Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Nashville SC: Five Takeaways
Here’s what we learned from Orlando City’s 3-0 home victory over Nashville SC.
The Lions returned to the City Beautiful after dropping their first match following the Leagues Cup last weekend to Sporting Kansas City. Fortunately for Orlando City, winning cures all ailments, and a home matchup against struggling Nashville SC was exactly what the soccer gods ordered. What follows are our five takeaways from a strong 3-0 rebound win at home.
Limited Rotation
Head Coach Oscar Pareja elected to change very little from the squad which lost by three goals to Sporting Kansas City. When the starting 11 was announced, the only swaps were on the back line, with center back Rodrigo Schlegel stepping in for David Brekalo and Rafael Santos starting over Kyle Smith. It is almost impossible to know what the coaching staff sees in training to warrant roster changes, but many, including our own David Rohe, spoke last week that it may be time again to shake things up in order to find a victory. I don’t expect major changes down the home stretch, with the exception of an injury or suspension, and against Nashville, Pareja tipped his hand as such that he more or less has his established squad at this point. As for effectiveness, Santos didn’t play notably better than Smith and Schlegel picked up a needless yellow card and was replaced by Brekalo at halftime.
Flirting with Disaster
Nashville opened the match on the front foot, commiting heavy numbers forward in the attack in the hopes of finding an early goal. Throughout the opening minutes, there were at least two golden opportunities for Nashville that should have seen the visitors up one or two goals. Fortunately for Orlando City, Sam Surridge hit the post with an early chance, and Pedro Gallese stood strong on a 1-v-1 situation against Alex Muyl to kept the visitors from finding success. It was a nervy opening but did not hurt the Lions in the long run.
Blink and Miss It
Any fans who had to take an early bathroom break inside Inter&Co Stadium might have returned back to their seats to find the game in a very different position than they left it as Orlando City took control of the match with two goals in the span of four minutes. Ivan Angulo and Facundo Torres made it 2-0 before the quarter-hour mark, capitalizing on a defensive mistake and then a beautiful cross. A week removed from squandering scoring opportunities with poorly placed shot attempts, it was refreshing to see Orlando capitalize early. Martin Ojeda did well to knock a wayward Joe Willis cross to Angulo (while in the air) to set up the first goal and Dagur Dan Thorhallsson provided excellent service on the second.
Yellow after Yellow
Who hurt referee Victor Rivas? While overseeing a match is a challenging job, requiring part skill and part art, it seemed as if the match got away from Rivas early with the physical nature of two teams that generally do not like one another. In a game that was fairly even in terms of number of fouls called, Rivas was quick to pull the yellow after a few scuffles to try to regain control — to the tune of three cards in the opening 45 minutes, which were all directed at Orlando City. Schlegel, Ramiro Enrique, and Robin Jansson all picked up bookings early and, fortunately for Orlando City, none of the cards came back to negatively effect the match outcome.
In the second half, three more cards were issued to Santos, Wilder Cartagena, and Cesar Araujo for various infractions. If you were keeping score at home, it took until the 68th minute for a Nashville player to get booked, and the yellow score tab ended 6-1 in sarcastic favor of Orlando. Again, Mr. Rivas…are you ok?
A Brace for Facu
With two goals against Nashville SC, Torres is now up to 10 goals on the season and 15 goal-scoring contributions for the campaign. That puts the Designated Player just four goal-scoring contributions short of his Orlando City career high of 19, which he set in his first season with the team. After a slow start to the year, Torres has now scored six goals across all competions since July 1. Orlando City will need to lean on its star player down the stretch and to see Torres bag a brace against Nashville should be a reassuring sign to all OCSC fans. A fingertip from Willis is all that prevented a hat trick, as the Nashville keeper did well to deflect a possible third goal onto the roof of the net in the second half.
Those are our takeaways from a great rebound victory. The Lions have a bye week before welcoming the New England Revolution to town on Sept. 14. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and as always Vamos Orlando!
Orlando City
Orlando City vs. Charlotte FC: Preview, How to Watch, TV Info, Live Stream, Lineups, Match Thread, and More
The Lions look for a third straight win at home before heading back on the road when Charlotte FC visits.
