the 2024 MLS season and look to see what the team would have to do to turn the season on its head.

In 2023, Orlando City put up a club-record 63 points by season’s end, but if we break down the numbers of the early season, we can see that it might not be time to press the panic button just yet. Through the first 10 matches of 2023, Orlando put up 14 points on a 4-4-2 record with a goal differential of zero. Orlando City currently sits on nine points through its first 10 matches with a 2-5-3 record and a -7 goal differential. On the surface, those numbers seem to be a stark contrast to one another, but when you take into account a five-goal drubbing at Inter Miami, the goal differential that the team is supporting this year is mainly dragged down by one forgettable outing.

Add in a short-handed loss in Atlanta earlier in March, when the team was banged up and missing Wilder Cartagena due to suspension, as well as a heartbreaking last-ditch collapse against Toronto FC two weeks ago, and the picture starts to look less bleak than just what the numbers would suggest. Still, good teams find ways to not drop points at home and to manage matches where there are pieces of the machine missing.

With 24 matches still on the schedule, there is time to climb the table, but with every dropped point or bad loss the clock ticks closer to midnight and the margin for error becomes smaller.

In 2023, Charlotte FC snuck into the playoff wild card position with 43 points on the season, and only 10 wins. It doesn’t seem wildly out of the imagination that Orlando could reach that level this year. Extrapolating the data going back to 2021, with the current MLS playoff qualifications, a team would need an average of 44 points to make the postseason. That equates to Orlando needing 35 points over its final 24 matches — or 1.45 points per match — to reach the wild card round.

A somewhat more lofty goal would be qualifying for the playoffs without the wild card. Again, going back to average the seventh-place spot in the East over the last three years, Orlando would need to reach 48 points this season to avoid a play-in game. That equates to 39 points over the final 24 matches, or 1.62 points per match. In 2023, Orlando managed 49 points over its final 24 matches of the year — that’s 2.04 points per match.

I am not projecting Orlando to go on that same massive (MLS best) type of run over the summer and fall portions of the season, but I do believe that when it comes to expectations on the season there is still hope to be had for Orlando qualifying for the playoffs. The more likely scenario would be for Orlando to end up in the wild card matchup, but with a few extra matches breaking Orlando’s way, it is not a stretch yet to consider the club could climb slightly higher. There is also still the Leagues Cup on the horizon, and regardless of one’s opinion on the competition, a deep, competitive run in that competition could give meaning to the Lions’ 10th anniversary season.

We can likely put to bed the hopes of competing for the Shield or the top spot in the East at this point in the season, given the number of teams above the Lions and the number of matches remaining. However, it is still far too early to give up on the season as a whole. Orlando was five minutes away from going undefeated in the month of April, and there are still meaningful and winnable games on the calendar ahead. My recalibrated expectation of the season is for Orlando to earn a wild card spot, and anything above that would be gravy as far as I am concerned.

What reset expectations do you have for the year? Let us know in the comments below and as always, Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City

Intelligence Report: Orlando City vs. Philadelphia Union

Get caught up with everything you need to know about the Philadelphia Union from someone who knows them best.

Published

1 day ago

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May 10, 2024

By

Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Orlando City is set to continue a difficult May schedule Saturday, and will try to avoid a three-game losing streak in the process. This week sees the Lions travel north to face the Philadelphia Union, which will be the first of three taking place in a span of eight days, with two of those on the road, forcing Orlando to shuttle back and forth across the country.

A date with the Union means I caught up with Joe Lister of the always excellent Philadelphia Soccer Now. As usual, Joe was very helpful in getting us caught up on what’s been happening with the Union, and I also answered some of his questions about OCSC, which you can find over at their place.

Run me through Philadelphia’s off-season transfer business. Are there any new names who have stood out?

Joe Lister: Philadelphia’s transfer business is nearly nonexistent. They sold a few guys, but didn’t really bring anyone notable in. The group that will be available against Orlando on Saturday is the same group that’s been around with the team for (generally) two or three years.

Quinn Sullivan, however, has been a relevation this season. His brother, Cavan, has obviously been in the news as of late. However, Quinn, 20, has been great for Philly. He’s got great pace down the side of the pitch and has a motor that doesn’t seem to quit. If he can perfect his final touch, he’ll make the Union a good bit of money.

It’s still quite early in the season, but its strange to see the Union not occupying their typical spot near the top of the East. Is there any concern among the fanbase, or are people largely happy with what they’ve seen so far?

JL: People are upset. This team, by Philly fans’ standards, sucks. The Eastern Conference is obviously super tough this year (Miami and RBNY are worth shoutouts), but Philadelphia just isn’t performing. They nearly lost three games in a row for the first time since 2017 with their draw against D.C. United. They were saved by a blast from Jack McGlynn that they didn’t necessarily deserve.

The Union are underwhelming. The front office has operated under the impression that the teams from 2020, 2021, and 2022 can still compete in MLS. The issue is that while the league has gotten better, the Union have just gotten worse.

The Union’s only two losses of the season have come at home. Is that simply down to playing two good teams in Real Salt Lake and the Seattle Sounders, or is there something else at play there?

JL: That’s just the team being in a funk. Again, this team is underperforming by Philadelphia’s standards. Losing at home is a true showcase of how far this team has fallen. I think the Union will be fine longterm — this is a playoff team, but nothing more than that.

Will any players be unavailable due to injury, suspension, etc.? What is your projected starting lineup and score prediction?

JL: Defender Olivier Mbaizo and goalkeeper Andre Blake were both out for last match with injuries. Blake’s been in-and-out all season, but I think the team has started to realize that backup Oliver Semmle is good enough that the three-time Goalkeeper of the Year doesn’t need to always be on the pitch. Julian Carranza is also suspended due to yellow card accumulation.

Lineup (4-4-2 diamond): Oliver Semmle; Kai Wagner, Jack Elliott, Jakob Glesnes, Nathan Harriel; Jose Martinez; Leon Flach, Alejandro Bedoya; Daniel Gazdag; Quinn Sullivan, Mikael Uhre.

I think this is a 2-2 draw. Based on where the Union are at right now, Orlando will get two first-half goals, the Union will pull back in the second half. Feels like a game where Daniel Gazdag should find the net at some point.

Thank you to Joe for the inside info on the Union. Vamos Orlando!

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