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Orlando City vs. New England Revolution: Player Grades and Man of the Match

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5 years ago

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Orlando City went on the road to take on the New England Revolution and fell 2-1. Adam Buksa scored in the ninth minute, but Daryl Dike was able to equalize in the 18th minute. However, an own goal later in the first half and a missed penalty in the second half doomed the Lions as they lost their fourth straight match.

Let’s dive into how each Lion rated and who was our Man of the Match.

Starters

GK, Pedro Gallese, 5.5 — It was the first time Gallese didn’t record a save for Orlando since May of this year. The Revolution were only able to get one shot on target, but Gallese wasn’t able to stop a bouncing shot on the volley from Buksa in front of goal at point-blank range. On the Revolution’s second goal, a low cross from Tajon Buchanan was delivered quickly enough that Gallese couldn’t do much about it pinballing off Rodrigo Schlegel and into the goal. The Peruvian goalkeeper also rushed out of goal to cut off DeJuan Jones, but the left back made a nice pass to Buksa, who should’ve scored again but sent the ball into the stands. Gallese was successful on 17 of his 24 passes for a 71% completion rate and was accurate on eight of his 14 long balls.

D, Joao Moutinho, 6 — The left back had a tough assignment against Buchanan for most of the night. In the 35th minute, he was beaten by some fancy footwork from the skilled Canadian, who used the open space to whip in a low cross that bounced off of Schlegel and into the goal. Despite that, Moutinho ended up having a decent defensive performance, particularly late in the match with the Lions trailing as he tracked back to make crucial stops. Moutinho had a team-high five interceptions and also three tackles, a clearance, and a defensive block. His only cross of the night was also his only key pass as he whipped in a good ball to Andres Perea in the box, but the header was off target. Moutinho had two shots late in the match, not making good contact on one and attempting a bicycle kick late that looked good but was deflected. The 23-year-old also led the team with 79 touches and 51 passes, completing 40 of the latter for a 78% success rate as he often tried serving Benji Michel some long passes upfield to no avail.

D, Robin Jansson, 5.5 — The Swede wasn’t in a great position on Buksa’s goal, although that may be more of a testament of how pinpoint the cross was from Gustavo Bou on a counter than Jansson’s defensive ability. Jansson wasn’t able to get his head on that cross and couldn’t intercept Buchanan’s low ball into the box that wound up in the net. The center back had five clearances and a tackle in a fairly quiet outing. Jansson had 47 touches and 38 passes at a 92% completion rate as helped Orlando build out of the back at times. He was also shown a yellow card that will make him miss Wednesday’s match on the road against Nashville SC. Jansson has played every minute in Orlando’s last 11 games so the thin silver lining here is that he will get some rest before the home stretch.

D, Rodrigo Schlegel, 5.5 — Just a week after being elbowed by Kacper Przybylko, Schlegel had to deal with another physical center forward in Buksa. Their battle for positioning in the box included plenty of shoving from Buksa and led to Schlegel’s own goal as a low cross by Buchanan pinged off of him and into the net. Schlegel led the team with six clearances and also had four interceptions, two tackles, and two defensive blocks to help limit the Revs’ offense. The center back had 49 touches and completed 24 of his 28 passes for an 86% success rate and we’ll likely see more of him this Wednesday alongside Antonio Carlos due to Jansson’s suspension.

D, Ruan, 6 — The right back slipped on the turf just prior to New England’s opener and Bou took full advantage to sprint down the field and deliver the cross for Buksa’s goal in the ninth minute. While Ruan was a liability on defense at times, finishing with just one clearance and no tackles or interceptions, he did give the Lions plenty of opportunities on offense. The speedster had little issue beating defenders and led the team with four key passes, including a nice cutback pass for Dike in the 24th minute. His crossing ability still leaves plenty to be desired as he was inaccurate on all five of his attempts. Ruan had 60 touches in this match, the third-most on the team, and he was successful on 36 of 39 passes for a good 92% completion rate.

MF, Junior Urso, 6 — The Bear hustled up and down the field all night long, racking up 63 touches and completing 45 of his 49 passes for a strong 92% success rate as he worked hard to serve as an outlet for other players to build possession. Urso had a tackle, an interception, and a block on the defensive end and on offense he had a shot that was blocked and a key pass. There were a few mishaps here and there, but overall it was a fairly efficient night for the Brazilian.

