Orlando City Loans Mason Stajduhar to NYCFC

ORLANDO  – Orlando City has sent goalkeeper Mason Stajduhar on loan to New York City FC for the duration of the CONCACAF Champions League tournament the team announced on Monday.

The loan for Stajduhar will only be for the continental tournament and he will return to the Lions immediately after the tournament ends for NYCFC. It could allow for Stajduhar to make his first appearance in a competitive game for an MLS team as he has yet to make his debut for Orlando.

With the remainder of the tournament to be played at City’s Exploria Stadium it made it an easy option for the Cityzens to pick up an Orlando net-minder to give cover for the open position in their line-up and help the NYC fans breathe easier.

That gap in the squad was created when starting keeper Sean Johnson was unable to make the trip to Orlando for COVID related reasons. The goalkeeper had come too close to another player who tested positive and as such the safety protocols deemed him ineligible.

Three New York players tested positive in recent days, which not only forced a shuffle of the squad but also necessitated travel arrangements being changed. The team only arrived in Orlando on Tuesday, just hours before its quarter-final match.

It’s going to be a tough ask for NYCFC, 1-0 down after the first leg in March, and coming back to a venue that will give them nightmares, home of their infamous 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs loss.

New York will face Mexican side Tigres in the quarter-final at 10pm on Tuesday night with Stadjuhar expected to start on the bench for the Cityzens.

Photo: Orlando City SC

Five Rowdies Return for 2021

ST. PETERSBURG – The Tampa Bay Rowdies added five more players to their 2021 squad following the initial signings last week. Aaron Guillen, Lewis Hilton, Jordan Doherty, Yann Ekra, and Jordan Scarlett all signed new deals for the Rowdies this week.

The 2021 season will be Guillen’s second with the club after he played 16 matches this season in green and gold. The Mexican defender played every minute of all 16 matches, only seeing one yellow card this season, coming in the derby with Miami. Guillen drew an impressive 30 fouls this season, while only giving away 11 and winning 17 tackles.

Hilton played all 16 matches, starting 12 of them and recorded three assists in the season. It was a good year for shooting for Hilton as he managed 6/17 for a return of 35.3 percent on target, his second best career accuracy. The Englishman was vital for the team, which had more success with him on the pitch, with a plus-minus of +10 and goals scored of +0.85 when he was on the pitch but -0.10 when he was off the pitch.

Teenager Doherty had his biggest season yet in his professional career and will enter his third season with the Rowdies in 2021, the only pro-club he has had. This season saw the Irish youngster make 13 starts out of the 16 matches, only one fewer than he started in his first season in a much shorter season. 2020 also saw Doherty’s first professional goal, the opener against Atlanta United 2 back in August as part of a 2-1 win. He has really established himself as part of the team, not just a future prospect but a key part of the squad.

Ekra will be back for a third season with the Rowdies in 2021, having appeared in 11 matches this year, scoring one goal. Ekra improved his shooting in 2020, managing a 38.5 percent shooting accuracy this season up from 15.4 last year. In an odd stat Ekra was one of the most key members of the Rowdies for points when playing. The Rowdies picked up 2.43 points when he stepped on the pitch, ranking him 5th in USL Championship for that stat. He was also a key provider, managing three assists in the year that gave him an assists per game rate of 0.45, the 10th highest in the league.

Scarlett impressed in his first season with the Rowdies, scoring a goal and providing one assist as he played every minute. The former Baby Bull had a strong knack for gaining back possession, he managed 32 interceptions this season, the fourth most in the league. The Jamaican has quickly established himself as a Rowdy and will no doubt be a bigger part in 2021.

The Rowdies squad will continue to grow throughout the next few months but key parts of the squad are already in place, something of a head-start on the other teams in the league.

Photo: Yann Ekra

Orlando City Punished for Mass Confrontation

NEW YORK CITY – Things got worse for Orlando City SC following its disappointing exit from the MLS Cup Playoffs last weekend. Fines to several players and Head Coach Oscar Pareja and an extra suspension to Mauricio Pereyra handed down by the Major League Soccer Disciplinary Committee on Friday.

Most of this came out of two mass confrontation incidents, in the 60th and 71st minute both while trailing the New England Revolution. The league deemed both incidents a breach of the policy surrounding mass confrontation. This meant it was the third time that the club committed the offense and as such the club and Pareja received fines.

Junior Urso and Daryl Dike were responsible for starting and escalating the incidents and were both fined undisclosed amounts. Urso’s was for the first and Dike was for the second.

