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Orlando City

Orlando City vs. Atlanta United: Final Score 3-1 as Lions Get First Win Over Five Stripes

Junior Urso, Chris Mueller, and Nani supplied the offense and Orlando stayed organized in a deserved road win.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

Junior Urso, Chris Mueller, and Nani scored to serve as exorcists, banishing the Atlanta United demons in a deserved 3-1 road win by the Lions at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Despite being the team on fewer days of rest, Orlando City (4-2-2, 14 points) showed good energy on the press and in transition and defended well overall to finally beat Atlanta United (3-4-0, 9 points).

Mueller and Urso also added assists in the match.

The Lions won their second straight match and first true road game this season, and Orlando improved to 1-6-2 in the all-time league series against Atlanta — 1-7-2 in all competitions — and 1-2-2 at Atlanta. Now that Orlando has bloodied Atlanta, maybe this series can become a rivalry.

Head Coach Oscar Pareja said after the game that he was happy about the team’s commitment and energy on a short turnaround.

“The three points are the most important for the motivation,” he said. “This is the first time we beat Atlanta so we’re happy. We keep going.”

Pareja made four changes to his usual lineup, starting Pedro Gallese in net behind a back line of Joao Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Antonio Carlos, and Kyle Smith. The defensive midfield consisted of Uri Rosell and Andres Perea, behind an attacking midfield of Benji Michel, Urso, and Mueller, with Dike up top for the third consecutive match. Ruan, Sebas Mendez, and Nani started on the bench, with Mauricio Pereyra not in the 18 and Tesho Akindele not available for selection for the second consecutive match.

“It’s good news for all, knowing they took the responsibility against a very difficult rival and on a very difficult turf,” Pareja said of his young players starting in the attack. “And they had that character to come out and play that game that way. The young boys today showed the future is bright here. And the core of the players who have been getting results before, we had the opportunity to rest some of them and the boys came in and took that responsibility.”

Dike fired a shot across Atlanta’s bow in the first minute, skipping a shot just wide to the left. The rookie had a couple of players breaking and may have been better served to slip someone through but he didn’t miss by much. The Lions showed early on that they weren’t going to press as persistently as usual on short rest, instead hanging back and taking away options for goalkeeper Brad Guzan and his defenders when they tried to play out of the back.

“Today it was probably too much to ask the boys to go and press all the time,” Pareja said, due to the fixture congestion, traveling and quick turnaround. “So we considered that just giving them the ball sometimes will help us just to save some energy. That’s why I want to remark [about] the discipline defensively of the team. We knew that they would give us some space in the back and we took that.

Atlanta started to control the game about three minutes in and did so for about a solid five minutes, resulting in the game’s first corner. Brooks Lennon got onto the corner kick cross with a thunderous header but Gallese reached out one of his eight arms and made a spectacular goal-line save to keep it scoreless. The play was checked by VAR to see if it had crossed the line but it had not.

Orlando finally regained the ball and earned its own first corner in the 13th minute. Mueller sent in a perfect ball for Urso, who smashed a low header that skipped off the turf in front of Guzan and squirted through his legs for the opening goal — Urso’s first in MLS.

Urso sent a shot from outside the box just a bit wide in the 18th minute as Orlando got more of a hold on the match. Dike won a corner shortly thereafter and Mueller’s delivery found Carlos but the Brazilian was spinning a bit in the run-up and couldn’t make good contact, sending his header over in the 21st minute.

Atlanta’s Manuel Castro got his side’s second good look of the half just seconds later, dragging a shot wide of Gallese’s goal.

Perea fizzed a wicked cross through the top of the six in the 29th minute, but none of his teammates could get onto it. Then Dike won another corner off a good buildup when he took a pass from Michel and had his shot blocked behind. Atlanta cleared Mueller’s service, and as Moutinho was bringing the ball back into the area, the whistle blew for a foul on Urso, but it just looked like two Atlanta players collided with each other.

No matter, after a brief pause for the trainers to come out, Orlando scored its second. Moutinho won a ball off Guzan’s ensuing restart, sending his header to Mueller, who gathered and sent it forward to Dike in the middle. The rookie smartly played to his right for Michel and the second-year Homegrown wisely cut a pass back to Mueller, who had never stopped his run. Mueller finished into the empty net to make it 2-0 in the 35th. Mueller’s career-high sixth of the season — the most on Orlando — was a great way for the winger to celebrate his 24th birthday.

