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Orlando City vs. New England Revolution: Final Score 3-1 as Shorthanded Lions Bow Out of Playoffs

An early penalty awarded to New England set the tone, and when Orlando seemed to get back into the game, things got worse with another red card.

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5 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

The New England Revolution had never won a game at Orlando City before. At some point you knew that would change, but unfortunately it happened in the postseason as the Revs beat the Lions 3-1 in the Eastern Conference semifinals at Exploria Stadium. Orlando fell behind 2-0 and battled back into it, only to see Designated Player Mauricio Pereyra sent off for an awful challenge from behind, and the Revs tacked on a late insurance goal against the shorthanded Lions.

Carles Gil’s penalty put New England up early on a fairly soft call on Uri Rosell against Tajon Buchanan in the box and Gustavo Bou added another at the end of a transition that started with what looked like Nani getting fouled in the offensive end, but no call was made. Junior Urso pulled a goal back for Orlando, but Pereyra’s red card changed the game, although the biggest talking point will be a Nani penalty that Matt Turner saved. Another talking point might be that Adam Buksa didn’t get a second yellow for taking out Brian Rowe when Daryl Dike was booked for a similar offense earlier in the match.

Whatever your favorite talking point is, it’s all academic now.

“Obviously at this moment there is a lot of pain, and there is a lot of frustration that we have been carrying in the last 10 days, probably, with things that happened and we could not apparently flush them off,” Head Coach Oscar Pareja said. “I know how hard they worked for this objecitve and now we need to grow. Certainly this will help us, for sure.”

Without the suspended Pedro Gallese or Ruan, Pareja started Rowe in goal behind a back line of Kamal Miller, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Kyle Smith. Central midfielders Rosell and Urso played in the middle of the park, alongside attackers Pereyra and Chris Mueller, with Nani and Dike leading the attack.

The first half started out looking like extra time, with the teams playing cautiously and perhaps a bit nervously. Nani provided good service into the area three minutes in, but the cross was just a bit high for Dike to reach.

The Revolution earned a corner in the 11th minute with their first foray into the attacking third. New England played the set piece short and the Revs were called for a foul in their attacking box, turning it over.

Buchanan came down the right a few minutes later and changed the game. Rosell, backing up Miller, attempted a tackle and Buchanan anticipated contact, leaving his feet and going down easy. Referee Alex Chilowicz saw enough to award a penalty and Video Assistant Referee Chris Penso didn’t see a clear and obvious error. Gil stepped up and hit his penalty right down the middle, past Rowe, who guessed left, and New England led 1-0 in the 17th minute.

Orlando tried to pull it right back, winning a corner after the restart. Nani played the corner short to Pereyra, who crossed in. Jansson collected at the far side but hit his shot into the outside netting in the 19th minute. Mueller tried a long-range shot three minutes later but didn’t get much on it and hit it right at Turner for the easy save.

New England doubled its lead in the 26th minute. Nani got double teamed in the attacking third and went down under contact. Chilowicz allowed the play to continue and the Revs broke in transition. Adam Buksa hit a sliding shot off the right post, but Bou reacted to it first, scoring into the empty net to make it 2-0.

“We conceded a goal early, but I think we were OK in the game,” Nani said. “We were pressing up. We were creating our chances. But there was a decision when the ref didn’t give a foul on me and then they scored the second goal. I think there was the key of the game.”

“Obviously the two goals that New England scored early put us in a difficult situation,” Pareja said. “

The Lions found some life in the 33rd minute, pulling a goal back. Nani sent a gorgeous cross to Mueller at the back post. Mueller picked up the loose ball in traffic between Turner and defender Henry Kessler, sending it back to Urso, who fired home for his first MLS playoff goal, making it 2-1.

Dike nearly freed himself up in traffic in a similar way to Mueller two minutes later but couldn’t bring it in. Rosell picked it up at the top of the area and fired over the bar.