MF, Andres Perea, 5 — There was certainly some rust from Perea in his return from suspension. The 20-year-old was often a step behind in the midfield as the Revs passed around him with ease to then pick apart the defense. This was shown on the Revs’ second goal as the opposition worked around him to set up a one-on-one for Buchanan against Moutinho. However, he did have four clearances in the match and also chipped in with two interceptions, a tackle, and a block on the defensive end. Perea also led the team with three shots, the best coming from him pouncing on a loose ball in the box that Turner was able to save. That was his only shot on target as one shot was blocked and another headed wide from Moutinho’s great cross. In 87 minutes of action, Perea had 54 touches and 39 passes at an 85% success rate, although his inaccurate attempts weren’t all that difficult.

MF, Sebas Mendez, 6 — It was the Ecuadorian midfielder’s first game since his injury on July 17 and he did a decent job giving the Lions some stability in the midfield. This was particularly true in the second half when Mendez came up with crucial tackles to stop the revs on the counter while Orlando pushed forward to try and score. Mendez was subbed out in the 70th minute and finished with three tackles and an interception while not making much of an impact on offense. He had 55 touches and 47 passes at an 85% success rate as he was eased back into action.

MF, Mauricio Pereyra, 6.5 — Pereyra fed a nice ball to Dike in the box for his 10th assist of the season. It was one of many great passes from the Uruguayan, but his best of the night was a perfect first touch to serve Dike the ball again in a play that resulted in a penalty for Orlando. Although he only finished with two key passes, Pereyra pulled the strings for Orlando for most of the night and had 39 passes at an 87% success rate, which is pretty good considering the distance and difficult angles of some of his attempts. His two crosses from free kicks didn’t find their target, but were decent balls and he was accurate on his lone corner kick. Pereyra played all 90 minutes and ended the game with 50 touches, two key passes, and a shot from distance that went high and wide of goal.

F, Benji Michel, 4.5 — Michel didn’t get much done with only 14 touches in 57 minutes of play. He had no shots or key passes and his only cross was inaccurate. His best opportunity came in the second half when he ran along the end line with the ball, but he wasn’t able to make anything of it. Michel had no defensive stats either and only had five passes at an 80% success rate.

F, Daryl Dike, 6.5 (MotM) — Dike’s goal was a great one as he muscled past former collegiate teammate Henry Kessler in the box and fired a shot that was too powerful and too low for Turner to keep out. His only other shot in the match was from a good pass by Ruan, but he wasn’t able to make clean contact and it went wide. Dike won four fouls during the match, including a penalty that gave Orlando a golden opportunity that was squandered. It was Dike’s first time playing all 90 minutes for Orlando since returning from the Gold Cup and he had 37 touches and 14 passes at a subpar 57% completion rate as he tried to hold possession and create chances. More shots should be expected from the forward over the course of a game, but the Revs did focus on shutting him down after his goal. He was also a force in the air, using his large frame and physicality to win the ball upfield and he came up with two headed clearances on the Revolution’s set pieces. Dike is our Man of the Match for scoring a great goal while trailing on the road and earning a penalty that could have wound up salvaging a point for the Lions.

Substitutes

F, Nani (57’), 5.5 — Orlando’s captain had a chance to equalize with a penalty kick in the 75th minute, but his shot was stopped by Turner. Nani opted to shoot straight down the middle and Turner moved to his right but hesitated and got just enough of his body behind the ball to deflect it high and out of harm’s way. His only other shot of the match was blocked and his key pass to Urso set up a shot that was also blocked. None of his crosses from free kicks found their target, but his sole cross in open play was accurate. Nani completed 13 of his 15 passes for an 87% success rate and had 27 touches and he tried to bring Orlando level. The Designated Player hasn’t scored since Aug. 7 and Orlando will need him to lead the team during the final stretch of the season.

MF, Silvester van der Water (70’), 5.5 — With Orlando trailing in the second half, van der Water gave the team a bit of edge on the offense. The Dutchman had two shots, sending his first just wide and having his second blocked in stoppage time. He had 12 touches in the match and completed five of his seven passes for a 71% success rate. Van der Water wasn’t able to provide a goal for Orlando, but did give the team some needed energy when he had the ball at his feet in the attacking third.