“I looked up and I thought that I was going to have a go at the outside back actually,” Mueller said about the play. “I looked up and I saw Daryl finding some space in between the two center backs, so I picked out a pass to him, and I saw that he turned and laid back [a pass] and I just continued my run and I was screaming to Benji for the ball back across because the space was so wide open and I was right there. And he found me so well and laid one on a platter and gave me the best birthday present I could have asked for.”

It was nearly Michel to Mueller again in the 41st as Benji got to the end line and crossed for Mueller, who was crashing the back post. Guzan stuck out a foot to knock the cross behind for a corner. The Lions should have made it 3-0 on the set piece, with Perea getting a free running header on the back side of the play but he sent his shot agonizingly wide of the net in the 42nd minute.

Atlanta failed to do much with a pair of late set pieces and the teams went to the break with the Lions ahead, 2-0. Orlando led in shots (7-4) and shots on goal (2-1), with both teams completing 84% of their passes and Atlanta holding a slim possession advantage (51.5%).

The Five Stripes dominated possession in the second half. Orlando stayed organized and looked for counter opportunities, coming close a few times before finally getting a late insurance goal.

Pity Martinez was dangerous throughout the second half, shooting from everywhere and nearly breaking in behind the defense multiple times. Jansson denied him getting in alone with a vital tackle early in the second half and good team defending prevented him getting a shot off in the box a few minutes later.

Lennon got off a glancing header in the 55th minute off a corner kick but it was well off target. Martinez then sent in either a shot or a cross. Gallese came off his line to grab it before being fouled by Adam Jahn.

Atlanta continued to look for offense and brought Cubo Torres and Ezequiel Barco on in the 60th minute. Orlando, which had been struggling to keep possession, brought on Nani and Sebas Mendez for Dike and an exhausted-looking Rosell.

Nani quickly got involved, getting whistled for a foul after taking an elbow from Torres that split his lip open. That led to a prolonged spell of possession and set pieces in the attacking third for Atlanta. Gallese made a good play to get up and tip a dangerous shot from Barco over the bar in the 66th minute.

The Lions finally got forward and won a counter shortly after that and this time the cross found Jansson at the near post but his flick skipped wide of the far post in the 69th minute on what would have been a nice goal for the Beefy Swede.

Disaster struck for Orlando in the 75th minute. Mendez headed a ball back toward his own goal and Gallese had time and space to come out and pick it up. Either Moutinho didn’t hear the Octopus calling him off or he just wanted to be safe, and the Portuguese left back sent an emphatic clearance out of play but was injured in the process. He was in obvious pain and holding his groin area and had to be stretchered off the field. Kamal Miller came on to replace him.

Michel put the ball in the net on a quick counter in the 81st minute but he was correctly ruled offside and the game remained at 2-0. That only lasted two more minutes, as the Five Stripes took advantage of Moutinho’s replacement.

Second-half sub Jurgen Damm received the ball on the right for Atlanta and faked toward the end line, then faked back the other way. Miller overplayed to block the cross and Damm went back toward the end line to get his cross in cleanly. Lennon peeled back off of Smith and looped a header inside the post to make it 2-1 in the 83rd minute.

Ruan nearly pulled that goal back a minute later, getting a touch to a good cross right in front, but it skipped wide of the post. But the Lions sealed the game two minutes later. The Atlanta defense played the ball to Martinez, who had been dropping deep to get on the ball and start the attack. Urso recognized this as his moment and pounced, dispossessing Martinez and breaking in on goal. As Guzan faced him up, Nani called for the ball on the left and Urso slid it over for the captain to finish. His third of the season made it 3-1 in the 86th minute.

“I know he don’t like when we pressure behind him,” Urso said of Martinez. “So I just waited for a good moment to try to take the ball, to recover the ball for us. When the defender gave it to him I knew it was a good moment to take the ball for us. So I tried to take it. And when I was in front of the keeper, if Nani doesn’t ask me, 100% I will shoot because I have a good position to score. But when I heard his voice, I know he’s free so I have to think about the team first. So I passed to Nani and he was happy and scored one more goal for us.”

“Today’s performance from Junior — not starting the last game — was incredible and another level of commitment from the team,” Pareja said.

The Lions got a scare in the 88th minute when Carlos cleared a bouncing ball, jumping high into the air. After the clearance, Lennon collided with the Brazilian’s foot and went down. The referee went over to review the replay but ruled that it was a legal play by Orlando City’s center back and no penalty was given.

