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Orlando City vs. Portland Timbers: Final Score 2-1 as Lions Drop Final on a Pair of Set Pieces

The Lions stood toe to toe with the Timbers in the MLS is Back final but failed to deal with two set pieces and it was their undoing.

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4 years ago

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

An Orlando City team that dealt pretty well with set pieces all tournament long failed to deal with two of them, and that was all it took for the Portland Timbers to win 2-1 in the MLS is Back Tournament final. Portland center backs Larrys Mabiala and Dario Zuparic, of all people, got on the scoreboard, and that was enough to best Mauricio Pereyra’s lone tally for the Lions at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.

It was just Orlando’s second loss to the Timbers, as the Lions dropped to 3-2-1 in all competitions against Portland since joining MLS. The loss stings, particularly as it was a final, but Orlando City acquitted itself well throughout the tournament and Oscar Pareja credited the Timbers’ defense.

“We found a team that clogged the last third of the field and had their block very low, and we were missing that last pass,” Pareja said after the match. “I think they defended well. I think you have to give credit to a team that has it clear. They lowered the block and we couldn’t break it.”

Pareja went with the same lineup, starting at the back with goalkeeper Pedro Gallese behind a back line of Joao Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Ruan. Sebas Mendez and Uri Rosell were the holding midfielders behind an attacking midfield of Nani, Pereyra, and Chris Mueller, with Tesho Akindele at the top of the formation.

The game began cautiously, with Orlando holding most of the possession but being deliberate in the buildup so as not to give Portland opportunities in transition. As a result, the first 15 minutes went by without a shot attempt before Mueller had one blocked at the top of the area.

A minute later, Portland got forward for perhaps the first time and a great long ball from Sebastian Blanco nearly picked out Jeremy Ebobisse, but Gallese came off his line to punch it away. The Peruvian got a piece of Ebobisse on the follow-through and the Timbers’ forward needed a few minutes to recover.

Pereyra sent Nani in behind with a gorgeous ball in the 19th minute, but instead of taking a first-time shot, he brought it down and Portland was able to knock it out for a corner.

The Timbers opened the scoring against the run of play in the 27th minute. On a rather harmless-looking, long-range set piece, Diego Valeri served up an incredible back-post ball for Mabiala, who fought off a challenge from Moutinho and headed it off of Gallese’s hand and into the net for a 1-0 Timbers lead.

The Lions continued probing and leveled the game in the 39th minute. Nani crossed in from the left side for Pereyra and the ball pinged off a couple legs as Eryk Williamson came in from behind to challenge. Pereyra recovered first and slotted just inside the near post to make it 1-1. It was the Uruguayan’s second goal of the tournament.

Orlando nearly got Mueller an excellent chance two minutes later, as the young winger got the ball at the top of the area and spun around to try to face goal, but he showed a bit too much of the ball and the Timbers’ defense was able to knock it away.

After Valeri tried to go under the wall on a dangerous late free kick, the teams went into the break knotted up at 1-1. Orlando led in shots (5-4, with each team getting one on target), possession (63.4%), and passing accuracy (90%-81%).

Portland tried to jump on Orlando early in the second half, but Valeri saw his free kick saved by Gallese in the 48th minute and Blanco fired a shot that Jansson blocked out for a corner in the 51st.

Orlando nearly pulled off a great team effort in the 54th minute, when Pereyra dropped deep, pulling Diego Chara out of the middle and sending a forward ball to Akindele, who laid off for Mueller. The latter then sent a cross to Nani but the captain didn’t make good contact on his first-time shot attempt and it sailed off target.

The Lions nearly scored two minutes later, when a layoff found Mendez in the box, but Mabiala came out to block his potential go-ahead shot.

Gallese then made two outstanding saves in the 65th minute to keep the game level. First, he dove right to parry a Valeri free kick wide of goal. On the ensuing corner, the ball deflected out to Ebobisse, who fired, and El Pulpo made a huge stop.