F, Tesho Akindele, (87’) N/A — Coming on late to give the Lions another attacker while trailing, Akindele’s biggest contribution was winning a foul in a dangerous position for Orlando. He didn’t have any shots or key passes but gave the Revolution another big body to worry about alongside Dike. In a short shift, Akindele had nine touches and was successful on three of his six passes.

D, Kyle Smith (87’), N/A — Smith replaced Schlegel late in the match and completed three of his four passes. It was a quiet cameo for Smith as he had no offensive or defensive stats and just four touches.

That’s how I saw things play out in Orlando’s 2-1 loss on the road. Make sure to weigh in on how you feel about the grades in the comments below and to vote for who you think deserves the title of Man of the Match.

Polling Closed

PlayerVotes
Daryl Dike18
Mauricio Pereyra2
Junior Urso3
Other (Comment Below)2

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Orlando City vs. FC Cincinnati: Five Takeaways

Here’s what we learned from Orlando City’s 1-1 draw with FC Cincinnati.

Published

5 hours ago

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August 16, 2026

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Image of Luis Otavio playing the ball against FC Cincinnati.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Jeremy Reper

Orlando City hosted FC Cincinnati at Inter.co Stadium Saturday night in the new red third kits. This was supposed to be a high-scoring affair between two teams that like to score and also like to give up goals. Naturally, that meant it ended in a low-scoring 1-1 draw. Still, it’s hard to be too upset given Orlando City came from behind and managed to earn a point against a team higher in the standings. Here are my five takeaways from the match.

A Head Injury Goal

FC Cincinnati scored the first goal of the match, but it wasn’t without controversy. Cincinnati passed the ball to the top of the box for Evander. His shot went directly into the face of Joran Gerbet, who dropped like a sack of potatoes. That is the moment that Tori Penso should have blown the whistle to stop the play. You know, for a potential head injury. Instead, Penso allowed the play to continue as the ball rebounded off Gerbet’s head to Pavel Bucha who scored the goal. Fortunately, Gerbet was okay not that Penso was overly concerned in the moment. After the match, she stated the play was not stopped because of an immediate shot by a teammate after the deflection. It took about four seconds from hitting Gerbet in the head from point-blank range until the time Bucha shot, and perhaps four seconds is considered immediate.

Relentless Spicer

Tyrese Spicer continued his run of good form for Orlando City with a good run against the Cincinnati defense. As two defenders closed on him, Justin Ellis made a nifty flicked pass from a ball from Ivan Angulo to a streaking Spicer. The speedy winger held off Bucha shoulder to shoulder to win the ball. Bucha fell down and Spicer rounded the keeper before putting it under the crossbar for the equalizer. It was a hard-earned goal and just what Orlando City needed to get back into the match.

Justice for Brekalo

Kevin Denkey got around Maxime Crepeau and looked certain to score, but he hit the right post. The ball bounced out to Evander. David Brekalo battled to win the ball and Evander went down in the box. Penso immediately called a penalty, but the contact was very light. Then the video assistant referee suggested a call against Orlando City needed to be checked. Penso looked at the replay and rightly said no penalty. On top of that, Evander received a yellow for simulation. Do you believe in miracles? Yes!

Crepeau Continues to Crush It

Crepeau has been playing well since returning from the World Cup. He continued his good form against one of the best attacking teams in MLS. Despite only being credited with three saves, he once again made several saves on shots from offside players that would not have counted, but were still impressive. Additionally, he got better as the match went on. He had good command of the his area, coming out to get the ball, closing down the angles, and being a big contributor to the point at home.

Good Enough

Orlando City’s defense was not great despite holding Cincinnati to one goal, but it was good enough. For a team that gave up nearly three goals per match prior to the World Cup break, allowing an average of one goal per match, including in this game, is much better. On a sadder note, Bernardo Rhein went off injured in the first half. The youngster had supplanted Adrian Marin on the depth chart and now might be out for a bit depending on how bad the injury is. To his credit, Marin played better than he usually does once he came on. Again, the defense wasn’t spectacular, but it did enough to earn a point.

That is what I saw in Orlando City’s result with FC Cincinnati. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Orlando City vs. FC Cincinnati: Final Score 1-1 as Lions Battle Back on Spicer’s Goal

The Lions fell behind before halftime but had the final say in a hard-fought home draw vs. FC Cincinnati.