From there, Orlando survived a few Atlanta set pieces, a shot off the crossbar by Barco in the 96th minute, and 10 minutes of stoppage time. The Lions heard the whistle and finally had their first win of the series.

Atlanta finished with more shots (11-10), shots on target (4-3), possession (61.3%), and corners (9-6), and out-passed Orlando (86%-79%). But the Lions made the most of enough of their opportunities to get the victory.

“It was a tough grind,” Mueller said. “I think that we put in a really good team performance. Obviously we had some guys rotated in there and I think everybody from top to bottom played an unbelievable game and I’m just so happy for the guys as well.”


It’s another quick turnaround for Orlando as the Lions will make the trip to Tennessee to face Nashville SC away on Wednesday night.

Orlando City

Orlando City vs. New York Red Bulls: Three Keys to Victory

What does Orlando City need to do to earn a second victory in a row at home this Saturday?

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC / Mark Thor

Orlando City is coming off its first win of the MLS regular season and will look to carry that momentum into Saturday night’s Eastern Conference matchup against the New York Red Bulls. The Lions will have several players back from international duty, making Oscar Pareja’s job a bit easier, although some of them will be on short rest. What does Orlando City need to do to earn all three points against the Red Bulls?

Stop Morgan

Lewis Morgan has been on a tear this season with five goals in five matches. That is more than every Orlando City player combined so far this season. The Red Bulls were held scoreless in two matches, meaning those five goals have come in three matches, with Morgan scoring a hat trick against Inter Miami. I love that he took it to the Herons like that, but I’m going to need him to cool off a bit against the Lions.

If Orlando City is to stop Morgan it will take excellent defending from the Lions’ back line and of course Pedro Gallese, who is returning from international duty. Orlando City also gets Wilder Cartagena and David Brekalo back, meaning more of the first choice lineup will be available to keep a clean sheet. With the match at home, earning a clean sheet is all the more important.

Proper Rest and Preperation

It might seem silly to say, but having more than a few days between matches is conducive to earning points. When Orlando City was participating in the Concacaf Champions Cup, the Lions never had time to properly recover or train with a game plan for the next match. Now, the Lions are able to do so, and the result against Austin FC reflects that.

Pareja is a top level MLS coach. We know that he has a plan for about the first 20 minutes of any match, and then makes adjustments throughout the remainder of the match. Even so, many of those adjustments have been planned out prior to the match. That, paired with a more rested roster, allows the Lions to be the protagonists Pareja wants them to be.

Shots, Shots, Shots

Orlando City was able to create plenty of chances against Austin FC, and will need to do so again against the Red Bulls. The Lions took 22 shots Saturday night, with eight on target, and they put two in the back of the net against Austin. Hopefully, Orlando City can be more efficient going forward, but if you don’t create opportunities, you won’t score.

The Red Bulls have some decent defenders who Orlando City will have to deal with, including fullback John Tolkin and Carlos Coronel at keeper. If the Lions can pass even close to the way they did against Austin, the opportunities will come, and if that is the case, hopefully the goals will come. Orlando City still has a sizable goal deficit, thanks to the early part of the season, that can only be corrected with more goals on the other end.


That is what I will be looking for this Saturday night at Inter&Co Stadium. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Vamos Orlando!

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Lion Links

Lion Links: 3/28/24

Getting to know Rafael Santos, Orlando Pride prepare for Chicago, Midge Purce out for the season, and more.

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Image courtesy of Orlando City SC

How’s it going, Mane Landers? I hope the work week has been treating you well as we gear up for another weekend of soccer. March flew by for me and April is shaping up to be a pretty busy month as well. In other news, I’m looking into adopting a cat and gathering the supplies to make that happen. Let’s dive into today’s links!

Getting to Know Rafael Santos

Orlando City left back Rafael Santos was the latest Lion to field questions as part of the club’s video series for fans to learn more about its players. The 26-year-old spoke about the decision process behind joining Orlando and playing outside of Brazil for the first time in his career after five years with Cruzeiro. He’s brought his attack-minded style of play to the team, particularly in terms of providing lethal crossing from the wing. Make sure to check out the full video as Santos also shared photos of his newborn and showcased his skill with a cavaquinho.

Orlando Pride Prepare to Host Chicago

After a pair of draws to start their season, the Orlando Pride will have a chance to claim their first win of the season when they host the Chicago Red Stars tomorrow night at 6 p.m. Head Coach Seb Hines spoke about how the Pride have shown plenty of resilience so far this young season. The team managed to secure a point in last week’s 1-1 draw with Angel City FC despite a patchwork back line due to injuries. That defense will likely have its hands full against Mallory Swanson and a Chicago team that won both of its first two games. Hines spoke about how the Pride are preparing for Chicago and how they will need the home crowd to bring the support tomorrow night.

