ATLANTA, Ga. (Sept. 10, 2021) - Orlando City SC (10-5-8, 38 points) dropped a 3-0 decision to Atlanta United FC (7-7-9, 30 points) on Friday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, ending a six-game unbeaten run against its neighbors to the north that dated back to the 2020 MLS campaign.
The match saw Orlando City forward Tesho Akindele tally the 200th appearance of his MLS career, entering the game in the 74th minute for Daryl Dike. The 2014 Rookie of the Year became the first member of his SuperDraft class to reach such a milestone with the appearance.
Head Coach Oscar Pareja:
“Very disappointed today obviously, not just with the result but the way we played. I think it was one of those nights where we couldn’t put our game on the field. Atlanta took advantage of two silly mistakes that we had on those set plays in the first half and that created for them more comfort on the ball, more confidence. After the half, we tried to react, we had some instances where we looked more intense. That was what the game needed but it was not enough. We started creating spaces for them, which is something that they like on those counters and they have players with that ability to go 1v1 and we did not want to give up on our ways. We tried, but as I said it was one of those nights where we couldn’t put our game together and we have to accept that. We have to move on and the boys will be prepared for the next game.”
Scoring Recap:
25’ George Campbell (Marcelino Moreno) - ATL 1, ORL 0
The Five Stripes took the early lead with Marcelino Moreno receiving a short corner from the left side of the pitch before teeing up a cross to the head of George Campbell in the area for the finish.
38’ Daryl Dike (Own Goal) - ATL 2, ORL 0
Atlanta doubled its lead near the halftime break, with a free kick from Ezequiel Barco from the left side deflecting off the head of Daryl Dike in the box and into the back of the net.
72’ Ezequiel Barco (Brooks Lennon) - ATL 3, ORL 0
The home side added another in the second half with Brooks Lennon sending a long ball over top for Ezequiel Barco in behind the Lions’ defense, creating space in the area before sending his shot into the bottom right corner of the net.
Match Notes:
- Friday’s result saw Orlando City’s season-best seven-game unbeaten run come to an end, one that began on July 30 in a 3-2 victory over The Five Stripes.
- The loss served as the first for the Lions to Atlanta United since the 2019 MLS campaign after having gone six-games unbeaten against their neighbors to the north since Aug. 2020.
- Entering the match in the 74th minute, Tesho Akindele recorded his 200th MLS appearance, becoming the first member of the 2014 MLS SuperDraft class to reach such a milestone.
- Ruan recorded his 60th start for the Lions in the match, with teammate João Moutinho tallying his 40th.
- Robin Jansson made his 80th appearance in all competitions for Orlando City on the night, while Benji Michel tallied his 70th.
- Uri Rosell tallied his 70th appearance as a Lion on the night, entering the match in the 68th minute for Joey DeZart.
- Head Coach Oscar Pareja made three changes to his starting lineup from last Saturday’s match against Columbus, with midfielders Andrés Perea and Mauricio Pereyra each returning to the first XI, along with forward Benji Michel.
Next Match: The Lions return home on Wednesday, Sept. 15 to host CF Montréal at Exploria Stadium in a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff.