Welcome to your match preview and live thread for a Wednesday night matchup between Orlando City (11-10-7, 40 points) and Charlotte FC (10-10-8, 38 points) at Inter&Co Stadium (8:15 p.m., FS1, Apple TV). This is the second of the two scheduled meetings between the southeastern teams in the regular season.
Here’s what you need to know ahead of the match.
History
The Lions are 2-1-2 in the all-time, regular-season series and 2-2-2 in all competitions. Orlando City is 1-1-0 at home in the regular season. Every game between the two teams (aside from the draws) has been decided by a single goal.
Tonight’s hosts have gotten the better of Orlando City recently, including a 2-0-2 mark in four meetings across all competitions since the start of last season. The teams most recently met on June 19 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte and played to a 2-2 draw. The hosts struck first with an early Kerwin Vargas goal and the Lions pulled one back through Duncan McGuire in the second half. But despite Charlotte going down a man on Scott Arfield’s red card, Brandt Bronico restored the hosts’ lead shortly after McGuire’s strike. Facundo Torres struck back moments later but the Lions could not find a winner on the road.
The previous match was also a draw at Bank of America Stadium, finishing in a 1-1 draw on Aug. 30, 2023. Enzo Copetti’s late penalty appeared to wrap things up for the hosts on a rainy night in Charlotte, but Martin Ojeda’s seeing-eye set piece equalized just before stoppage time as the teams split the points.
Charlotte claimed a 1-0 “home” victory in U.S. Open Cup play on May 9 of last year. That game took place at Mecklenburg County Sportsplex in Matthews, NC, rather than at the club’s regular stadium. The first matchup of the 2023 season didn’t go any better for Orlando City, finishing as a 2-1 Charlotte win at Exploria Stadium on March 18. Copetti and Vargas put Charlotte up 2-0 by halftime. Ojeda pulled one back, but the Lions were wasteful in front of goal and couldn’t pull level.
The teams met at Bank of America Stadium on Aug. 21, 2022. After a scoreless first half, Ercan Kara put the Lions ahead on the road, only to see McKinze Gaines equalize just four minutes later. Tesho Akindele’s late goal lifted Orlando to a 2-1 victory.
Orlando City won the first-ever meeting between the sides on April 30, 2022 at Exploria Stadium. Ruan scored the opening goal and set up Torres on the counter for the second as the Lions took a 2-0 lead into the locker room. Christian Fuchs scored from the spot after Rodrigo Schlegel was called for a foul in the box in the second half, but that was as close as Charlotte got in what was ultimately a 2-1 Orlando victory.
Overview
Orlando City enters tonight’s match on a two-game winning streak, with both victories coming at home by 3-0 scorelines. The most recent came Saturday against the New England Revolution, following a victory over Nashville two weeks ago. The Lions finally climbed above .500 with Saturday’s win against the Revs and pulled level at 5-5-4 at home on the season.
Charlotte enters with one of the best defensive records in Major League Soccer. Only Columbus (28) has given up fewer goals than the North Carolina side’s 31. Tonight’s visitors lost 2-1 at Montreal Saturday night and is 0-2-1 since returning from the Leagues Cup break. In an 0-2-1 road slump, Charlotte is 4-7-3 away from home in 2024.
Orlando City will need to be patient but also try to build a volume of shots against Charlotte’s stout defense, led by goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina, who has posted 100 saves on the season. That’s nearly double Pedro Gallese’s 54 saves on the year, but El Pulpo has played in five fewer games due to international duty. Still, the key to beating Charlotte is to get some goals on the board, as the visitors’ offense has found the net just 32 times this season — third fewest in the Eastern Conference.
“Charlotte is a team that we’ve played not long ago, but they have three or four additions to their squad, and we are making reference to them too,” Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said ahead of the game. “We also know those new players and inclusions in the group change their dynamics. We are aware of how we can play them or how we can contend with them. Like any other game, we’re going to try and do our best and get our points. It’s our normal routine.”
The Lions will be without Mason Stajduhar (lower leg), who started the match in Charlotte in June, and David Brekalo (thigh). Charlotte will be without Jahlane Forbes (hip), while leading scorer Patrick Agyemang (foot) is questionable.