Published

17 hours ago

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August 15, 2026

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Image of Tyrese Spicer battling against FC Cincinnati.
Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Tyrese Spicer’s early goal in the second half pulled Orlando City level in a 1-1 draw against normally high-scoring FC Cincinnati at Inter.co Stadium tonight. Pavel Bucha put Cincinnati (7-6-6, 27 points) in front with a goal in the first half, but Orlando City (6-10-3, 21 points) did well to fight back for a point at home.

It was surprisingly low scoring, considering the game featured two of the most porous MLS defenses and an open flow to it, but it’s a big improvement over the 6-2 loss the Lions suffered on the road at Cincinnati just before the World Cup break. While the point is good, Orlando is 0-1-2 in its last three matches in all competitions and will need to start finding the win column again to climb into the playoff places.

“It was a very tough team, tough game, as we expected against Cincinnati. It’s always like this,” Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman said after the match. “They have a really strong offense. Their team is one of the best teams in the league attacking. I think we created chances by moments. The game was very open. They had chances as well.”

Perelman’s starting XI featured Maxime Crepeau in goal behind a back line of Bernardo Rhein, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, and Griffin Dorsey. Luis Otavio and Joran Gerbet started in central midfield between wingers Ivan Angulo and Tyrese Spicer with Justin Ellis and Antoine Griezmann leading the attack.

Much of the first 15 minutes was spent between the two penalty areas. Orlando looked to build play patiently, while Cincinnati looked for opportunities to jump passing routes and counter. The first look of the game came three minutes in off a set piece from long range that fell to Kevin Denkey in the box. The Cincy forward fired but the shot was blocked and the visitors were offside on the recycle.

Orlando City’s first look at goal was a shot that Spicer mishit badly, firing well wide of the near post on the left. Ellis put the first shot of the game on target in the 10th minute, sending in a good effort from the top of the box, but Roman Celentano made a good save to tip it over. Cincinnati cleared the initial ball on the set piece but Rhein found Spicer in the box, but again the Trinidad & Tobago international fired wide in the 11th minute. Four minutes later, Griezmann got into the box but his shot was blocked behind for another corner and the Lions could do nothing with the set piece.

Orlando was fortunate not to fall behind in the 20th minute as Evander got past Dorsey on the Lions’ defensive right side. The Cincy star man fizzed a low cross to the back post but it was just out of Tom Barlow’s reach. However, the visitors scored anyway a few minutes later.

A shot near the top of the area caught Gerbet flush in the face and he went down immediately. Despite it being an obvious head injury, referee Tori Penso allowed play to continue and Cincinnati regained possession outside the box, where Bucha slotted into the right side of the net to make it 1-0 in the 23rd minute.

“Regarding that play, since I am here in the United States, I learned that in the MLS, we take care about those situations with the players,” Perelman said. “This is why we were expecting that after that kick in his head, the game should be stopped, as it always was. But I haven’t reviewed the sequence. I don’t know if the ball effectively got in the face. I didn’t see the sequence again. Maybe I’m ignoring some rule or maybe it’s OK what the ref did. I don’t know.”

Penso’s response to the pool reporter’s question was that the ball fell to an attacking player who immediately shot and scored, and the player was checked immediately afterward.

Orlando City should have pulled the goal back in the 36th minute. Dorsey got down the right flank and pulled back a nice pass for Ellis around the penalty spot. The Homegrown forward sent a shot on target with his first touch but sent it straight at Celentano for the save. The Lions were offside after the initial shot and the attack broke down.

Rhein went down with a non-contact injury moments later and went directly to the locker room. Adrian Marin subbed on to replace the Homegrown left back.

FC Cincinnati was the more dangerous team down the stretch. Evander fired just inches wide of the right post from the left in the 43rd minute. Ellis then had an opportunity with a free header in the middle of the box in the first minute of added time but sent his effort straight at Celentano again. Ender Echineque then saw his shot blocked just wide by Marin deep in stoppage time, winning Cincinnati a corner, but the Lions cleared and the halftime whistle blew.

The Lions held the advantage at the break in possession (50.6%-49.4%), shots (7-5), shots on target (3-1), corners (5-3), and passing accuracy (89.6%-86%), but a lack of clinical finishing allowed the guests to hold the lead at halftime.

