ORLANDO, Fla. (June 19, 2019) - Orlando City SC battled to a 2-1 victory over the New England Revolution on Wednesday night at Exploria Stadium to advance to the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinals for the third time in Club history. After a scoreless regulation, the match had to be decided with a 30 minute extra time period that resulted in three goals between the two sides. Benji Michel and Tesho Akindele found the back for the Lions’ two goals, serving as their first Open Cup goals for City.
With the win, the Lions will host New York City FC on Wednesday, July 10 with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. ET. Tickets for the match will go on sale on Friday, June 21. Season ticket member access will begin at 10 a.m. ET with general public sale starting later that same day at 2 p.m. ET.
Orlando City returns to MLS action on Wednesday, June 26 when they travel to face D.C. United. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. ET at Audi Field.
Head Coach James O’Connor:
“Obviously very pleased to get through [to the Quarterfinals]. I thought it was a very tough game, as we knew it would be. Credit to New England; I thought they put up a great fight and I thought it was a very difficult game for both teams. Back and forth. But I thought the heart and the commitment that the players showed was outstanding. We have multiple guys that are going down with cramps and pushing themselves and hanging in there and making some real, real hard running. So, great credit to all the players.”
Scoring Recap:
96’ Benji Michel - ORL 1, NE 0
After 90 minutes of scoreless play, the Lions got on the board in the sixth minute of extra time. João Moutinho sent a cross in from the left side that initially deflected off Benji Michel to the foot of Carlos Ascues. Ascues took a shot that was saved by New England goalkeeper Matt Turner, but Michel was there to put away the rebound to give the Lions the lead.
101’ Tesho Akindele - ORL 2, NE 0
Following a scramble in the box, Tesho Akindele got on the end of a loose ball in the area. Akindele took a few touches and hit a shot off-balance that took a deflection and trickled into the net to double the City lead.
117’ Justin Rennicks (Carles Gil) - ORL 2, NE 1
Carles Gil whipped in a ball from the right side that found the head of Justin Rennicks at the far post to cut the City lead in half late in extra time.
Match Notes
- Forward Benji Michel scored his first goal as a Lion in his U.S. Open Cup debut with his finish in the 96th minute. Michel is now the first HomeGrown player to score a goal for the First Team.
- Forward Tesho Akindele found the back of the net for the first time in Open Cup play as a Lion.
- Goalkeeper Adam Grinwis made his first start of 2019 at Exploria Stadium and appeared in the starting XI for the second match in a row after starting in goal at Memphis last Wednesday.
- Defender Ruan and forwards Nani and Benji Michel made their U.S. Open Cup debuts on the night, with fellow defender João Moutinho appearing in Open Cup play for the first time as a Lion.
- The Lions went to extra time in the U.S. Open Cup Round of 16 for the second year in a row, after playing to a 1-1 draw against D.C. United last year before winning in the penalty shootout to advance.
- With the win, City matched its best finish in the U.S. Open Cup by reaching the Quarterfinals for the third time as a Club, having done so in both 2015 and 2018.
Scoring Summary:
ORL - Benji Michel 96’
ORL - Tesho Akindele 101’
NE - Justin Rennicks (Carles Gil) 117’
Misconduct Summary:
NE - Juan Agudelo (Yellow Card) 95’
ORL - Sacha Kljestan (Yellow Card) 105’+1’
NE - Edgar Castillo (Yellow Card) 115’
ORL - Benji Michel (Yellow Card) 119’
ORL - Alex De John (Yellow Card) 120’+2’
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando City SC - GK Adam Grinwis; D João Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Lamine Sané, Ruan; M Sacha Kljestan ©, Cristian Higuita (Carlos Ascues 44’), Dillon Powers (Alex De John 110’); F Santiago Patiño (Nani 65’), Tesho Akindele, Chris Mueller (Benji Michel 81’)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Brian Rowe; D Shane O’Neill, Kyle Smith
New England Revolution - GK Matt Turner; D Edgar Castillo, Jalil Anibaba, Andrew Farrell, Brandon Bye; M Cristian Penilla (Juan Fernando Caicedo 68’), Carles Gil, Scott Caldwell (Diego Fagundez 99’), Wilfried Zahibo (Justin Rennicks 103’), Juan Agudelo (Antonio Mlinar Delamea 104’); F Teal Bunbury
Substitutes Not Used: GK Brad Knighton; M DeJuan Jones; F Tajon Buchanan
Details of the Game:
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Weather: Cloudy, Rainy
Date: June 19, 2019
Attendance: 5,556
Stats:
Possession:
ORL - 52%
NE - 48%
Shots:
ORL - 15
NE - 22
Saves:
ORL - 2
NE - 6
Fouls:
ORL - 20
NE - 11
Corners:
ORL - 2
NE - 10
