Orlando City (1-2-1) vs D.C United (1-0-3)
When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Inter & Co Stadium, Orlando, Fla.
Radio: AM 810 Fox Sports Radio, (English), Mega 97.1 (Spanish)
Everything you need to know for the Lions' home match against D.C. United "The Road Ahead" driven by Audi:
Milestones
- Orlando City can get to 10 goals scored in five games with a tally on Saturday against D.C. United, which would be the fastest the club has reached double digits in its MLS regular season history. The Lions reached double figures in six games in the 2016, 2018, and 2019 seasons.
- Oscar Pareja is two games away from 200 as Orlando City head coach. He will hit the milestone against the LA Galaxy next week provided he is not suspended.
- César Araújo’s next appearance will be his 125th in all competitions for Orlando.
- Martín Ojeda has pulled even with Chris Mueller for fourth in Orlando City history in assists at 24. His next assist will tie him with Facundo Torres for third, and he’s two away from matching Nani in second. Iván Angulo enters the weekend one assist behind Ojeda for his career.
Stats & Storylines
- Orlando City’s Designated Players continue to pace MLS through the early weeks of the season. Marco Pašalić (3 G/1 A), Martín Ojeda (2 G/1 A), and Luis Muriel (1 G/2 A) lead the league in combined DP goal contributions with 10, with all three chipping in at least three goals or assists through four games. The Lions’ DPs have at least two goal contributions in each of Orlando’s four matches this year, adding three more in last week’s 2-2 draw with the New York Red Bulls – goals for Ojeda and Pašalić and an assist for Muriel.
- Orlando’s attack remains near the top of the league in both box score statistics and underlying metrics. The Lions are tied for second in MLS in goals and rank fifth in non-penalty expected goals by both MLS’ and Opta’s models. City has taken the second-most shots (62) and recorded the second-most assists (10) in the league this season.
- On the individual front, Pašalić is tied for third in the league in goals and sits seventh in non-penalty expected goals. Both Pašalić and Muriel are top ten in the league in shots per 90 minutes, and Muriel is eighth in npxG per 90 among players with as many minutes through four games. Ojeda ranks fourth in the league in key passes while midfielder Eduard Atuesta is tied for eighth.
- Duncan McGuire made his return last week from offseason shoulder surgery, entering for Muriel late against the Red Bulls and nearly creating the winner for the Lions. McGuire ranks fourth in club history with 26 goals through his first two seasons, trailing only Facundo Torres (47), Cyle Larin (44), and Nani (31) on the club’s all-time scoring charts. McGuire also has the highest rate of goals and assists per 90 minutes of any player on Orlando’s active roster.
- Rookie Joran Gerbet made his first professional start on Saturday against the Red Bulls, going the full 90 and earning effusive praise from Oscar Pareja after the match for his performance. Gerbet, the 2024 ACC Midfielder of the Year at Clemson, was the 14th Orlando City draft pick to start an MLS regular season match for the Lions.
- Pareja once again made two changes to his XI, the exact number of swaps he has made in every match so far this year. Against the Red Bulls, it was Kyle Smith in for Rafael Santos and Gerbet replacing César Araújo, who missed out with tightness felt late in the week.
- Orlando City will be forced into at least one change for the weekend, with goalkeeper Pedro Gallese off to Peru to compete in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying against Bolivia and Venezuela. Defender David Brekalo was called into Slovenia’s squad for a two-legged UEFA Nations League promotion/relegation playoff tie with Slovakia.
Series History
All-time vs. D.C. United - 8-9-3, +1 GD (5-4-1, +5 GD home)
MLS only vs. D.C. United - 8-9-2, +1 GD (5-4-1, +5 GD home)
2015 - L 0-1 (H), L 2-1 (A), W 1-0 (H)
2016 - L 4-1 (A), W 4-2 (H)
2017 - W 2-0 (H), W 1-2 (A)
2018 - D 1-1 (H), D 1-1 (2-4) (A/USOC), L 3-2 (A)
2019 - L 1-2 (H), L 1-0 (A)
2021 - W 0-1 (A), W 2-1 (H)
2022 - L 3-5 (H), L 2-1 (A)
2023 - D 1-1 (A), L 1-3 (H)
2024 - W 2-3 (A), W 5-0 (H)
Meet the opponent: D.C. United
- Orlando City snapped a two-year, four-match winless run against D.C. in emphatic fashion last season, winning a come-from-behind 3-2 thriller at Audi Field in April before demolishing the Black and Red 5-0 at Inter&Co Stadium in July. The Lions improved to 4-3-1 against D.C. under Oscar Pareja, earning their third season-sweep over the Washington-based side and first since 2021.
- A staggering eight different Lions scored against D.C. in 2024, seven of whom remain on the roster – Dagur Dan Thórhallsson, David Brekalo, Duncan McGuire, Martín Ojeda, Robin Jansson, Iván Angulo, and Ramiro Enrique. Facundo Torres was the eighth goalscorer.
- D.C. United leads MLS in expected goals through four games, thanks in (quite literally) large part due to towering center forward Christian Benteke, who leads the league in shots, shots on target, and individual xG, though he drops to third in the latter category if you exclude penalty kicks. Benteke won the 2024 MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi with 23 goals last season and already has three this season.
- Even beyond his goal scoring, Benteke’s most notable attribute might be his prowess in the air. The former Liverpool and Crystal Palace striker has shattered the MLS record for aerial duels won two years in a row, recording nearly twice as many last season (310) than any player in the top five European in 2023/24 (179 by Heidenheim’s Tim Kleindienst) and nearly triple that of the next-closest MLS player, D.C. teammate Lucas Bartlett (110). Benteke is again pacing MLS with 23 aerials won through four games, with Bartlett a bit closer this year in second with 16.
- D.C. has missed the MLS Cup Playoffs five years in a row, the second-longest postseason drought in the league (Chicago, 7 seasons). The last time D.C. qualified for the postseason, Wayne Rooney led the team in both goals and assists. Rooney has retired from the game and been hired and fired as D.C. manager since the Black and Red last graced the MLS Cup Playoffs. D.C. was eliminated from contention on Decision Day last year, losing out on ninth place to Atlanta United on a goal differential tiebreaker.
- The Black and Red are unbeaten to start 2025 with one win and three draws, but Orlando City will be the just the second team D.C. faces this year that qualified for the 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs and the first that advanced past the play-in round.