The last chance of the half came in the 38th, when Rowe got a hand on a Buksa shot to parry it over the bar. New England took its 2-1 lead into the locker room.

Orlando had more first-half shots (6-5), while the Revs got more on target (3-2) and won more corners (3-1). The Lions held more possession (57.9%-42.1%) and were the more accurate passing team (86%-78%).

The Lions generated a chance out of the break in the 46th minute when the ball found its way to Nani on the left side. He tried to curl a shot to the back post but didn’t hit it right and it sailed well off target. Moments later, Rosell stole the ball in midfield and started the break, but Mueller’s cross into the area was between teammates and easily cut out. Nani then won a corner but the cross was a bit behind the attacking line and Carlos couldn’t do much with it.

Orlando kept coming. Mueller won a corner in the 57th minute and Nani sent a low pass that Pereyra fired on target, but it was deflected wide by the defense.

But just when it appeared Orlando was on the front foot, disaster struck in the 60th minute. Matt Polster brought the ball forward and Pereyra trailed, looking for a chance to nick it back as he often does. However, when the chance came and Polster showed him too much of the ball, the Uruguayan launched himself late and his studs caught Polster’s ankle instead of the ball. It was an obvious straight red and the Lions were suddenly down to 10 men with a half an hour to play.

“I know Mauro, and I know how much he will be hurt at this moment,” Pareja said after the match, not having yet spoken with his DP midfielder. “I know how he feels, but I back him up 100% all the time, knowing that [he] made a mistake.”

“Mauricio today got a red card. He has our support. I love this guy,” Urso said.

“We’re professionals and I think we have to learn and find a way and find our character and deal with all these things that are part of the game,” Pareja said of the red cards the last two games. “And certainly today was another moment where we we lost our head. I want to be responsible for all that. It’s something that cannot happen.”

The Lions continued to try to find the equalizer. Mueller tried to split two defenders in the box in the 64th minute. He was walled off and Chilowicz ignored his plea for a penalty.

The Revs didn’t attack much but looked for opportunities to kille the game, and Bou fired a long-range shot that Rowe could only fight off for a corner. New England took the corner short, passed it back to Bou and the whole sequence repeated, as the Orlando keeper couldn’t do much but parry the shots away.

After the second corner, Buksa tried to dispossess Rowe on a passing sequence at the back and clobbered the keeper. Despite showing Dike a yellow card earlier for a play with less contact, Chilowicz kept his card in his pocket. Buksa was already on a yellow and the referee opted not to even up the two teams’ manpower on the pitch with a curious decision.

Orlando finally got its chance to level it in the 73rd when Dike was run over from behind inside the area. Chilowicz didn’t hesitate to point to the spot and Nani stepped up to take it. After going right twice last week against Sean Johnson — scoring once and seeing the other stopped on a great save — the captain opted to go left, but with the same, slow, stutter-step run-up. Turner guessed correctly and Nani didn’t get his shot far enough into the corner. Turner made the save and that seemed like the final nail in the coffin, although that was yet to come.

“Sometimes you should do better and then you must accept it was not your best. And today I couldn’t take the penalty,” Nani said. “We didn’t know what’s gonna happen at the end but I feel sorry for my teammates because the dream finishes right there.”

“Nani made a mistake. He don’t score the penalty, [but] he’s our leader. We believe in him,” said Urso.

Nani is five for 10 in penalties, including making an important one last week and against LAFC in the MLS is Back Tournament.

“Nani has had the personality. He has had the responsibility,” Pareja said. “There are always two, three people who are in charge of taking the PK. In that moment, he did it and we gave [him] the responsibility. It’s something that now obviously we may think that it should have been different…but Nani had the confidence from everybody.”

The Lions went to a three-man back line, sending Benji Michel and Tesho Akindele on to try to chase the game and, like any high-risk strategy might, it ended up costing them. After Akindele got under a free header on a free kick that might have tied the match, the Revs put it away.