Sophia Smith Signs Record-Breaking New Deal

American forward Sophia Smith signed a new contract with the Portland Thorns that will make her the highest-paid NWSL player, according to the club. The new deal will last through the 2025 season, with an option for 2026 as well. The 23-year-old was drafted by the Thorns with the first overall pick in the 2020 NWSL Draft and has gone on to score 34 regular-season goals. Smith re-signed with the club in 2022 and was set to become a free agent following this season, but will instead stay in Portland.

Midge Purce Out for NWSL Season

NJ/NY Gotham FC forward Midge Purce will miss the remainder of the NWSL season after tearing her ACL. The 28-year-old will undergo surgery and suffered the injury in her team’s 1-0 victory over the Portland Thorns this past weekend. She’s been with Gotham since 2020 and assisted on both goals in her team’s 2-1 win in the 2023 NWSL Championship. It’s a tough blow for the United States Women’s National Team too, as she will not be representing the U.S. during this summer’s Olympics in France.

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  • Orlando City B’s match against Carolina Core FC on April 14 has been rescheduled.

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: 3/27/24

Bally Sports will broadcast Orlando Pride matches, Pride players called up, USWNT announces SheBelieves Cup roster, and more.

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Dan MacDonald, The Mane Land

Hello, Mane Landers. I hope all is well with you down in Florida. I attended my friend’s wedding this past weekend and have been getting myself back into work mode by covering high school tennis this week. There is plenty to cover today, so let’s get to the links.

Bally Sports Will Broadcast Select Orlando Pride Matches

Bally Sports was announced as the new local television partner for the Orlando Pride. There will be 13 select Pride matches broadcast this season across Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports Sun, and on the Bally Sports app. The partnership will begin this Friday, with the Orlando Soccer Insider show taking place before the kickoff of the Pride’s home match against the Chicago Red Stars at 7 p.m. The show will be broadcast on Bally Sports Florida, and then you can switch to the Bally Sports app to watch Friday’s match. Below are all the select matches that will be broadcast on Bally Sports this season.

Brazilian Orlando Pride Players Called Up

The Orlando Pride’s Marta, Angelina, and Luana were all called up by Brazil for next month’s SheBelieves Cup. Brazil heads into this tournament after a solid showing in the Concacaf W Gold Cup. The format is different for this year’s SheBelieves Cup, as there will only be four matches instead of six. Brazil’s first match of the tournament will be a semifinal on April 6 against Canada in Atlanta.

USWNT Announces Roster for SheBelieves Cup

United States Women’s National Team interim head coach Twila Kilgore announced the 23-player roster for the 2024 SheBelieves Cup matches next month. The USWNT has won this competition four consecutive times since 2020, and is going for a seventh title in 2024. Of those called up, 19 players on this squad were part of the team that won the Concacaf W Gold Cup earlier this month. San Diego Wave forward Jaedyn Shaw, the Concacaf W Gold Cup’s MVP, is back on the roster after she led the USWNT with four goals. The squad also includes familiar names like former Pride forward Alex Morgan, Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman, and Olympique Lyon midfielder Lindsey Horan. Mallory Swanson and Catarina Macario return to the squad after being sidelined with injuries. The USWNT will begin its quest to defend its SheBelieves Cup title when it faces Japan on April 6 in Atlanta.

MLS Referees Agree to New CBA

After a lockout that resulted in Major League Soccer starting the season with replacement referees, the Professional Soccer Referees Association voted to ratify a new collective bargaining agreement with the Professional Referee Organization. The new CBA is a seven-year deal that runs through January of 2031. This deal will also include significant pay raises for referees, assistant referees, and video assistant referees. The PRO referees will return to the pitch for this weekend’s MLS matches.

Ukraine, Georgia, and Poland Qualify for Euro 2024

Ukraine has qualified for this summer’s Euros after edging out Iceland 2-1 in its playoff final, with Mykhaylo Mudryk scoring the winning goal in the second half. Georgia eliminated Greece 4-2 on penalties after a 2-2 draw to book a spot in the tournament as well. Georgia qualifies for its first major tournament after coming up short in 2020. Poland also needed penalties to qualify, with goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny making the final save against Daniel James to beat Wales 5-4 on penalties after a scoreless draw.

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

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