Since joining Orlando City in early 2015, Carlos Rivas has been a player that has been under a constant amount of pressure. Having been named one of the first Designated Players for the Lions at only 20 years of age, Rivas has dealt with the pressures and continued to mature year after year with Orlando. With that maturity, his product on the field has improved yearly as well.
In 2015, Rivas played more out wide as a winger and provided service into the box. He didn’t score any goals that year, but he notched four assists with his powerful left foot out on the wings.
In 2016, he continued to improve his offensive game. He matched his assist total from the year before, but added three goals to his tally, playing out on the wing and up top as a striker.
Now in 2017 under Head Coach Jason Kreis, Rivas is playing as a tandem striker with Cyle Larin and he is, once again, improving his offensive game. His five goals and five assists as well as his shooting accuracy, minutes played and games started are all career-highs for the Colombian.
The timing of his runs, the speed of those runs and his improved finishing this year have been a welcome sight to the Lions offense this season. At 23 years of age, Carlos Rivas still has plenty of time to grow his game and the sky’s the limit for his potential.