With more space at the back, Gil took the ball down the left side, waited for a run, and sprung Bou through the defense. The New England DP slotted a shot right through Rowe’s legs to make it 3-1 in the 86th minute.

Orlando fashioned a couple of set pieces but couldn’t do much with them and the clock ran out on the Lions’ 2020 season.

The Lions out-shot New England (11-9) but the Revs got more on goal (6-3). Orlando had more corners (6-5), held more possession (61.2%-38.8%) and, passed more accurately (86%-77%).

“I’m very proud of this group. I’m very proud of the players,” Pareja said of his 2020 team. “Today people have seen us, the people recognize this group, the people know that they are good competitors and we’re proud of that.”

“I’m very proud of the team, of my teammates,” Nani said. “We talked a couple minutes ago. We had a team who’ve been working so hard, who’ve been improving so much, and everyone could see it on the field. In one season you can see so much difference on each player. And I’m so, so happy for what this team gave me. They made me believe we could win this league. They made me believe I could win a league again. Even at my age.”

Orlando City’s season is over. It doesn’t feel good right now, but it was a great season and any of us would have taken this if offered at the start of the year.

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Lion Links: 7/3/25

Orlando Pride loan five players out, Orlando City academy players selected for All-Star Team, USMNT beats Guatemala, and more.

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1 hour ago

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July 3, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride

How’s it going, Mane Landers? It’s been a weird week for me so far, as it’s felt simultaneously like it’s flying by and taking forever for the weekend to get here. All of the soccer has been nice at least, and I’ve been able to get some reading and painting done when not swamped. But enough about me, let’s dive into today’s links!

Orlando Pride Loan Multiple Players Out

The Orlando Pride loaned out five players for the rest of the 2025 season, with four of them joining USL Super League teams. Forward Amanda Allen, who was loaned to Lexington SC last year and injured her shoulder in December, is headed to her home country of Canada to join Halifax Tides FC in the Northern Super League. As for the players headed to the USL Super League, right back Brianna Martinez will join Carolina Ascent FC, goalkeeper Kat Asman and forward Mariana Larroquette were loaned to Lexington, and Aryssa Mahrt was sent to Spokane Zephyr FC. These loans should provide solid opportunities for minutes for these players, so hopefully they can make some noise with their respective teams.

Orlando City Academy Players Make All-Star Team

The rosters for the 2025 MLS NEXT All-Star Game are out and Orlando City B midfielders Gustavo Caraballo and Dylan Judelson were both selected for the event. The East All-Stars will be coached by Orlando City SC Academy Director Javier Carrillo, who also coached Orlando’s U-18 team to victory in the Generation Adidas Cup this year. Caraballo was named MVP of that tournament’s U-18 age group and scored 16 goals over the course of the MLS NEXT season. Judelson appeared in 32 games for Orlando this season and could factor into Canada’s U-17 World Cup plans come November. The MLS NEXT All-Star Game will take place on July 21 and can be viewed on the MLS YouTube channel.

USMNT Takes Down Guatemala in Gold Cup

The United States Men’s National Team secured a spot in the Concacaf Gold Cup final after winning 2-1 against Guatemala in St. Louis. The Yanks got off to a hot start thanks to Diego Luna’s brace in the first 15 minutes of the match. The offense wasn’t able to extend the lead beyond that though, and a late goal by Olger Escobar made the match a bit more tense the U.S. would have liked. Regardless, the U.S. got the job done in the end and will play in Sunday’s final in Houston.

USWNT Breezes Past Canada in Friendly

The United States Women’s National Team beat Canada in convincing fashion, shutting out its northern rival 3-0 in a friendly. Sam Coffey and Claire Hutton scored in the first half to give the USWNT a nice lead, and Yazmeen Ryan came off the bench to put the nail in the coffin with a late goal. The defense did well to claim its third clean sheet of this series of summer friendlies. Emily Sams didn’t make an appearance for the U.S., and Zara Chavoshi didn’t come off the bench for Canada either.