Highlights: Orlando City SC v New England Revolution – MLS Eastern Conference Semi-Final – November 29 2020

The first confrontation came after a foul from Pereyra, which saw him earn a straight red card. The committee deemed that serious foul play red card was worthy of an extended suspension. Pereyra’s suspension has been extended by one match meaning he will miss Orlando’s first two matches in 2021.

Nani was expected to face punishment for his reactions but escaped any further penalty from the league with no fine or suspension.

Losing to New England ended the Lions’ season, there is no news on when the 2021 season will begin but there’s every possibility that it could play under the usual MLS schedule.

Photo: Major League Soccer

Clinched: How Inter Miami Snuck Into the MLS Playoffs

FORT LAUDERDALE – For the first time, two Floridian teams will be in the Major League Soccer (MLS) Playoffs. Inter Miami CF got there with a win over cellar-dwellers FC Cincinnati. A combination of shot choices and the strong defense was enough for the 2-1 victory.

Shot choice was a big part of the Inter win. The Herons took 13 shots in the match, only four of them coming from outside the box. One of those was the x goal, with another on target and two blocked. Compare that with FCC, which only managed five shots in the box, only one of those on target. Interestingly the Ohioans fared better when shooting from a distance due to a limiting defense from Miami.

Inter was well beaten for possession in this match, ceding 64.7 percent of possession to the visitors. But a stifling defense kept Cincinnati at bay and made it hard for the away side to really come away with clear chances.

Needing a win to seal a place in the Playoffs, Miami defended with their lives, making 10 blocks in the match. Four of those came on shots, almost all of them in the box. The remaining six were breaking up passes, which stopped FC Cincinnati’s flow. Victor Ulloa was especially impressive in this area, coming off the bench and breaking up two passes.

The Roja-Blanco won 11 tackles, compared to Cincinnati’s seven. What’s also significant here is where those tackles were won. Miami wasn’t just waiting for the visitors to come into the final third; seven of the 16 tackle attempts came in midfield.

Another significant contribution to the defensive effort came on dispossessions; this is related to tackles but not always the same number. What’s interesting here is how Miami managed to get more dispossessions, 15, than it had successful tackles. The pressure put on FCC players forced them to give up the ball too frequently.

Inter was dominant in the air, winning nine aerial duels compared to Cinci’s five. This would explain why the visitors quickly sought to keep the ball on the ground, with only 65 of their passes being aerial. Only a third of the goal-kicks launched. By comparison, McCarthy sent all 11 of his goal kicks in the air to take advantage of that stat.

It will be a more significant test with the Playoffs starting and stricter opposition, but there’s good groundwork there. Given how odd the inaugural season has been, this year should be considered a successful season.

(Featured Image Courtesy Inter Miami CF)

It’s what you do with it

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Tampa Bay Rowdies will host the USL Championship final on Sunday and finally ended Louisville City’s dominant Eastern Conference run. But how? Ultimately, the Rowdies made significantly better use of the ball than their opponents, and that saw them through to a title decider.

Louisville held over two-thirds of the possession in the match, controlling 68.7 percent possession. But the Rowdies worked better and, despite seeing less of the ball, totally controlled the match, especially the first half.

Tampa Bay was most impressive in the air, winning 66.7% of the aerial duels; when the ball was in the air, the vast majority of the time that was going to end up in a Rowdies possession.

The clearance chart doesn’t entirely show aerial duels, but it does help reflect how strong the Rowdies were in the air. Notably, not all of these were in the box, but all over that final third of the pitch. By cutting those balls into the box out and getting rid of them, Louisville could not really build and create opportunities to get in front.

What also stopped Louisville from getting control is the number of interceptions the Rowdies managed throughout the match. Tampa Bay pinched 11 interceptions and, as shown above, did most of these out-wide.

This forced Louisville into playing a narrower shape, making it hard for the hosts to score, as shown by the average positions below.

That saw the men in purple pay much too predictably, limiting their options and allowed the Rowdies to quickly clear the ball out, as it was easy to tell where it was going.

Tampa Bay got the job done, scoring two goals on just three shots on target. Both teams struggled to get shots on target, but the Rowdies didn’t have to resort to popping off shots from a distance. Louisville had the bulk of its shots coming from distance.

Only one of the shots from distance was on target from Louisville (and one marginally inside from a tight angle). On the other hand, the visitors only had one genuinely audacious strike, but they could afford to, not having to chase the game.

Tampa Bay has been making most of this part of its style all season, and it paid off against Louisville. Phoenix will be another test, a team that has promised to win the league for so long but always come up short is nowhere, and it will be a stern test at Al Lang Stadium on Sunday.