That only saved the Lions for the moment though, because the Timbers scored on the next corner. The cross from Valeri found Eryk Williamson near the top left corner of the box and he made a quick move to keep Pereyra from clearing, then sent in a weak shot that took a deflection to Zuparic, who touched it through Nani and into the net for the eventual game-winner in the 66th minute.

“We work hard on that part and things didn’t bounce our way. We made a couple of mistakes,” Pareja said of the set pieces. “But the team was prepared and these boys work hard on that part, and sometimes you win games on those actions. Sometimes you lose games like that. You have to accept it and improve it, even when you win it. Today was one of those games. They had two chances on set plays and they took advantage.”

The Lions got a few set pieces at the other end over the next several minutes but could do nothing with them. Then Ruan got forward and nearly picked out Akindele in the 75th minute with a cross, but the defense was again sharp for Portland and cleared the danger.

In the 82nd minute, Jansson sent a low free kick just wide of goal but Steve Clark looked to have it covered for the Timbers. Benji Michel won a free kick in the 89th minute but that nearly turned into an insurance goal for Portland. Pereyra didn’t get enough loft on his service and the Timbers countered with numbers. Valeri ended up with the ball, but Gallese again came up big with a save to keep the Lions in it.

Orlando should have equalized in stoppage time. A free kick found Jansson, who could only flick it on. Substitute Kyle Smith tried to pick it out of the air with the net gaping in front of him, but he couldn’t make good contact with the aerial ball and it sailed agonizingly over the bar.

That was that. The whistle went soon after and Orlando’s run came to an end.

Orlando finished with more shots (14-13), but the Lions weren’t sharp, getting only one on target to Portland’s six. City held 63.8% of the possession and was the more accurate passing team (89%-79%) but just couldn’t find that little bit of quality in front of goal.

Nani said that the team can take a lot away from its MLS is Back run.

“We learned we are a better team at this moment,” he said. “We improved as a group, as a club. And let’s be honest, we must accept that we are not the same team as before. And you all know that. You’ve all seen our games. You’ve seen this final. You’ve seen the way that we are playing. You see the way every team we play behaves against us.

“We know we are a team who needs to improve. But at this moment I’m so happy to be on this team, with this coach, with this staff. We took these two months to improve and we did it. And to every team in MLS now who will face us, they know they will face a strong team.”

That’s all for the tournament, folks. The Lions are back in regular-season action on Saturday, Aug. 22, when they will visit Inter Miami with kickoff scheduled for 8 p.m.

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Orlando City

Orlando City at CF Montreal: Three Keys to Victory

What does Orlando City need to do on the road against CF Montreal to take home all three points ?

Published

9 hours ago

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April 18, 2024

By

Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Orlando City opened the season against CF Montreal, playing to a 0-0 draw at Inter&Co Stadium back in February. Now, the Lions head to the Great White North to play the pesky Canadian club again. There’s no Concacaf Champions Cup competition to worry about this time, so hopefully Orlando City can get a victory.

What does Orlando City need to do to follow up the D.C. United victory with another win?

Just Say No

Outscoring your opponents while giving up two goals is all well and good, but outscoring your opponents while also keeping a clean sheet is much better. Orlando City has given up 13 goals over seven matches. It’s actually worse than that considering that the club has two clean sheets meaning those 13 goals came in just five matches. The Lions need to do better at not conceding goals.

Of course, one of those clean sheets came against Montreal to start the season, and the entire defense is seemingly healthy and ready to go. Our old foe Josef Martinez is always a threat and Matias Coccaro has three goals for Montreal so far this season. Stopping them is crucial. If Orlando City can maintain the same defensive discipline it showed in the previous match against Montreal, it will make earning points on the road much easier.

Designated Player Goals

Orlando City has scored seven goals so far this season. Duncan McGuire leads the team with three goals, thanks to his goal last week. Do you know who hasn’t scored yet? If you said any of Orlando City’s Designated Players, you would be correct. I’m not going to ring any emergency bells just yet, but it’d be a lot cooler if Luis Muriel, Martin Ojeda, or Facundo Torres scored a goal this week.