NWSL Announces Layout For 2026 Schedule

The 2026 NWSL regular season will kick off on March 13 and finish on Nov. 1 according to the league’s announced framework for next year’s action. Although there will be 16 teams next year, the playoff format remains the same and the top eight teams in the standings will qualify, with the 2026 NWSL Championship set for Nov. 21. There will once again be a balanced schedule, with each team playing 30 matches over the course of 27 weeks. The league will also notably be on break for a majority of June due to the FIFA World Cup, citing expectations to accommodate stadium demands in markets where World Cup games will take place

Free Kicks

  • Boston Legacy FC signed American midfielder Annie Karich as its first player ahead of its inaugural season next year. Karich spent the past two seasons with SC Freiburg in Germany and joins Boston as a free agent.
  • San Diego FC forward Anders Dreyer was named MLS Player of the Month after recording three goals and six assists in June. He leads the league with 23 goal contributions this season and is a major reason behind San Diego’s rise to the top of the Western Conference standings.
  • Atlanta United bolstered its defense by signing Albanian center back Enea Mihaj to a contract through 2028. The 26-year-old joins as a free agent after spending the past three seasons with FC Famalicao in Portugal top flight.
  • The 2025 Women’s European Championship kicked off in Switzerland, with Finland beating Iceland 1-0 in the first match of the tournament. Switzerland struck first against Norway, but Ada Hegerberg scored an equalizer and an own goal by Swiss defender Julia Stierli gave Norway the 2-1 win.
  • It seems the Concacaf co-hosts for next year’s World Cup will be able to serve suspensions in friendlies rather than missing out on the World Cup.

That’s all I have for you all this time around. I hope you all have a wonderful Thursday and rest of your week!

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Lion Links: 7/2/25

Big names leave Toronto FC, hot conditions in Club World Cup match, FIFPRO makes ACL recommendations, and more.

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1 day ago

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July 2, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Happy Wednesday, everyone. It already feels like it’s been a long week, as I just got home from being out of town traveling up and down the East Coast for the last few days. The soccer world hasn’t stopped in my absence though, and as usual we have a lot to cover today. Let’s wish a happy birthday to OCB defender Tahir Reid-Brown, and jump into today’s links!

Italians Leave Toronto FC

It’s the end of an era at Toronto FC, as the club has parted ways with both Federico Bernardeschi, and Lorenzo Insigne. The Reds used both of their two buyouts of guaranteed contracts this season in order to get the transactions done, so the club was pretty keen to get them out the door. It’s hard to blame the Reds, as Insigne was the second-highest paid player in the league while Bernardeschi was the fifth highest. They didn’t have much to show for it though, as Bernardeschi had 26 goals and 22 assists in 99 games across all competitions, while Insigne had 19 goals and 17 assists in 76 matches. TFC never made the playoffs while the duo was on the team, and the decision to turn the page is an understandable one.

Difficult Conditions in Juventus vs. Real Madrid

The Club World Cup Round of 16 concluded on Tuesday, with Real Madrid knocking off Juventus 1-0 in afternoon match. Kylian Mbappe made his tournament debut for Madrid as a substitute, but it was Gonzalo Garcia’s 54th-minute goal that made the difference in the game. Juve boss Igor Tudor highlighted the difficult conditions in Miami, saying in his postgame press conference that 10 different players asked to come off the field during the game. Tudor didn’t outright blame the loss on the high heat and humidity during the 3 p.m. kickoff at Hard Rock Stadium, but noted that they were among several factors that made the game a very difficult one for his side.

FIFPRO Makes Recommendations to Curb ACL Tears

Amid a rash of ACL injuries to women’s soccer players, FIFPRO has made some recommendations to cut down on the rate at which they occur. Rather than focusing on things that can’t be controlled, the federation has suggested modifying the calendar, number of games, and the playing surfaces. FIFPRO member Alex Culvin is calling for minimum standards in the women’s game relating to pitch conditions and access to physiotherapists. More research around risk factors is also necessary, as is implementing preventative exercises at the youth levels of the game.

