In Orlando: Heart of a Lion
Orlando City made history on Wednesday night, securing the first-ever home playoff game at Exploria Stadium with a dramatic 2-1 win over the Columbus Crew. Our own Hannah Drosdick has a great breakdown and the reaction from the game here.
I want to talk about Mauricio Pereyra a bit though, because I don’t know that the broader MLS community is realizing what they have here. The stats from Wednesday speak for themselves:
Pereyra missed five games with an injury and won’t play Sunday due to yellow card accumulation, so his final regular season haul stands at 2 G/8 A in 1107 minutes. He leads the league in assists per 90 minutes played among players with at least 1000 minutes played, regardless of whether or not you count secondary assists. The team is 8-1-5 when Pereyra starts with a +11 goal differential (they are 3-2-3 when he is not in the XI).
But more than his silky skills and top-level production, Pereyra has become the beating heart of this team. Oscar Pareja planned to sub Pereyra off for Joey DeZart shortly after Nani’s red card knocked Orlando down to 10 men, but Pereyra waved him off, insisting he help Orlando City finish the job. When Pereyra’s hamstring began to cramp up on him late in the game, he remained on long enough to drop a dime for Benji Michel’s winner.
I am constantly struck by how much grit and dedication this team shows game in and game out, and Pereyra, even as much as Nani, has become a symbol of that. And because of his brilliance, we’ll all get to enjoy a little Mauro Magic at Exploria Stadium this postseason.
Around MLS: Decision Day preview
There isn’t a whole lot on the line on Decision Day for Orlando City. The Lions are locked into either the 3 or 4 seed in the East. A win or draw home to Nashville will net them the 3, as will a loss or draw from Columbus at home to Atlanta. The only way Orlando can be the 4 is if they lose on Sunday and Columbus win against the Five Stripes.
The more interesting question concerns Orlando City’s potential opponent. If the Lions do drop to the 4, they will face New York City FC, who would be locked into the 5 seed by the Columbus win regardless of their own result. NYCFC have come on strong with the return of DP playmaker Maxi Moralez, putting five past the Red Bulls last weekend.
If Orlando City are the 3 seed, things are a bit more variable. The New England Revolution will be the 6 seed with either a win or draw at Philadelphia on Sunday, and the Revs can also lock in that spot with a loss or draw from both the New York Red Bulls and Nashville. They can even get it if they lose and Nashville wins, so long as they maintain their slim goal differential advantage. The Red Bulls would be the 6 with a win at home to Toronto and a New England loss, while Nashville needs to beat Orlando, have New England lose, have RBNY lose or draw, and overtake the Revs in goal differential.
For his part, Bruce Arena is already preparing to face Orlando, in what would be the first meeting between the two teams in 2020.
There are also two play-in spots still up for grabs. Montreal and Chicago are in the drivers’ seats, as both just need to win their games on Sunday to clinch. Either dropping points would create openings for Inter Miami, Atlanta United, and DC United. Atlanta can get in with a draw and a Chicago loss, while Miami and DC both need to win and get help elsewhere.
Throughout the World: Champions League stock report
The UEFA Champions League reached the halfway point of the group stage this week, so let’s take stock of where we’re at with three games to go.
Frontrunners Bayern Munich, Liverpool, and Manchester City have all taken care of business thus far, with none of the three dropping points. Liverpool, despite having to field a youth player at center back due to a major injury crisis, have yet to concede a single goal. Defending champions Bayern have scored 12 in three games. There is no reason to think of these three teams as anything but heavy favorites to take home Ol’ Big Ears.
There are some big name clubs in trouble. Real Madrid, a point off the top in Group B despite that humiliating Matchday 1 loss to Shakhtar Donetsk, should be fine, but Inter Milan are three points back in the same group and have a very dangerous Borussia Monchengladbach hanging around. Paris Saint-Germain have just three points in three matches, and while they have the talent to catch Manchester United and Red Bull Leipzig in Group H, their mental fortitude has often been questioned.
What Weston’s Watching this week (other than Decision Day, of course)
Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayern Munich, Bundesliga (Saturday 11/7, 12:30 pm, ESPN+) - Der Klassiker is always a great game, but especially when it’s at the Westfalenstadion. Sadly, the boisterous Yellow Wall won’t be behind their beloved BVB on Saturday, but the game represents Dortmund’s best chance to make a statement against the dominant Bayern, who are appointment television every time they face a quality opponent. The two enter the game even on points at the top of the table.
Manchester City vs. Liverpool, English Premier League (Sunday 11/8, 11:30 am, Peacock Premium) - Warm up for Decision Day with the biggest game in England at the moment, two heavyweights who play sumptuous soccer. Both now have defensive frailties, with Manchester City always searching for more defenders and Liverpool without 2019 Ballon d’Or runner-up Virgil van Dijk, out for the year with a torn ACL. There should be plenty of goals and plenty of drama at the Etihad.