Marco Pasalic came on for Gerbet to start the second half, pushing Angulo into central midfield for a while, with Spicer joining Ellis up top and Griezmann dropping to left wing.

Cincinnati won an early corner after the restart but it was Orlando City that scored off of it. The Lions dealt with the set piece and Angulo ended up with it on the left. He darted past a defender and sent a pass forward that Ellis touched on into the attacking half. Spicer raced for the loose ball with Bucha and won the physical battle, breaking in alone when the Cincy defender fell. The Trinidad & Tobago international rounded Celentano and smashed a shot high into the net to make it 1-1 in the 48th minute.

“I know I’m going to get technical here, but like the spin that (Angulo) put on the pass was perfect for how I wanted to play the ball, you know, so I could redirect it into the path of Tyrese, Ellis said. “It counts as an assist, but the goal was all him, you know. I think he deserves all the credit.”

“(Ellis is) a creative player. He wants to flick. He loves to flick. And you know, I just read that,” Spicer said. “I thought it was going to go more in the air rather than on the ground, but I just had to turn the jets on to get there. You know, once I was one on one with the keeper, you know, I had a good feeling. He’s a good keeper. I think he would have guessed where I was gonna shoot. So I was like, let me try to go around him, and it worked out.”

Orlando tried to take the lead moments after the goal with a series of passes at the top of the area that finally got sent to Griezmann on the right. The Frenchman volleyed a shot on target but it was right at Celentano.

Cincinnati thought it had won a penalty a minute later. Denkey got in behind down the right channel, waited out Crepeau, and sent a shot off the post. Brekalo and Evander both went for the loose ball and Evander went down. Penso pointed to the spot and eventually went to the monitor for a second look. After reviewing the play again, Penso announced that Evander had initiated the contact and she booked the Cincy star for simulation. Orlando City avoided the spot kick.

Echineque rang the post for Cincinnati in the 64th minute. Cutting in from right to left, he fired a shot from near the right corner of the box that hit the left post and stayed out. Following an unsuccessful corner at the other end, Cincinnati came back on the attack and put the ball in the neet in the 71st minute, but the flag came up immediately for an obvious offside.

Former Lion Kyle Smith blocked Spicer’s shot behind for a corner in the 73rd minute. Griezmann’s service found Marin on the far side all alone in space. The Spaniard tried to head it back into the mix of players in front but it floated lazily for an eacy catch by Celentano.

Second-half sub Marco Pasalic fired wide in the 80th minute, as both teams continued looking for a go-ahead goal.

Crepeau may have made his biggest save in the match in the 87th minute, going down to deny Kenji Mboma Dem, who got inside down the right in the 87th minute.

Orlando got a couple of looks down the stretch. Pasalic saw his shot deflect over the bar for a corner early in stoppage time. Substitute Wilder Cartagena blazed a rocket shot just over the crossbar in the fourth added minute.

After the Lions defended a late Cincinnati corner, the final whistle blew, splitting the points between the sides.

At the final whistle, Orlando City held the advantage in shots (17-11), shots on target (5-3), and corners (10-5). FC Cincinnati finished with more possession (53.1%-46.9%) and passed more accurately (90.8%-87.8%).

“We knew which spaces we believe we can hurt (them), and that was the adjustment (at halftime) — try to to hurt them in those spaces and try to to neutralize as much as we can those talented players they have up front, and we we were able to tie.”

“I think it was a different looking game because we’re a different looking team in terms of how we’re playing,” Ellis said, comparing the 6-2 loss at Cincinnati to tonight’s 1-1 draw. “I think we’re a much more steady team, even though I feel today we didn’t have the control that we wanted. It was very transitional. I think we also just limited Evander. He’s, I don’t want to say he’s their whole attack, because they have amazing players, but a lot of the attack runs through him. And I want to give a special mention to Luis Otavio. I thought he was the best player on the field today.”

It’s another short turnaround for the Lions, who host the Chicago Fire on Wednesday.

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

The Lions go hunting for revenge for the 6-2 beatdown they suffered in southwest Ohio back in late May.

Published

1 day ago

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August 15, 2026

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Image of Griffin Dorsey dribbling up the side past two FC Cincinnati defenders.
Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Welcome to your preview and match thread for a Saturday night matchup between Orlando City (6-10-2, 20 points) and FC Cincinnati (7-6-5, 26 points) at Inter.co Stadium (7:30 p.m., Apple TV). It’s the last of the two scheduled matches between the teams this season.

