ORLANDO, Fla. – March 11, 2016 – Orlando City (0-0-2, 2 points) welcomed nearly 30,000 fans to the Orlando Citrus Bowl for its second home game of the 2016 Major League Soccer (MLS) season on Friday night. After early pressure resulted in an early goal from forward Cyle Larin, his second in two games, the Chicago Fire (0-1-1, 1 point) were able to secure the equalizer and held on for the draw despite playing a man down, .
With a controlling first half during which the Lions secured 90.3 percent passing accuracy and 67 percent possession, Orlando City SC looked to make an immediate impact on the game from the opening whistle. Picking up right where they left off last Sunday, the Lions opened the score marker in the third minute with a take-no-chances, double effort by Larin.
Lions’ newest midfielder Antonio Nocerino made his debut in purple, and recorded over 60 minutes in his first outing with Orlando.
The Men in Red leveled things in the 14th minute after John Goossen set up forward David Accam on the counterattack. However, the Fire soon found themselves with a 10-men squad on the pitch. City earned a man advantage for the second-consecutive match when Chicago’s Josh Harrington was shown a straight red card in the 32nd minute, following a hard foul on Friday’s captain Brek Shea.
In the second half, Orlando City continued to press in the attack with a handful of shots that seemed destined for the back of the net in search of the go-ahead goal. The introduction of Hadji Barry in the 73rd minute re-energized the Lions’ attack, as he figured prominently in a few close attempts on goal, including a clever play between him and Molino. Pedro Ribeiro, who entered for Nocerino in the 63rd minute, nearly tied the match with a scorching left foot that deflected off the frame. Larin also had an attempt denied by the woodwork following a great give-and-go with Molino in the penalty area.
“[We’re] obviously disappointed with the final score. Plenty of opportunities again tonight. I thought we were nearly good a lot of times,” said Orlando City SC Head Coach Adrian Heath. “I give [Chicago] great credit. They were well organized, always got the threat with the counterattack, and I don’t think that we were good enough.”
“We’ve got to do better and we will do better. I can promise you that.”
Orlando City will head to the road for the first time in 2016 when it travels to New York City FC on March 18 for a 7 p.m. kickoff. After the match at Yankee Stadium, the Lions return to the Orlando Citrus Bowl on April 3 to host the Portland Timbers. Tickets to all City home matches are available at OrlandoCitySC.com or by calling 855-ORL-CITY.
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First Half
3’ City gets the game going quickly with a goal three minutes in. Kevin Molino finds forward Cyle Larin in the middle and Larin takes his first shot of the match. The first attempt is blocked by Chicago’s Jonathan Campbell, but falls back to Larin who makes no mistake on take two and puts City up 1-0.
14’ Chicago’s John Goossens sends the Fire on a counterattack, playing a long ball over the top for David Accam. Accam uses his speed, legging out the City defense for a one-on-one opportunity with goalkeeper Joe Bendik, and slots the ball past Bendik to level the game.
24’ Orlando City earns its first corner of the match, with Antonio Nocerino providing service on to the goalkeeper’s left. Nocerino sends the ball to the top of the six, which Seb Hines heads over the crossbar.
28’ Matt Polster is shown a Yellow Card after a reckless foul on Adrian Winter.
32’ Defender Michael Harrington saw a red card after a dangerous kick to Brek Shea, who is sporting captain armband for the Lions.
41’ Chicago wins a corner kick that Arturo Alvarez in swings on the left side. After deflections in the box, the ball falls to Fire defender Jonathan Campbell whose quick shot trickles wide of the left post.
45’ The referee indicates one minute added stoppage time.
Second Half:
52’ Looking to find Cyle Larin on the run, Servando Carrasco lofts a well-placed ball over the Fire backline from midfield. Larin gets behind the defense but Matt Lampson is able to come out to punch the ball away before further damage.
56’ Adrian Winter nearly scores his second goal of the season, carrying the ball through final third with pace. The Swiss forward put the power of his run behind a shot, striking to the far side and forcing Lampson into a diving save.
62’ A Yellow Card is issued to Cristian Higuita after an aerial foul.
63’ Antonio Nocerino’s debut with City comes to a close as he is subbed out for Pedro Ribeiro
69’ Chicago’s Johan Kappelhof and John Goossens string together a series of passes, with Kappelhof finding Goossens in the box with a chipped pass. Goossens quickly sent the ball across the goalmouth on the half volley, but Tommy Redding’s heroic slide denied Kennedy Igboananike’s effort to get on the end of it.
73’ Chicago makes its first change of the evening, bringing in Razvan Cocis for John Goossens.
73’ The home team turns to the bench for its second substitution, as rookie Hadji Berry replaces Cristian Higuita.
78’ Second-half substitute Pedro Ribeiro makes his presence known with a whistling shot from 25-yards out but he’s denied by the right goalpost.
79’ Orlando City is denied by the post on back-to-back attempts, with Cyle Larin hammering the left post after a pass from Kevin Molino.
83’ Chicago’s David Accam is shown a Yellow Card after taking down Pedro Ribeiro.
84’ The visiting team goes to the bench for the second time, bringing in Joey Calistri for Kennedy Igboananike.
87’ Chicago makes its final change with Rodrigo Ramos replacing Arturo Alvarez.
90’ The fourth official indicates a minimum four minutes of additional time.
94+ The final whistle blows. Final: Orlando City 1, Chicago 1.
Teams 1 2 Final
Orlando City 1 0 1
Chicago 1 0 1
Scoring Summary:
ORL - Cyle Larin (Kevin Molino) 3’
CHI - David Accam (John Goossens) 14’
Misconduct Summary:
CHI - Matt Polster (Yellow Card) 28’
CHI - Michael Harrington (Red Card) 32’
ORL - Cristian Higuita (Yellow Card) 62’
CHI - Joao Meira (Yellow Card) 71’
ORL - Servando Carrasco (Yellow Card) 75’
CHI - David Accam (Yellow Card) 83’
ORL - Brek Shea (Yellow Card) 90’
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando City SC - GK Joe Bendik , D Rafael Ramos, Tommy Redding, Seb Hines, Brek Shea, M Servando Carrasco, Cristian Higuita (Hadji Berry 73’), Antonio Nocerino (Pedro Ribeiro 63’), F Adrian Winter, Kevin Molino, Cyle Larin
Substitutes: GK Earl Edwards, Jr., D Kevin Alston, Luke Boden, Aurelien Collin, M Hadji Barry, Harrison Heath, Pedro Ribeiro
Chicago - GK Matt Lampson, D Jonathan Campbell, Michael Harrington, Johan Kappelhof, Joao Meira, M David Accam, Arturo Alvarez (Rodrigo Ramos 87’), John Goossens (Razvan Cocis 73’), Matt Polster, Brandon Vincent, F Kennedy Igboananike (Joey Calistri 84’)
Substitutes: GK Sean Johnson, Rodrigo Ramos, M Joey Calistri, Razvan Cocis, Nick LaBrocca, Michael Stephens, F Alex Morrell
Details of the Game
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Weather: Clear
March 11, 2016
Attendance: 29,041
Stats:
Shots:
ORL - 13
CHI - 10
Saves:
ORL - 1
CHI - 4
Corners:
ORL - 6
CHI - 2