Photo: Tampa Bay Rowdies

Accurate Shooting the Difference for Lions Over Fire

ORLANDO – It’s easy to look at Orlando City’s 4-1 win over Chicago Fire on Saturday and think that they were utterly dominant in every area. But the Lions weren’t; this wasn’t a case of overpowering Chicago. It was merely taking advantage of the chances that came their way.

Both teams managed 19 shots, but when looking at the breakdown of those shots, it’s obvious how Orlando won.

With 11/19 shots off target, it was always going to be difficult for Chicago to get back this match. When you only manage three shots on target, you definitely can’t score three goals.

It’s not like Chicago’s looks were terrible looks. The expected goals (xG) for the Fire in the match was 3.95, which actually meant that the visitors had the more likely chances. Orlando’s xG was only 2.55. What this means is that the Fire had plenty of good goalscoring chances but failed to make them count. Meanwhile, the hosts outpaced their xG, managing an xG difference of 1.45.

Some of this was advantageous. The first goal by Chris Mueller is a classic example.

The pass to Mueller creates an excellent opportunity that sees Chicago scrambling; it’s an ideal opportunity.

But then Mueller has to transfer to his preferred foot, which allows Alvaro Medran to close him down. Still, because the Orlando man keeps his boot out, it deflects back off of Mueller and in. It’s a goal that exceeds the xG for the situation and a tough break for Chicago.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOjHw6J_o0g&ab_channel=SOCCERLIVETV
Chris Mueller Goal – Orlando City SC v Chicago Fire – MLS – 19th September 2020

Conversely, the second goal is one where you have a high xG shot that results in a goal. A cross to a mostly open Nani in the center of the box, that’s a situation you’d demand Orlando scores in. The third goal was a similar xG situation to the first. There were plenty of times the Lions tried to score, but none of them were perfect, the best look was the one that got the goal, but even that was somewhat lucky.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dGUiblMAAY&ab_channel=Goals
Junior Urso Goal – Orlando City v Chicago Fire – MLS – September 19 2020

Meanwhile, the fourth goal saw Benji Michel make the space to improve the xG on the shot and make the goal, 2.55, as a match xG would check out. For Chicago, its only goal came from the spot, which is automatically assigned .76 xG meaning that Medran’s miss adds a significant xG factor to Chicago for no reward.

Orlando City Rarely Troubled in Derby Victory

ORLANDO – After giving up an equalizer, Orlando City SC almost instantly equalized to claim a derby 2-1 win over Inter Miami CF at Exploria Stadium on Saturday night.

The Lions got the opener in the 34th minute thanks to an own goal from Andres Reyes, who redirected Mauricio Pereya’s free-kick. The ball was sent in from the left, and in Reyes’ effort to clear, he could only send it into his own net.

That would be all the scoring in the first half, but in the 65th minute, Miami got on the board. Rodolfo Pizarro swung it into the box and found Brek Shea, who headed it home.

Highlights: Orlando City SC v Inter Miami CF – MLS – September 12 2020

Just four minutes later, Orlando had what would turn out to be the game-winner. Chris Mueller drew the Herron’s defensive attention, which allowed him to set up Mauricio Pereyra. Pereyra struck form the edge of the area, sending it into the back of the net off the post.

I think we had opportunities to react. When we did that, we scored the second goal, and then after it was just about the derby. It was a game about two teams who are defending the state and what it means for us in beating Miami; it’s great, so we want to dedicate this to the fans. We know how happy they are.

Orlando City SC Head Coach, Oscar Pareja

It could have been a more comfortable match for Orlando, had it not been for the woodwork in the 11th minute. Nani sent in a beautiful free-kick which left the keeper with no chance but could only find the post.

There was drama after the hosts took the lead back. Referee Ismail Elfath awarded a penalty after a video review, pointing to the spot and handing Rodrigo Schlegel his second yellow card. But on further review, it was determined that Julian Carranza was offside. That saw both the penalty and the red-card rescinded, and that would be that last clear chance for Miami in the match.

Photo Courtesy: Orlando City SC

Rowdies Outmatched by Battery

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. – For the second time this season, the Charleston Battery were too good for the Tampa Bay Rowdies, managing a 1-0 win at Patriot’s Point on Friday night.

After a scoreless first half, Charleston took the lead in the 54th minute. Angelo Kelly took possession and sent the ball for Mauro Chichero. Chichero set up Zeiko Lewis, who beat Forrest Lasso on the run and sent his shot into the back of the net.

