ORLANDO – May 11, 2015 – After producing an inspiring comeback performance to draw the New England Revolution 2-2 on Friday night, Orlando City SC (2-4-3, 9 points) will face D.C. United (5-1-3, 18 points) on Wednesday at RFK Memorial Stadium.
Set to kick-off at 8 p.m. ET, the match marks Orlando City's first of two games scheduled for this week, as the Lions prepare to face the LA Galaxy at home on Sunday.
"I would certainly settle for the same performance we gave them last time, because we were excellent on the day and missed probably seven or eight glorious opportunities," said head coach Adrian Heath. "So, if we can play anything remotely as good as we did a few weeks ago, I'll be delighted and then we'll take whatever comes from that. But, D.C. United are traditionally very good at home, and we don't expect anything different. We know we'll have to play well to get a result."
Orlando enters the game against United after earning a valuable point against New England – one of the league's hottest teams. The Lions conceded two goals in both halves to the Revolution but fought their way back into the fixture, scoring twice in the final 15 minutes in dramatic fashion.
Rookie Cyle Larin provided the spark for City, nodding home a strong header from Rafael Ramos' cross for his second professional goal. Then, in the final moments of the match, veteran defender Aurelién Collin also scored a header for the game's final goal, resulting in a 2-2 final score.
However, the upcoming fixture against United signifies another strong test for City. Both sides previously met at the Orlando Citrus Bowl on Friday, April 3. Despite dominating possession and chances on goal, the Lions fell 1-0 to D.C. in their first meeting of the season when second-half substitute Luis Silva scored a curling free-kick in the 91st minute.
D.C. United comes into the match sitting in second place in the Eastern Conference – tied with first place side New England Revolution on points (18). Since previously facing Orlando, D.C. has not suffered a defeat in its last five games, defeating the Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1 and the Columbus Crew SC 2-0.
D.C.'s only loss of the season came in a 2-0 defeat to the New York Red Bulls in week two. So for this season, United has not lost a game at home. Chris Rolfe and Jairo Arrieta lead the team in scoring (2), as the Costa Rican scored his second goal of the season in United's 1-1 draw against Sporting KC this past weekend.