I think they are all close to breaking out. Torres has scored this year, just not in the MLS regular season. Muriel has been getting closer each match, and is still contributing in other ways. The same can be said of Ojeda. My point is that the goals are coming. Perhaps a trip to another country is exactly what they need to get off the mark.

The Battle on the Wings

Orlando City will be playing against former Lion Ruan. He lines up on the right for Montreal and will be a challenge for either Rafael Santos or Kyle Smith, depending on who gets the start. Of course, if Ivan Angulo is playing in his usual role on the left side of Orlando City’s attack, there could be some interesting races between the two speedy players.

I think that the other side of the field is where the match might be won or lost. Since Orlando City fell out of the Concacaf Champions Cup, the team has been on a more regular schedule. That has allowed Dagur Dan Thorhallsson to regain his form in the right fullback position for the Lions. He scored a goal last week, has an assist on the season, four crosses, and 10 key passes. He is an integral part of Orlando City’s attack and if he can win the battles against Raheem Edwards and Joaquin Sosa on the right side of Montreal’s lineup, he could have another big night.

That is what I will be looking for Saturday night. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/18/24

Barbra Banda’s opportunity in Orlando, Omar Gonzalez’s mental health struggles, UEFA Champions League quarterfinals finish, and more.

Published

12 hours ago

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April 18, 2024

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Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Mark Thor

How’s it going, Mane Landers? I hope this week has been treating you well as we gear up for another weekend packed with Orlando soccer. It’s been a fairly busy week for me as I juggle work with keeping an eye on my cat. He’s a bit of a menace, but at least in a cute way. I’ll spare you my rambling on how great he is, and instead give you today’s links from around the soccer world.

Opportunity Knocks for Barbra Banda

Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda landed in the City Beautiful and spoke on how her first week with the team has been going. While there’s plenty of buzz surrounding the Pride on how Banda should improve the team’s offense, playing in the NWSL will also help the 24-year-old further develop her game.

“I think the league is quite good. I’ve been following it from way back,” she said. “I think it’s a very interesting league, very strong. All the teams are very physical, fast. So I think it’s good for myself to improve.”

Now that she’s with the Pride, soccer fans around the world will now have better access to watch one of the best forwards in women’s soccer. Banda also talked about the warm welcome she received at the airport and you can check out more of her reaction to that and some of her first few days in Orlando in the video below.

Portland Thorns Head Coach Reassigned

Mike Norris is no longer the head coach of the Portland Thorns after the club made him a technical director instead. The Thorns have never had a worse start to an NWSL season, losing three of their four games this year and still searching for their first win. Rob Gale will serve as the team’s interim head coach while the club does a global search for a replacement. I’m a bit surprised that Norris wasn’t given a few more weeks to turn things around, considering Portland is just a win away from being back in the thick of things. We’ll see if the Thorns will get that win with Gale at the helm when they take on the struggling Houston Dash Saturday.

Omar Gonzalez Shares His Mental Health Journey

American defender Omar Gonzalez discussed the difficulties he’s had over the course of his year and the toll it has had on his mental health. His own goal in the USMNT’s loss to Trinidad & Tobago that cost the team its chance to qualify for the 2018 World Cup would be rough for any player to overcome, but Gonzalez stated that head injuries made a stressful few years of his life much more difficult. Gonzalez admitted that he had daily suicidal thoughts until he reached out for needed help while with Toronto FC. Things have since improved and he’s currently with his hometown team, FC Dallas. I think it’s helpful for players like Gonzalez to be open about the mental health problems athletes face. Hopefully this lets other athletes know they aren’t alone in these struggles and encourages them to reach out for help if needed.

