Hello, Mane Landers! I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I’ve been working at Wrigley Field all week for Chicago Cubs baseball games and Under Armour. Today marks 10 years since The Mane Land was first created on WordPress back in 2014! Let’s also all wish Orlando City midfielder Wilder Cartagena a happy birthday before we dive into today’s links.

Lions Fall On the Road to the Columbus Crew

Orlando City’s attempt at a late comeback fell short in a 4-3 loss on the road to the Columbus Crew on Saturday. The Crew were leading 3-0 late in the second half before Ramiro Enrique and Luis Muriel scored for Orlando to make it 3-2. Columbus added another goal to extend its lead to 4-2 before Muriel scored again for the Lions in stoppage time. Orlando’s three-match winning streak ends, and the Lions will have to wait another week to try to punch their ticket to the MLS playoffs. They’re fifth in the Eastern Conference with 43 points, and their next match will be on the road on Saturday against FC Dallas.

Pride Extend Unbeaten Run With Win Over Bay FC

The Orlando Pride went to PayPal Park and left with a 1-0 win over Bay FC on Friday. Barbra Banda scored the lone goal in the match to seal the victory for Orlando to stay undefeated this season. It was also the club’s fifth consecutive shutout. The win extends the Pride’s unbeaten streak to 21 matches in the regular season, clinching a top-four finish in the NWSL to host a home playoff match for the first time in club history in the process. Orlando remains atop the NWSL table with 51 points and is seven points above the Washington Spirit in second with 44 points. The Pride will return to Inter&Co Stadium on Saturday to take on the Houston Dash.

U.S. Wins Bronze Medal in Women’s U-20 World Cup

Orlando Pride midfielder Ally Lemos came off the bench in the second half for the United States U-20 Women’s National Team in the third-place match against the Netherlands in the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. The U.S. defeated the Netherlands 2-1 after extra time to win the bronze medal. Ally Sentnor scored the opening goal for the U.S. before the Netherlands equalized in the first half. After a scoreless second half, the Netherlands gave up an own goal in extra time, and the U.S. claimed third place in the tournament.

Orlando Reportedly a Host City for 2025 FIFA Club World Cup

Inter&Co Stadium will reportedly be chosen to host matches for the upcoming 2025 FIFA Club World Cup next summer. The tournament is scheduled to kick off in June and last through July, and it will feature 32 clubs from around the world. Other cities and stadiums linked with hosting include the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Lumen Field in Seattle, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

Free Kicks

• Orlando Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse has set a new NWSL record for the most shutouts in a single season.

• USWNT and Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman exited in the second half of Friday’s match against the Kansas City Current due to a back injury, and there is currently no update on her return.
• Christian Pulisic’s stellar form continued over the weekend, as he scored the opening goal for AC Milan in its 2-1 win over rival Inter Milan and has now scored in five consecutive matches.

• Manchester City’s John Stones scored an equalizer in stoppage time against Arsenal in a thrilling 2-2 draw. Both teams remain undefeated this season and Manchester City remains atop the English Premier League table.
• Lina Souloukou has stepped down from her role as AS Roma’s chief executive officer after receiving backlash from fans due to the club parting ways with manager Daniele De Rossi last week.

That will do it for me today, Mane Landers. Enjoy your Monday and I’ll see you next time.

Happy Friday! I don’t know about you, but September has been flying by for me. I’m working throughout most of the weekend, but I am looking forward to catching a few games from a packed slate of soccer over the next few days. Before we dive into today’s links, let’s all wish a happy birthday to Orlando Pride rookie Cori Dyke!

Facundo Torres Makes Team of the Matchday

Orlando City forward Facundo Torres was named to the MLS Team of the Matchday for his role in the team’s 2-0 win over Charlotte FC. The 24-year-old scored on the volley to give the Lions the lead and also had three key passes to keep Orlando’s offense cooking. He’s been on fire as of late, scoring four goals over the past three games. I’m a bit surprised not to see other Lions at least make the bench of this Team of the Matchday, particularly with Martin Ojeda and Robin Jansson providing strong performances.

Orlando Pride Take On Bay FC Tonight

I hope you all got plenty of rest last night, because the Orlando Pride have a 10:30 p.m. match on the road tonight against Bay FC. It’s the second match between the two teams this season, with Orlando winning 1-0 at home on May 11. Bay FC turned a corner in the time since that match, climbing up to eighth in the standings. This will also be the Pride’s first trip to Paypal Park to take on the expansion team. Pride forward Julie Doyle, who was born in California and played four seasons at Santa Clara University, spoke on how she’s excited to play in the Bay area again. She also weighed in on how the Pride’s defense has extended beyond the back line during this impressive season.

USMNT Goals for 2026 World Cup Revealed

United States Men’s National Team Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino stated that the aim is for the U.S. to make the quarterfinals when it hosts the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

“The truth is the quarterfinal is the target,” the head coach said on an episode of the It’s Called Soccer podcast. “They were very clear and I am very honest to you and I think that was the idea, the challenge. They know that it is going to be difficult but I am a person and we are people that really, really believe that we can. We all think that the talented group can perform better and we accept the challenge.”

With the expanded format that includes 48 teams, the U.S. would need to advance out of the group stage and win twice in the knockout stage to reach the quarterfinals. Pochettino has plenty to do to get the team firing on all cylinders before then. Copa America exposed some of the USMNT’s struggles in the midfield, and the new head coach will need to figure out who will spearhead the attack as well.

Champions League Opening Round Wraps Up

The first round of Champions League matches in this new format concluded on Thursday. AS Monaco had a big 2-1 win over Barcelona, with 18-year-old striker George Ilenikhena scoring the winner in his Champions League debut. Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal scored his first Champions League goal as well, but the Spanish club couldn’t overcome a red card to Eric Garcia just 10 minutes into the match.