Match Content
- Our most recent epsidode of the PawedCast includes our key matchups and score predictions for today’s match, as well as a preview of the game.
Projected Lineups
Orlando City (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper: Pedro Gallese.
Defenders: Rafael Santos, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel, Dagur Dan Thorhallsson.
Defensive Midfielders: Cesar Araujo, Wilder Cartagena.
Attacking Midfielders: Ivan Angulo, Martin Ojeda, Facundo Torres.
Forwards: Ramiro Enrique.
Charlotte FC (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper: Kristijan Kahlina.
Defenders: Jere Uronen, Tim Ream, Adilson Malanda, Nathan Byrne.
Defensive Midfielders: Djibril Diani, Ashley Westwood.
Attacking Midfielders: Kerwin Vargas, Pep Biel, Liel Abada.
Forward: Karol Swiderski.
Referees
REF: Marcos DeOliveira.
AR1: Logan Brown.
AR2: Ricardo Ocampo.
4TH: Lorenzo Hernandez.
VAR: Daniel Radford.
AVAR: Robert Schaap.
How to Watch
Match Time: 8:15 p.m.
Venue: Inter&Co Stadium — Orlando
TV/Live Stream: FS1, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
Radio: FM 96.9 The Game (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!
Lion Links
Lion Links: 9/18/24
Duncan McGuire likes scoring goals, the Pride are impressive, Champions League results, and more.
Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. It’s match day, so I hope you are hyped for a midweek showdown with Charlotte FC. So, put on your purple, and tell you boss you don’t care about the dress code. If you haven’t done so yet, there’s still time to listen to the latest episode of The Mane Land PawedCast to help get you ready after you check out today’s links. Let’s get to it.
McGuire Happy to Score
Duncan McGuire’s goal against the New England Revolution Saturday night was his first MLS strike since June. That kind of drought isn’t something he’s used to, and he was away at the Olympics for part of that time, but he said he’s just happy to contribute to the team winning. McGuire will look to continue his scoring in tonight’s match against Charlotte FC. The Lions will need McGuire and others to contribute in this crucial Eastern Conference match. If you’re unsure whether to attend in person, take a look at all the cool stuff the club is doing tonight. Check back later today for our match preview.
The Pride are Scary Good
The still undefeated Orlando Pride are very, very good. This is obvious to anyone that looks at the standings or the records being broken on a weekly basis. Still, it’s one thing to know it and another to see it. SBNation’s Southern Sylvs got a firsthand look at the team and the experience watching the Pride at the last match against the Kansas City Current at Inter&Co Stadium. Sylvs was impressed with the atmosphere and the club, despite what I thought wasn’t their best outing.
Banda Still in Contention
The Orlando Pride’s Barbra Banda hasn’t scored as many goals as the Current’s Temwa Chawinga but that doesn’t mean she’s out of the NWSL MVP race. She has contributed quite a bit in her time with the club, and I expect that she will start putting in goals and providing assists again soon. How well the Pride do in the regular season will also likely impact the MVP selection.
Americans in the Champions League
Liverpool may have defeated AC Milan 3-1 in the first of eight UEFA Champions League matches for each club, but Christian Pulisic did score the first goal of the match.
Why pass the ball when it’s so much easier to simply score the goal yourself? That was pretty much it for AC Milan as Liverpool scored three unanswered goals to secure the victory.
Earlier in the day, Weston McKennie scored in Juventus’ 3-1 win over PSV. It was very much a right place, right time goal for the American.
lt was a good day for the Americans, and plenty of other USMNT players will be in action this week across different leagues and competitions.
Free Kicks
- In the least surprising news ever, the Orlando Pride once again topped the Goal.com NWSL Power Rankings.
- The Orlando Pride’s Ally Lemos and the U-20 USWNT will face Korea DPR’s U-20 squad in the semifinals of the 2024 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup today.
- Orlando City B defender Alex Freeman made the MLS NEXT Pro “On the Rise” list thanks to his very good recent run of form.
- Like so many players, Lynn Williams was greatly impacted by the career of Alex Morgan. Especially that time she wore the No.13 for the USWNT.
