Two assists, one goal and six chances created against New England speaks for itself, but Yoshi Yotún’s impact on the pitch extends far beyond the stat sheet.
Yotún is a pure playmaker. His vision, technical ability and extensive passing range are just a few reasons Niki Budalic and the Orlando City SC front office were so keen to sign him this summer.
“We spent a lot of time before and during the transfer window looking at players around the world and Yoshi stuck out to us,” Orlando City SC CEO Alex Leitão explained. “His wealth of experience from the highest levels of club and international soccer will be an important asset to our team.”
On Wednesday night against the New England Revolution, Yotún played his best match since joining the Lions early-August. The Peruvian was accurate with his passing and effective with his decision making; he also led Orlando City with 83 total touches and 57 total passes. The left-footer was integral in just about every Lions attack - connecting play from the defensive third to the attacking third with pace and precision.
In his post-game presser, Orlando City head coach Jason Kreis was asked about Yoshi’s performance, and, in particular, his service on free-kicks:
“He’s absolutely fantastic with dead-ball service. We saw it tonight, he had two assists on those and probably could have had two more. He’s a fantastic server with that ball, he’s a fantastic central midfield player who has a great vision for things and sees some passes that others don’t,” Kreis said.
“So really, really pleased for him as well because I thought, against Portland, he struggled a little bit in that game and gave the ball away a whole lot more than he’s used to so it was nice to see him really rebound tonight.”
Yotún’s first assist got the Lions going in the going in the 22nd minute. Antonio Nocerino flicked on a whipped-in left-footed cross from Yotún, who put it on a silver platter for the Italian to finish.
“Yoshi’s quality is incredible,” Nocerino said after the match. “For me, the touch [on the goal] was simple.”
Just ten minutes later, Yotún lined up to take a corner kick from the left. Once again the Peruvian served up a pearl of a cross, which Seb “The Headmaster” Hines nodded home to double the Lions lead.
Four goals and one complete team performance later, Yotún put an exclamation point on a historic night at Orlando City Stadium with a powerful strike into the bottom right corner. Yotún’s goal came just before stoppage time, with chants of “We want six, we want six!” ringing through Orlando City Stadium.
Wednesday night was an evening to remember for Yotún and everyone involved in Orlando City Soccer Club. After some frustrating results and difficult mid-season stretch, the Lions came out and proved that they are capable of reaching new heights in this league.