It was a rough night for the Rowdies, who didn’t manage a shot on target in 90 minutes. No adjustments made by Head Coach Neil Collins, and there were several in the match, could stop the Battery from controlling the match.

In the 22nd minute, Charleston thought the opener came. AJ Paterson directed the ball into the back of the net. Tampa Bay was spared by the assistant’s flag to keep the match scoreless, where it would stay at the break.

READ MORE: Storm Can’t Stop Rowdies

The Rowdies could have opened the scoring just before conceding the lone goal of the match. Leo Fernandes had a free-kick from just over 20 yards out but hit it over the bar.

With 10 minutes to play, Fernandes’ corner could have salvaged a draw for the visitors. He found a wide-open Sebastian Dalgaard who couldn’t get the shot away, resigning the Rowdies to the loss.

The result tightened the group. Charleston now three points behind the Rowdies with a game in hand, so the Rowdies could well find themselves second place facing a more challenging opening round of the playoffs.

(Photo: Charleston Battery)

Seven Players Join Pride for Fall Series

ORLANDO – Seven young players have joined Orlando Pride for the NWSL Fall Series on short-term contracts. Carrie Lawrence, Ally Haran, Zandy Soree, Deneisha Blackwood, Jordyn Listro, Savanah Uveges and Kate Howarth all signed for the club on Tuesday.

This will be Lawrence’s second stint at the Pride having been waived before the NWSL Challenge Cup.  The defender is steeped in Orlando soccer, having played her college soccer at UCF where she played 49 times.

Haran comes after leaving Houston Dash. Since graduating Wake Forest the 24-year-old went to Iceland, playing for UMF Selfoss starting 19 times, scoring two goals, and being named to the team of the year.

Soree signed her first professional contract on Tuesday also coming from the Knights where she played 67 matches, 55 of them starts. She has national team experience having worked her way through the Belgian youth set up and managing three appearances for the senior national team.

Blackwood also brings national team experience having played for Jamaica. Her most recent experience was in Czechia with Slavia Prague.

Orlando Pride Signs Seven Players to Short-Term Contracts
Image: Orlando Pride

Listro joins from Spain’s Granadilla Tenerife but is no stranger to playing her soccer in Florida having played for South Florida. She set a record for the Bulls with 82 appearances, managing five assists.

Uveges also returns to the club, having trialled in Orlando in the preseason. She joins from the University of Nebraska where she made 44 appearances and scored 11 goals.

Howarth is the only signee having prior NWSL experience. She joined the Boston Breakers in 2013 where she played four matches. Since then she’s played 69 matches for the New England Mutiny in the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL). The Pride kick off their Fall Season on the 19th of September against the North Carolina Courage aired nationally on CBS.

(Photo: Belgian Women’s Football Team)

Stoppage Time Goal Denies Orlando City

ORLANDO – Orlando City SC was forced to settle for a point after an equalizer in stoppage time made it 1-1 against Atlanta United at Exploria Stadium on Saturday night.

First-half stoppage time gave the Lions the opener through Benji Michel. A corner saw Daryl Dike shoot which allowed Michel to run onto the ball and tap it home, opening the scoring.

In spite of the frustration of conceding that goal in the last two, three minutes of the game knowing how we worked for the three points during the whole game; it’s difficult. But at the same time, I think we need to have calmness and see where we are. I thought today was another good demonstration of what Orlando is doing and once again anything I can say won’t soften the frustration that we have because it’s painful after you have the domination that we had in the first half and the options that we had during the game.

Orlando City SC Head Coach Oscar Pareja.

The equalizer came in the second minute of stoppage time at the end of the match. Jake Mulraney sent a cross in, finding Adam Jahn who headed it home to deny OCSC.

It could have been 1-0 for the Lions earlier as Michel set up a golden opportunity in the 34th minute. Just like the opener, it was Dike that found Michel, this time with a ball over the top. Michel provided it for Sebastian Mendez who seemed sure to score only to be denied by a Brad Guzan save.

Highlights: Orlando City FC v Atlanta United – Major League Soccer – September 5 2020

Atlanta started the second-half well with two early chances. Cubo Torres was left wide open but failed to capitalize, sending his header wide. A shot from distance from Emerson Hyndman was denied by a spectacular save from Pedro Gallese.

Despite a disappointing finish, the result continues a good run for Orlando. Now with a four-match unbeaten streak which it will be hoping to continue against a struggling Inter Miami CF on Saturday.

(Photo courtesy: Major League Soccer)

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