CHICAGO (March 5, 2022) - Orlando City SC (1-0-1, 4 points) remained unbeaten through its first two games, earning a point on the road in a 0-0 draw with Chicago Fire FC (0-0-2, 2 points). The Lions looked to have broken through in the 73rd minute after Junior Urso’s long-range shot deflected off a Fire defender and in, but the goal was ultimately called back following a handball decision on video review.
With the clean sheet on the night, Pedro Gallese recorded his 13th shutout across all competitions for Orlando City, tying the all-time record set by former goalkeeper Joe Bendik. Gallese hit the record in 49 starts, compared to the 91 starts of Bendik’s Orlando City career.
Head Coach Oscar Pareja:
“I liked our intentions, I liked our second half much better in terms of how we used the spaces and created some collective players there, in a very physical match against a team who already has an idea [of how they want to play] and has very good players. That control that we had in the second half was to get closer to our goal and actually score one. So we’re going to take this point as a part of our process. I’m proud of the players that came onto a difficult field and a difficult match and had a good performance overall.”
Match Notes:
- With the clean sheet on the night, Pedro Gallese recorded his 13th shutout across all competitions for Orlando City, tying the all-time record set by former goalkeeper Joe Bendik. Gallese hit the record in 49 starts, compared to the 91 starts of Bendik’s Orlando City career.
- Alexandre Pato made his first start on the road for the Lions. The forward scored his first Orlando City goal in the Club’s last match against CF Montréal.
- Tesho Akindele made his 90th career appearance for the Lions, entering the match as a substitute in the 52nd minute.
- Oscar Pareja made two changes to his starting XI from opening day, swapping Junior Urso for Andres Perea in the midfield, and Rodrigo Schlegel for the suspended Robin Jansson on the backline.
Next Match: The Lions next return home to Exploria Stadium, set to host FC Cincinnati on Saturday, March 12. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.