UEFA Champions League Semifinals Are Set

Only four teams are still standing in the UEFA Champions League after the quarterfinals wrapped up with plenty of dramatic soccer. The matchup between Real Madrid and Manchester City lived up to expectations with a penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw in England. Real Madrid prevailed and ended City’s run, with Andriy Lunin making two saves in the shootout. In the other quarterfinal, Bayern Munich advanced after beating Arsenal 1-0, thanks to Joshua Kimmich’s head.

It all sets up for a thrilling pair of semifinals and potential storylines for the final. Will Bayern and Borussia Dortmund reach the final for a rivalry match for the ages? Can Kylian Mbappe finally give Paris Saint-Germain a Champions League title, and will it be at the expense of Real Madrid? If the semifinals are anything like the quarterfinals, it will be great soccer to enjoy.

Free Kicks

  • Orlando City Director of Equipment Operations Charles Raycroft received some deserved recognition after reaching an impressive milestone in his career.
  • Romario, who was named FIFA World Player of the Year in 1994 after helping Brazil win a World Cup, has registered himself as a player for America Football Club. The 58-year-old has been the president of the club since 2009 and now has the chance to play alongside his son Romarinho.

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

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 4/17/24

Orlando City rises in power rankings, Orlando Pride waive two players, Champions League results, and more.

Published

2 days ago

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April 17, 2024

By

Image courtesy of Orlando Pride / Mark Thor

Welcome to Wednesday, Mane Landers. Time to start your day with some tasty links. It’s shaping up to be an exciting weekend with Orlando City, the Orlando Pride, and Orlando City B all playing. Last week, Orlando’s teams ended up with seven out of nine possible points. Here’s hoping we see nine out of nine this weekend. Let’s get to the links.

Orlando City Moving On Up

Starting the season 0-3-1 is a good way to be in the cellar of the utterly meaningless MLSsoccer.com power rankings. Orlando City is now starting to climb up the rankings thanks to three straight results. The Lions moved up four spots to 21st after the 3-2 victory over DC United. It was Duncan McGuire’s goal that secured the win, and his performance off the bench was a talking point for this week as well.

Farewell Kaylie Collins and Tori Hansen

The Orlando Pride announced that goalkeeper Kaylie Collins and defender Tori Hansen were waived on Tuesday. Both players were on loan in Australia’s A-League Women ,with Collins at Western Sydney Wanderers FC and Hansen with Melbourne Victory FC. Collins and Hansen were both NWSL draft picks for the Pride, though neither saw significant minutes with the club.

Barbra Banda Begins Training

Barbra Banda participated in her first training with the Pride Tuesday. It’s uncertain how much playing time she may get this week, but it’s possible she makes her first appearance against the San Diego Wave this Friday. Please remember that it sometimes takes new players time to get used to a new club, a new city, and a new league. Of course, I’m still hoping she comes on and scores a brace against the Wave.

Wild Matches in Champions League Quarterfinals

Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund both overcame deficits in the first leg to advance to the UEFA Champions League semifinals. PSG dropped four goals on Barcelona to win 6-4 on aggregate. Barcelona scored first, but made things hard on itself when Ronald Araújo was sent off.

Borussia Dortmund also scored four goals, defeating Atletico Madrid 5-4 on aggregate. Dortmund gave up an own goal, but battled back to take the lead in the match and then the lead in the tie thanks to goals scored in the 71st and 74th minutes. It was a wild, fun match to watch. Dortmund and PSG will meet in the semifinals.

Free Kicks

  • MLS will now start implementing the new rules for off-field treatments, timed substitutions, and in-stadium VAR announcements. The idea is to maximize effective match time.
  • The International Football Association Board (IFAB) will test new time limit rules during the 2024-2025 season for how long keepers can hold the ball with potential consequences including giving the opposing team a corner or a throw-in.
  • Finally, our thoughts are with the friends and family following the passing of Joel McKell.

That will do it for today. Check back later in the week as we get you ready for the Orlando City, Orlando Pride, and OCB matches this weekend. Vamos Orlando!

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