Here’s what you need to know for the match.

History

The all-time series is tied at 5-5-4 in the MLS regular season, but Orlando City has been worse against FC Cincinnati in home matches, going just 2-3-1 in the City Beautiful against tonight’s opponents. The Lions are 0-2-1 in the last three meetings between the sides.

The teams last met on May 23 in Cincinnati in the final match before the World Cup break. How shall I put this…oh yes…the Lions had their asses handed to them by FC Cincinnati to the tune of a 6-2 brutalization that had folks calling law enforcement to report a murder. Evander scored twice and assisted on three other goals to lead the rout for FC Cincinnati, despite Orlando City’s Martin Ojeda scoring the first goal and later tying the game at 2-2 early in the second half. It was all FC Cincinnati after Ojeda’s second goal. Kenji Mboma Dem added a brace for the hosts and Kevin Denkey and Tom Barlow also scored. Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman said after the game that “the scoreline doesn’t tell the whole story,” and he was right, because it could have been worse.

A year ago, the teams played on Sept. 28, 2025, in Ohio, with Alex Freeman’s goal late in stoppage time salvaging a 1-1 draw for Orlando City, canceling out Denkey’s second-half strike. Prior to that, the teams also met last year on June 28 at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, with FC Cincinnati winning 2-1. An Evander brace, which included a poorly conceded set piece goal from distance, was enough to offset Marco Pasalic’s goal.

These two teams met at TQL Stadium on Oct. 5, 2024, with the Lions leaving southwest Ohio with a 3-1 victory in their final road match of the regular season. Ramiro Enrique scored twice and had a third chalked off for a controversial foul on a corner kick. He also assisted on a goal by Ivan Angulo in an impressive performance. Luciano Acosta scored Cincinnati’s goal.

These two sides also met on May 4 of that year in Orlando with FC Cincinnati claiming a 1-0 road win on a first-minute goal by Acosta. The Lions went down a man early in the game when Rodrigo Schlegel was called for denial of a goal-scoring opportunity on Yuya Kubo. Orlando City had a second-half goal waved off for an offside in the buildup. Cincinnati lost Bret Halsey to a second yellow card late but the Lions couldn’t take advantage.

The teams met in Ohio on Sept. 2, 2023, with the Lions claiming a 1-0 win on enemy soil, becoming the first road team to beat FC Cincinnati all season. Facundo Torres scored the game’s only goal. Orlando had to hold on down a man late when Wilder Cartagena was sent off. The teams played to a 0-0 draw in Orlando on March 4, 2023 in Orlando.

The Lions fell 1-0 at TQL Stadium on June 24, 2022. A second-half goal from Brenner represented all the offense, but it could have been worse for Orlando City as Pedro Gallese made eight saves in the match. The first meeting of 2022 took place in Orlando on March 12, with FC Cincinnati notching its first win in the all-time series, 2-1 at Exploria Stadium. The Lions were more in control but were wasteful, despite dominating the stat sheet. The visitors got a brace from Brandon Vazquez to offset Junior Urso’s goal.

The final meeting of 2021 was on Oct. 16 in Cincinnati, when Orlando City got its first road victory in the series, 1-0 on Urso’s early goal. Tesho Akindele should have scored a second off the crossbar late in the game, but the play was never reviewed, despite video evidence that the ball was completely across the line.

On Aug. 7, 2021, the match in Cincinnati ended up in a 1-1 draw. Nani’s strike rescued a point after Brenner had opened the scoring for the hosts just before halftime, taking advantage of an obviously injured Uri Rosell, who subbed off moments later. The first of the three meetings in 2021 came on May 21 in Orlando, with the Lions posting a 3-0 win. Akindele scored in the first minute and Nani and Urso each added a goal.

In Orlando’s first trip to the banks of the Ohio River, the match ended in a 1-1 draw at Nippert Stadium on Sept. 29, 2019. Benji Michel’s goal in stoppage time rescued a point for the Lions after Allan Cruz had given the hosts a lead. The draw officially eliminated Orlando City from playoff contention that year, but realistically the Lions had been out of it for a while.

