Orlando City (0-3-1) vs Austin FC (0-1-3)
When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: INTER&Co Stadium, Orlando, FL
TV: Apple TV - MLS Season Pass (Subscription Required)
Radio: Real Radio 104.1, (English), Mega 97.1 (Spanish)
Here are five storylines to watch on Saturday, when Orlando City SC take on Austin FC:
All Even
Orlando City and Austin FC enter this weekend tied in the series between the Eastern and Western Conference sides, having only played once in the two clubs history. The Lions last squared off against Austin on May 22, 2022, at Q2 Stadium in a 2-2 draw that saw City playing with nine men for most of the second half. Since the two sides last met, City signed midfielder Felipe as a free agent, with Saturday set to mark his first matchup against his last club.
8 in 29-59
The Lions opened their 2024 campaign with eight matches across all competitions played in 29 days, including 8,413.83 miles of round-trip travel. Their next eight matches will take place over the span of 59 days, with no more than one match per week until mid-May and a bye week during Matchday 8 on the weekend of April 6-7. Orlando City will also travel under just 3,000 miles less from INTER&Co Stadium during that time span.
Going International
The Lions will be missing some faces on Saturday when they take the field to face off with Austin FC after seeing seven players called up to represent their respective national teams. Goalkeeper Pedro Gallese and midfielder Wilder Cartagena will be with Peru, while forward Facundo Torres was called-up by Uruguay. New defender David Brekalo re-joins the Slovenian National Team in the window, defender Abdi Salim and Somalia take on African Cup of Nations qualifying, while forward Duncan McGuire and midfielder Favian Loyola join the U.S. U-23 Olympic Team camp and U.S. U-19 camp respectively.
Draftee Debuts
Sunday night saw two of Orlando City SC’s MLS SuperDraft selections from the last couple of years make their Major League Soccer debuts. Selected with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 MLS Super Draft, Shak Mohammed subbed into the match in the 87th minute, while No. 21 overall selection in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft Jeorgio Kocevski subbed on in the 81st. The match served as both midfielders MLS debuts, while it was Kocevski’s first professional appearance.
Ramadan Mubarak
Beginning on Sunday, March 10 through Tuesday, April 9, many players around Major League Soccer, and the world, will celebrate and observe Islam’s holy month of Ramadan. Throughout this month, those observing Ramadan will fast from before dawn until sunset each day, forgoing food and drink during that time. Orlando City’s first team will see two players fast for Islam’s holy month, with defender Abdi Salim and midfielder Shak Mohammed both training and playing while fasting for Ramadan.
Milestone Tracker:
- Facundo Torres is one goal away from tying Nani (31) for second all-time in Orlando City history
- Duncan McGuire’s next goal will be his 19th for Orlando City, tying him with former Lions Daryl Dike and Benji Michel for eighth all-time in Club history
- Kyle Smith is one appearance away from 150 all-time for the Lions