Transfer Rumor Roundup

Summer transfer business is in full swing, so let’s catch up on some of the hot rumors currently flying around. First up, Arsenal is said to be in the final stages of signing Viktor Gyokeres to a five-year deal. Staying in the Premier League, Manchester United is reportedly interested in signing midfielder Fabian Ruiz from Paris Saint-Germain. Juventus reportedly is close to signing Jonathan David after his contract with Lille expired. Finally, Bayern Munich is reportedly preparing a formal offer for Liverpool for Colombian winger Luis Diaz.

Free Kicks

Apparently a non -#usmnt drone has crashed the training session. US Soccer staff aiming to identify it.

— Jeff Carlisle (@jeffreycarlisle.bsky.social) 2025-07-01T17:25:12.954Z

That’s all I have for you this morning. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 7/1/25

Pride signings, OCB draws, both U.S. national teams in action Wednesday, and more.

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2 days ago

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July 1, 2025

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Jeremy Reper

Welcome to July, Mane Landers. If you’re like me, you balanced the excitement and dread of the USMNT advancing on penalty kicks the other night. It was one thing watching Guatemala take out Canada but a whole other level of heart palpitating stress while watching the U.S. avoid a similar fate. There’s no time to relax with plenty of soccer to watch as we head towards Independence Day. Before we get to the links, please join us in wishing Orlando Pride/USWNT defender Emily Sams and OCB defender Clovis Archange each a happy birthday.

Orlando Pride Signings

The Orlando Pride announced a pair of transactions Monday. Midfielder Viviana Villacorta and the club have agreed to exercise the midfielder’s mutual option for the 2026 season. Villacorta was the No. 9 overall pick in the 2021 NWSL Draft. The Pride also signed midfielder Ally Lemos to a new contract through the 2027 season with a mutual option for 2028. The Pride selected Lemos with the No. 9 overall pick of the 2024 NWSL Draft. Orlando continues to lock down current players ahead of time. Now, we wait to see if any new players will be added.

OCB Earns a Point on the Road

Orlando City B played Philadelphia Union II to a 1-1 draw in a Monday afternoon match. Unfortunately, the Young Lions lost the end-of-regulation shootout 4-2 and did not get the additional point. Gustavo Caraballo assisted Jackson Platts on the early goal for OCB. Philadelphia equalized early in the second half. Carlos Mercado was the difference maker in the match, recording a career-high 12 saves.

USMNT’s Gold Cup Run Continues vs. Guatemala

The USMNT will face Guatemala Wednesday night in a 2025 Gold Cup semifinal match. The U.S. advanced past Costa Rica on penalties thanks to a stellar performance from goalkeeper Matt Freese. Guatemala stunned Canada with a second-half equalizer and advanced on penalty kicks. Guatemala has been the overachieving underdog of the competition so far. This will be the USMNT’s 17th Gold Cup semifinal appearance.

USWNT Hosts Canada

The USWNT will host Canada in a third friendly of this international window Wednesday at Washington, D.C.’s Audi Field. The U.S. is coming off two 4-0 victories over the Republic of Ireland. Canada should prove a tougher opponent for Emma Hayes’ squad. There is a possibility that the match will feature two Orlando Pride players — Emily Sams for the U.S. and Zara Chavoshi for Canada. Kerry Abello has returned to her club team after picking up a knock.

Free Kicks

Sources: Bayer Leverkusen are finalizing a deal to sign USMNT attacker Malik Tillman from PSV.Deal in region of $40m.

— Tom Bogert (@tombogert.bsky.social) 2025-06-30T20:36:24.359Z
  • Former Orlando Pride midfielder Erika Tymrak has retired from professional soccer.

That will do it for today. Check back as we get you ready for Orlando City’s match against Charlotte FC this weekend. Vamos Orlando!

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