- Former USWNT star Megan Rapinoe praised the younger generation of players that won the Olympic Gold. She also recognized that the players of her generation may have held back the success of the new generation. Now, the team is theirs.
- As I mentioned above, Liverpool may have won its match, but Alisson Becker is still frustrated that football’s governing bodies aren’t consulting players on the number of matches over the many competitions that said players will participate in. He’s not wrong.
- Manchester United decimated third-division Barnsley 7-0 in its English Cup match.
- This test is a chance to prove you are a UEFA Champions League savant by answering 36 questions about the teams in this year’s competition.
- Billionaire Marcelo Claure has purchased 10% of New York City FC, and their we’ll-have-it-eventually stadium. Just another reason for Don Garber to kowtow to NYCFC.
That will do it for today. We will have your match recap after the game tonight. Vamos Orlando!
Lion Links
Lion Links: 9/17/24
Rafael Santos up for Goal of the Matchday, Lions earn recognition, stories to watch around MLS, and more.
It wasn’t a perfect weekend for Orlando’s soccer teams, but it was close. Orlando City, the Orlando Pride and Orlando City B went undefeated, and combined to take seven of the nine points available, which is hard to complain about. There’s no time to rest though, as the Lions will be back in action tomorrow at home against FC Dallas. As always, we have plenty to talk about today, so let’s get into the links.
Santos Strike Nominated for Goal of the Matchday
Rafael Santos opened the scoring in spectacular fashion during Orlando City’s 3-0 win over the New England Revolution, and his left-footed blast has been nominated for MLS Goal of the Matchday. With 22 minutes played, the Lions worked a short corner and Ivan Angulo found Santos free outside the box. The fullback took one touch to set the ball up before unleashing a dipping, curling effort that left a fully stretched Aljaz Ivacic with no chance. It was a special strike and a very worthy nomination. Make sure you go cast your vote for him to win it!
Lions Earn Weekly Recognition
In addition to his Goal of the Matchday nomination, Santos was also named to the starting lineup of the MLS Team of the Matchday as one of three defenders, while Facundo Torres was included on the bench. Outside of his goal, Santos also recorded two tackles and two clearances while helping the defense keep a clean sheet. Torres converted his penalty kick with venom, had 94% passing accuracy, and generally looked dangerous. Marcus Mitchell awarded Santos a 7 out of 10 and Torres a 7.5 out of 10 and Man of the Match honors in his player grades from the match, so it’s nice to see the pair get some recognition on a larger scale. Here’s hoping the good work continues!
Stories to Watch in MLS
Some of the flashier teams in the league might grab headlines on a consistent basis, but there are plenty of other intriguing stories happening around MLS. For one, the Lions are on a 6-1-1 run that has them up to fifth in the Eastern Conference with a game in hand on the Red Bulls in fourth. Martin Ojeda playing through the middle and moving Facu back out wide is a big reason why. Then there are the Colorado Rapids, a team that has the second-largest points-per-game increase from last season to this one. At the other end of things you have Charlotte FC, which has won just once in its last eight games and is in danger of missing out on the playoffs altogether.
Mikey Varas Will Coach San Diego FC
San Diego FC has found its first head coach, as it named former United States Men’s National Team interim head coach Mikey Varas to the top job. Varas spent several years with U.S. Soccer, and also was an assistant coach at FC Dallas under Luchi Gonzalez for three seasons. Aside from being the head coach of the U.S. U-20 Men’s National Team from 2021 to 2023, this will be his only other gig as a full time head coach. Now that San Diego has that vacancy filled, it can do some serious work on building its roster ahead of its inaugural MLS season next year.
Free Kicks
- The Orlando Pride held fast at the top spot of ESPN’s NWSL power rankings.
- Orlando City had a big jump, as the Lions moved up six spots to ninth in ESPN’s MLS power rankings.
- Former Orlando Pride coach Tom Sermanni has been named interim head coach of the Australian women’s national team.
- NJ/NY Gotham FC has played on every day of the week at least once during this season.
- Barcelona has extended the contract of women’s Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmatí until 2028.
That’s all I have for you this morning. Vamos Orlando!
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