Orlando City (4-3-2, 14 points) at CF Montréal (3-6-0, 9 points)
When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Stade Saputo, Montreal, Quebec
TV: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV (subscription required)
Radio: Real Radio 104.1 FM (English), Acción 97.9 FM (Spanish)
Official Heineken Silver Watch Party: Kiwi's Pub & Grill (801 W State Rd 436 Ste 1017, Altamonte Springs, FL 32714)
Coming off a shutout win over LA Galaxy at home, Orlando City will head north of the border on Saturday to meet CF Montréal. Here's what you need to know ahead of kickoff in The Road Ahead presented by Audi:
Milestone watch
-- Cesar Araújo’s next appearance for Orlando City will be his 50th in all competitions for the club. Araújo is currently tied for fourth among all MLS players in American Soccer Analysis’ catch-all goals added metric. The Uruguayan is second in MLS in fouls won after ranking just outside the top 10 last season. Perhaps his most famous moment in purple came in last year’s Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup semifinal, when he fired his first and only two professional goals past the New York Red Bulls in a 5-1 win.
-- With last weekend’s victory over the LA Galaxy, Oscar Pareja is now two wins away from reaching 50 in all competitions with Orlando City. If the Lions win their next two matches, Pareja would hit the milestone during the Open Cup, a competition he’s won twice with two different clubs (FC Dallas 2016, Orlando City 2022).
-- Pedro Gallese recorded his 25th Orlando clean sheet against the Galaxy while setting the club’s all-time appearances record for a goalkeeper. Gallese’s next clean sheet will give him double the previous record holder Joe Bendik.
-- Homegrown defender Mikey Halliday picked up his first career MLS goal contribution on Ercan Kara’s opener on Saturday.
Stats and storylines
-- Orlando City begins a three-game road trip across two competitions this week, starting in Montréal on Saturday before heading to Charlotte for a Tuesday night Open Cup tilt. The trip wraps up next weekend in Columbus.
-- The Lions start the trip with the best away points per game in MLS. Orlando has won two and drawn one out of three road games in the league this year, picking up three points in both Philadelphia and Minnesota. The Philly game was the first Union home loss in the regular season since September 2021.
-- Ercan Kara got back on the scoresheet in a big way last weekend, scoring the opener and setting up Facu Torres’ second with a cheeky backheel in transition. Kara had not started a match since March 4 against Cincinnati, having missed about six weeks with an injury. Kara has 14 goals in 39 appearances in all competitions for Orlando City.
-- Torres’ return to the scoring column was a welcome sight for Orlando fans, as well. The Uruguayan had been kept off the board since the season opener in late February, but snuck one past Jonathan Klinsmann about 10 minutes into the second half to kill off the game. Torres was named to the MLS Team of the Matchday, while Kara made the weekly bench.
Series history
All-time vs. CF Montréal - 8-9-3, -4 GD (4-5-1, -2 GD away)
MLS only vs. CF Montréal - 7-8-3, -3 GD (4-4-1, 0 GD away)
2015 - D 2-2 (A), L 2-0 (A), W 2-1 (H)
2016 - W 2-1 (H), W 1-4 (A), L 0-1 (H)
2017 - D 3-3 (H), L 2-1 (A)
2018 - L 3-0 (A), L 0-2 (H)
2019 - L 1-3 (H), W 0-3 (A)
2020 - W 1-0 (N/MLS is Back), W 0-1 (A*)
2021 - L 2-4 (H), D 1-1 (H), W 0-2 (A)
2022 - W 2-0 (H), L 4-1 (A), L 2-0 (A/MLS Cup Playoffs)
Meet the opponent: CF Montréal
-- Orlando City heads north of the border this weekend to their favorite away stadium in MLS, at least historically. The Lions have won four times at the Stade Saputo in MLS play, more than at any other venue. Their most recent win was one of the more thrilling triumphs in club history, a 2-0 Decision Day victory in 2021 that saw Orlando City into the playoffs for the second consecutive season.
-- Montréal did get revenge for that defeat last season, winning its home game against Orlando handily in the regular season before knocking the Lions out of the postseason in the first round.
-- Ten of the 30 MLS regular season goals scored by CF Montréal came from the brilliant Ignacio Piatti. Those 10 goals still stand as the most any single player has ever scored against Orlando City. Piatti left Montréal after the 2019 season and retired from professional soccer following his 2021 campaign with Racing Club in Argentina.
-- Robin Jansson is the only player on Orlando City’s 2023 roster with a goal against Montréal. Mauricio Pereyra has three assists in six matches against the Canadian side.
