ORLANDO, Fla. (July 1, 2023) – Orlando City SC (8-5-7, 31 points) defeated Chicago Fire FC (5-7-8, 23 points) by a 3-1 scoreline on Saturday night at Exploria Stadium. The win extended the Lions’ unbeaten streak at home to six-consecutive matches.
The Lions were backed by a brace from midfielder Facundo Torres, who found the back of the net on both sides of the break. His first score came after nice buildup play involving Martín Ojeda and Kyle Smith, which eventually found the head of Torres who made no mistake. His second of the night came from the penalty spot after the ball struck the hand of a Fire defender. The Uruguayan international now leads City with seven goals scored across all competitions and becomes the third player in Orlando City history to net 15 goals in league play at the age of 23 or younger, joining former Lions Daryl Dike and Cyle Larin.
Forward Ramiro Enrique also hit the back of the net for the Lions on the night, scoring his second goal of the year. The match also saw Homegrown Favian Loyola make his First Team debut, entering the game in second-half stoppage time.
Scoring Summary:
38’ Facundo Torres (Kyle Smith, Martín Ojeda) – ORL 1, CHI 0
The Lions took the lead just before the break with Martín Ojeda pouncing on a poor touch from the Fire defense at the edge of the area, finding Kyle Smith on the right flank, who lofted a ball into the box that eventually found the head of Facundo Torres for the finish.
55’ Facundo Torres (PK) – ORL 2, CHI 0
City doubled its advantage via a penalty kick after a handball in the box was called against the Fire. Facundo Torres stepped up to the spot, sending his strike straight down the middle to secure a brace on the night.
66’ Xherdan Shaqiri (PK) – ORL 2, CHI 1
The visitors halved the deficit after drawing a foul in the area, with Xherdan Shaqiri stepping up for the Fire and converting from the spot with a strike into the right side of the net.
75’ Ramiro Enrique (Iván Angulo) – ORL 3, CHI 1
City regained its two-goal lead with Iván Angulo finding Ramiro Enrique at the left edge of the area, who took a trio of touches before making enough space around his defender to fire a shot into the bottom corner of the far post.
Head Coach Oscar Pareja:
“Very good game in front of our fans. That is the most important note of the night, obviously the three points, but doing it in front of our fans means a lot for the group. The boys expressed themselves very well in the first 25-30 minutes. I wish we had scored a couple of goals, but we maintained our concentration and we were patient with the game, controlling it, creating sequences, creating options to score. We were patient, the goals came, the reaction from Chicago in a spell of about 15 minutes was hard and then the other goals came. We’re good, we’re pleased, I think the team is playing much better. We’re scoring goals, a lot of positive things. Those three points will give us a lot of confidence too and we’re happy for our fans.”
Match Notes:
- Facundo Torres netted his sixth and seventh goals of the campaign, taking sole possession of the team lead in 2023.
- Ramiro Enrique scored his second goal as a Lion in the contest.
- Homegrown Favian Loyola earned his First Team debut on the evening, entering the game in the second half.
- Martín Ojeda recorded his seventh assist of the 2023 campaign, picking up the secondary assist on the Lions’ first goal of the night.
- Iván Angulo tallied his fourth assist of the year on the Enrique finish.
- Kyle Smith collected his second assist of the year on the Torres finish.
- Defender Robin Jansson extended his own Club-record with his 140th appearance in all competitions as a Lion on Saturday night.
- With the start, Mauricio Pereyra reached 100 MLS regular-season appearances.
- Facundo Torres tallied his 50th appearance in MLS regular-season play.
- Head Coach Oscar Pareja made three changes to his starting lineup his side’s last game against Seattle with Mauricio Pereyra, Rodrigo Schlegel and Kyle Smith all getting the nod.