The first-ever meeting between the two sides took place on May 19, 2019, when the Lions pummeled the expansion side, 5-1. Both Nani and Akindele bagged braces in the match and Dom Dwyer added a goal as well.

Overview

The Lions are coming off a pair of blown halftime leads in Leagues Cup, but with rotation throughout that competition, lots of players played and at least now they can concentrate on MLS and next month’s resumption of the U.S. Open Cup. Orlando drew Atletico de San Luis 2-2 after blowing a two-goal lead from the 79th minute on, claiming the meaningless extra point in penalties (5-3) as both teams were eliminated from the knockout rounds. Daryl Dike and Justin Ellis scored Orlando’s goals. The Lions are 4-3-1 at home in MLS play this season but 3-0-1 in their last four league matches on their own patch. Orlando brings a league-worst 47 goals conceded into tonight and a conference-worst goal differential of -17.

FC Cincinnati is coming off a surprising 2-1 home loss to Atlas on Tuesday, which means it will be the better rested team for both matches against Orlando this season. The loss knocked Cincinnati out of the running for the knockout rounds and was the first time Cincinnati failed to score at least two goals in a match since July 25 on the road against rival Columbus — also in a 2-1 loss. What is surprising about that is FC Cincinnati is a scoring juggernaut, co-leading MLS in goals scored with 45 — tied with Inter Miami. Cincy’s Achilles heel this season has been road play, in which the club is 1-4-4 in MLS play. The only reason Cincinnati is as low as sixth in the Eastern Conference table at the moment is because it also ships a lot of goals — 44 so far this season, which is third worst in the Eastern Conference.

Orlando City’s back line and defensive midfield will be stressed for 90 minutes plus stoppage time tonight, as players like Evander, Denkey, Mboma Dem, Barlow, Pavel Bucha, and others will slice through the gaps between defenders and look to get onto excellent through balls. Transition attacks must be avoided, as Cincinnati can turn a takeaway into a goal in seconds. The Lions must control the ball, avoid turning it over in dangerous areas, and stay switched on for potential runners, otherwise the final score might look a lot like it did on May 23. Evander already has 22 goal contributions (11 goals, 11 assists), leading the league in the latter category while being just two goals off the Golden Boot lead. Denkey has also bagged 11 goals to go along with four assists.

The Lions will be without Eduard Atuesta (thigh), Nolan Miller (knee), Braian Ojeda (foot), and
Martín Ojeda (thigh). Cincinnati will be without Gerardo Valenzuela (suspension).

Match Content

Official Lineups

Orlando City (4-4-2)

Goalkeeper: Maxime Crepeau.

Defenders: Bernardo Rhein, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo, Griffin Dorsey.

Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Luis Otavio, Joran Gerbet, Tyrese Spicer.

Forward: Antoine Griezmann, Justin Ellis.

Bench: Javier Otero, Adrian Marin, Zakaria Taifi, Iago, Issah Haruna, Wilder Cartagena, Tiago, Marco Pasalic, Daryl Dike.

FC Cincinnati (3-5-2)

Goalkeeper: Roman Celentano.

Defenders: Samuel Gidi, Matt Miazga, Miles Robinson.

Wingbacks/Midfielders: Bryan Ramirez, Obinna Nwobodo, Evander, Pavel Bucha, Ender Echenique.

Forwards: Kevin Denkey, Tom Barlow.

Bench: Evan Louro, Kyle Smith, Alvas Powell, Nick Hagglund, Teenage Hadebe, Brian Anunga, Kristian Fletcher, Kenji Mboma Dem, Ayoub Jabbari.

Referees

REF: Tori Penso.
AR1: Brooke Mayo.
AR2: Matthew Nelson.
4TH: Lorenzo Hernandez.
VAR: Kevin Stott.
AVAR: Fabio Tovar.

How to Watch

Match Time: 7:30 p.m.

Venue: Inter.co Stadium — Orlando.

TV/Streaming: Apple TV.

Radio: AM 810 FOX Sports Radio Orlando (English), Mega 97.1 FM (Spanish), Nossa Rádio 1160 AM-WRLZ (Portuguese).

Social Media: For rapid reaction and live updates, follow us on Bluesky Social at @themaneland.bsky.social or follow Orlando City’s official Twitter (@OrlandoCitySC) or Bluesky (@OrlandoCitySC) feed.

Enjoy the match. Go City!

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