After a short Sunday to Friday turnaround, Orlando City were minutes away from bringing home a point from their road trip to Philadelphia. Unfortunately, a masterful free kick from the Unionâs Tranquillo Barnetta disrupted those plans. It was an ending that could have disheartened even the most veteran of teams, but the message from the Orlando City locker room left a different impression.
âWe managed to get back in the game,â Seb Hines said on the teams recovery after going behind early. âWe had chances to win the game in the second half. Itâs very disappointing, but weâll move on. Weâve got a home game coming up, so weâll be ready for thatâ
Adrian Winterâs goal at the end of the first half was an example of the teamâs resilience. Just over a minute after the Unionâs late goal he almost did it again. Substitute Carlos Rivas whipped in a great cross that found Winter off the far post. He cracked a volley, but Union goalkeeper Andre Blake was there to make a fantastic save.
âWe had a good chance. [The keeper] has made a great save, to be fair, of Winter. A great cross from Carlos Rivas, but it wasnât enough.â
Itâs the chances like those that Orlando City will hope to bring with them as they return to the Orlando Citrus Bowl next Sunday night to face the New England Revolution.
âItâs unfortunate that we lost the game,â said Kevin Molino after the match. âBut we take something positive from the game and look forward to the next one.â