Orlando City (9-9-7, 34 points) at Sporting Kansas City (6-14-6, 24 points)
When: Saturday, 8:30 p.m
Where: Children's Mercy Park, Kansas City, MO
TV: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV (free)
Radio: 96.9 the Game FM, (English), Mega 97.1 (Spanish)
Here are five storylines to watch on Saturday as the Lions get back to MLS action on the road against Sporting Kansas City:
Leagues Cup Bump
Orlando City SC returns to MLS regular season action this weekend in Kansas City following its run in Leagues Cup 2024. Following Leagues Cup action in 2023, the Lions were the best team in Major League Soccer in the final stretch of the regular season, posting an 8-1-2 record across their last 11 games to follow the summer tournament. Orlando City scored a total of 21 goals and conceded just 11 for a +10-goal differential across that span and kept four clean sheets including three shutouts away from home.
El Pulpo Plays
Orlando City SC goalkeeper Pedro Gallese had an exceptional run in Leagues Cup 2024, saving 15 of the 17 shots that opposing teams put on his net, including a penalty kick from longtime Orlando City nemesis Josef Martínez in the competition’s opening game against fellow MLS-side CF Montréal. In the Lions’ last matchup against Liga MX powerhouse Cruz Azul in the Round of 32, the Peruvian shot-stopper saved six total shots, while posting a clean sheet to force the two sides into the tiebreaking penalty-kick shootout.
Longtime No SKC
It’s been over three full years since Orlando City and Sporting Kansas City have faced off against one another, after having played each other in each of the Lions’ first seven seasons in Major League Soccer. The Lions and Sporting will matchup this weekend for the first time since April 23, 2021, and will also mark the third consecutive meeting between the two clubs to be played at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City. In their last three against SKC, the Lions are undefeated including a road win back in 2020 and a comeback draw in 2021 in the last meeting between the two that saw Nani score an incredible backheel equalizer in the second half of the game.
A Battle of Two Legends
Saturday will also see two of the winningest head coaches in Major League Soccer history in the Lions’ Oscar Pareja and Sporting Kansas City’s Peter Vermes. Pareja’s and Vermes’ sides have played to a fully level series and a 5-5-5 record across 15 meetings in MLS regular season action. Oscar Pareja and Peter Vermes are two of the winningest head coaches in MLS history, with Vermes winning 201 matches for third-most and Pareja winning 169 for sixth-most to date. Vermes and Pareja have the most and second-most wins amongst active MLS Head Coaches.
Mid-Season Additions
The Lions made a few additions to their roster this past week, one new and one that has already been involved within the Orlando City infrastructure. On Aug. 15, Orlando City signed 2024 MLS SuperDraft selection Yutaro Tsukada to a First Team deal after spending the first part of the year with Orlando City B in MLS NEXT Pro. Tsukada has scored five goals and provided five assists for OCB so far this year and made his MLS debut on May 15 against intrastate foes Inter Miami CF as a substitute. The Lions also acquired Norwegian midfielder Heine Gikling Bruseth from Norway’s Kristiansund BK on Aug. 20 as part of MLS’ U-22 Initiative.
Milestone Tracker:
- Duncan McGuire is one goal away from tying Dom Dwyer (24) for fifth on Orlando City’s all-time scoring list and two goals away from tying Kaká (25) for fourth.
- Facundo Torres (24) is one assist away from passing Chris Mueller (24) for third on the Club’s all-time assist chart and two away from tying former captain Nani (26) for second.
- Torres also sits just five goals away from the all-time Club record set by Cyle Larin (44) across all competitions.
