ORLANDO, Fla. (April 29, 2023) – Orlando City SC (4-3-2, 14 points)took a 2-0 shutout victory over the LA Galaxy (1-5-3, 6 points) on Saturday night at Exploria Stadium. The match saw Ercan Kara and Facundo Torres each find the back of the net on the night, both scoring for the second time in all competitions this campaign.
Following a goal that was waved off in the 33rd minute for a handball, the Lions found the back of the net four minutes later thanks to a combination from Antonio Carlos and Mikey Halliday. The assist served as the second in as many matches for the former and the first of his professional career for the latter. The Lions would double their advantage shortly after the halftime break, this time with all three of their Designated Players combining for a Torres goal.
Goalkeeper Pedro Gallese and the Lions defense tallied their third clean sheet of the campaign in a match that saw “El Pulpo” break the Club-record for goalkeeper appearances with his 93rd in all competitions as a Lion, passing former City goalkeeper Joe Bendik. Gallese secured the clean sheet for City with three saves in the match, including a point-blank stop in the 83rd minute to keep the visitors off the board.
The match also saw Orlando City Homegrown defender Alex Freeman make his MLS debut, entering the game in second half stoppage time.
Scoring Summary:
37’ Ercan Kara (Mikey Halliday, Antonio Carlos) – ORL 1, LA 0
The Lions took the lead with Antonio Carlos starting off the play, lofting a ball down the right flank to Mikey Halliday. The City Homegrown took his space down the sideline before cutting a ball to the edge of the area for Ercan Kara, who was able to run across his defender and poke in the first-time finish.
57’ Facundo Torres (Martín Ojeda, Ercan Kara) – ORL 2, LA 0
City doubled its advantage thanks to all three of its Designated Players with Ercan Kara finding Martín Ojeda off the backheel. Ojeda charged up the pitch before sliding a ball in between a pair of Galaxy defenders for Facundo Torres, whose strike trickled into the back of the net for his second goal against the LA-club.
Head Coach Oscar Pareja:
“We're very grateful to the people that came here to push us and make us feel at home again despite all the difficulties at home with results. Today the boys showed that they have such character and tremendous spirit to overcome [those difficulties]. I'm very happy for the fans and for the players. Regarding the game, we played a very good first half. We played very well against a team who changed the model in the second half and occupied different spaces to find some difficulties to control the wing. At the end, our players had the energy to send the results and create a couple more chances today. The goal that Ercan [Kara scored] and Michael [Halliday’s] assist are such a highlight for us. It's very good for us.”
Match Notes:
- Ercan Kara scored his first goal in MLS play this season and his 14th in all competitions as a Lion. Kara found the goal earlier in the year in Concacaf Champions League action.
- Facundo Torres netted his second goal of the season and the second of his MLS career against the Galaxy.
- Mikey Halliday tallied his first assist of his professional career with the helper on the Kara goal. Antonio Carlos added the secondary on the finish for his second assist in as many matches.
- Martín Ojeda recorded his third assist of the year to tie teammate Mauricio Pereyra for the team lead. Kara notched his first helper of the year on the same finish.
- With the start against LA Galaxy on Saturday night, Pedro Gallese passed Joe Bendik for the most appearances by an Orlando City goalkeeper (93). He already holds the Club records for goalkeeper starts, wins and clean sheets, extending his shutout record to 25 in all competitions on the night.
- Saturday’s match was the first time in his Orlando City career that defender Robin Jansson served as the team’s captain from the beginning of the match.
- Orlando City Homegrown defender Alex Freeman made his MLS debut in the match, entering the game in second half stoppage time.
- Midfielder Facundo Torres notched his 50th appearance in all competitions as a Lion with the start in the match.
- Head Coach Oscar Pareja made four changes to his starting lineup from his side’s matchup against D.C. United, with Wilder Cartagena, Mikey Halliday, Ercan Kara and Kyle Smith all getting the start.
Next Match: The Lions next head to Stade Saputo to take on CF Montréal on Saturday, May 6 for an MLS regular-season matchup. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