Jose Gimenez scored a late winner to give Atletico Madrid a 2-1 win against RB Leipzig in Spain. Bayer Leverkusen cruised to a 4-0 win over Feyenoord, with 21-year-old striker Florian Wirtz scoring twice in the first half. Benfica also kicked off its Champions League campaign with a win, beating Red Star Belgrade 2-1 in Serbia. French club Brest got its first European competition win by winning 2-1 against Austria’s Sturm Graz. Arsenal and Atalanta fought to a scoreless draw in Italy, with Arsenal’s David Raya making a showstopping pair of saves to deny Mateo Retegui from the spot.

Free Kicks

• Former Orlando Pride player Thais Reiss has torn her ACL and MCL in training with Spokane Zephyr FC in the USL Super League. It’s unfortunate news, and hopefully she’s able to make a smooth recovery.

• Neither of Orlando City’s goals against Charlotte FC on Wednesday were nominated for MLS Goal of the Matchday, but that’s a testament to just how many great goals were scored in the midweek. Anderson Julio’s goal from downtown for Real Salt Lake is definitely worth checking out if you haven’t already.

• Here’s a nice breakdown of the MLS Golden Boot race, which has been close throughout the season and could come down to Decision Day on Oct. 19. Christian Benteke currently holds a two-goal lead over Chicho Arango, Denis Bouanga, and Luis Suárez.
• Just two days after losing 9-2 to Bayern Munich, Croatian club Dinamo Zagreb fired Sergej Jakirović as its manager.

That’s all I have for you today, Mane Landers. I hope you all have a fantastic Friday and rest of your weekend!

It may be a Thursday, but Orlando City’s win Wednesday night makes it feel a little bit more like a Friday. It’s been pretty great seeing all three of Orlando’s soccer teams performing well over the past few weeks. Let’s dive right into Orlando City’s win and more in today’s links!

Orlando City Beats Charlotte FC at Home

The Lions hosted Charlotte FC in a midweek matchup and took all three points in a 2-0 victory. Orlando’s attacking stars showed up when needed, resulting in a nice pair of goals in the second half. The defense also took care of business to secure the team’s third consecutive clean sheet. With another win under their belt, the Lions are now fourth in the Eastern Conference standings with 43 points and a tiebreaker (wins) over the New York Red Bulls. The result was also Head Coach Oscar Pareja’s 171st regular-season win in MLS, putting him in sole possession of fifth on the all-time list.

Oscar Pareja Discusses Late Season Surge

After a sluggish start to the season, Orlando City is parlaying another strong summer into a great run to close out the season. The Lions have won seven of their last nine league games and are on a nine-game unbeaten streak at home across all competitions. Head Coach Oscar Pareja is no stranger to getting an MLS team performing at its best this time of year.

“I do feel that urgency to start heating up better for us to win games. It is a part of the season where you start feeling kind of the smell of autumn,” the Colombian said in a recent one-on-one conversation with MLSsoccer.com. “And that is related to competition, with not much mistakes, and winning the games that you must win. So that is really what we feel now.”

He also spoke on the reasons behind Orlando’s slow start, improvements by Martin Ojeda and Luis Muriel, and how the team is juggling multiple options at forward. It’s a great interview from Pareja that details some of the team’s decisions this season.

Breaking Down the NWSL Awards Contenders

With only six games left for each team in the NWSL season, it’s becoming clearer which players are contenders to win an award at the end of the season. The MVP race looks to be between Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda and the Kansas City Current’s Temwa Chawinga, and it may just come down to if Banda can close the gap some in the Golden Boot race. Pride center back Emily Sams is the frontrunner for Defender of the Year for her role in an Orlando defense that’s only allowed 12 goals in 20 games this season. That defense is partly why Anna Moorhouse isn’t the favorite for Goalkeeper of the Year, despite 11 clean sheets this season. Seb Hines is nearly a lock to win Coach of the Year, although Kansas City’s Vlatko Andonovski has a shot depending on how the rest of the season shakes out.

U.S. Falls in U-20 World Cup Semifinals

The United States U-20 Women’s National Team wasn’t able to pull off a comeback in the U-20 Women’s World Cup semifinals, losing 1-0 to Korea DPR. Pride midfielder Ally Lemos started for the U.S. and played every minute of the game. Choe Il Son scored the only goal of the game in the first half , and the U.S. wasn’t able to find an equalizer despite some decent chances. The U.S. will miss out on Sunday’s final, but will take on the Netherlands to close out its tournament in the third-place match on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.

Free Kicks

• Orlando City B duo Justin Ellis and Colin Guske both scored in the United States U-18 National Team’s 2-0 win over Peru in a youth tournament in Japan. Ellis also scored in a 4-3 loss to Japan as the U.S. went 1-1-1 in its three matches.
• Lionel Messi won MLS Goal of the Matchday, beating out Orlando’s Rafael Santos and LA Galaxy pair Edwin Cerrillo and Riqui Puig. Santos’ impressive strike from distance deserved more than the 7.6% share of the vote it received.
• Toyota Stadium, home of FC Dallas, is set to undergo major renovations that include adding a roof to provide more shade to fans and increasing seating capacity.
• In Champions League action, Manchester City and Inter Milan played to a scoreless draw in England while Paris Saint-Germain needed an own goal to win 1-0 over Girona. Borussia Dortmund and Celtic also enjoyed wins to start their campaigns.
• AS Roma sacked Daniele De Rossi just four games into the Serie A season and hired Ivan Juric.
• French striker Anthony Martial landed in Greece to sign with AEK Athens on a free transfer.

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