ORLANDO, Fla. (June 10, 2023) – Orlando City SC (7-4-5, 26 points) defeated the Colorado Rapids (2-9-7, 13 points) 2-0 on Saturday night at Exploria Stadium. With the win, the Lions have now gone six-consecutive games without a loss, dating back to May 13. City have also won back-to-back matches for the first time this season, coming off last week’s 3-0 win over the New York Red Bulls.
The Lions were backed by two second-half goals from Facundo Torres and Ramiro Enrique. For Torres, the goal counted as his fifth of the season, which is tied for the most by any Lions player this season in all competitions alongside forward Ercan Kara. The Uruguayan international also scored in the last matchup against the Rapids last season, which ended in a 1-1 draw. Torres also recorded an assist on the Enrique finish, his third of the year.
Enrique’s strike in the 83rd minute counted as his first goal while donning the City kit. The Argentine forward was signed in the offseason as a U22 initiative signing from Club Atlético Banfield of Argentina’s Primera División. Enrique has made 12 regular season appearances so far this season with the Club.
Goalkeeper Pedro Gallese had to only make two saves to earn his sixth clean sheet in all competitions this season. Saturday night also saw Gallese make his 100th appearance for the Club in the match against the Rapids, the most amongst any Orlando City goalkeeper throughout franchise history. Saturday’s clean sheet adds to the Peruvian international’s Club-record for clean sheets, which currently sits at 27 across all competitions.
The match also saw Orlando City Academy product Alejandro Granados make his MLS debut, coming on as a substitute in the 90th minute. Granados is the youngest player to make his MLS debut with the Club at 17 years and 11 days old. The 17-year-old signed a short-term MLS agreement earlier in the week, having made six appearances thus far for Orlando City B in 2023. Granados recently returned from a stint with the Spain U-17 National Team at the U-17 European Championship, where he helped Spain to a semifinals berth, making five appearances and scoring a goal during the tournament.
Scoring Summary:
56’ Facundo Torres (Mauricio Pereyra) – ORL 1, COL 0
The Lions took the lead shortly after the break following a cross from Rafael Santos that was denied via a kick-save from Colorado goalkeeper Marko Ilic. The rebound then fell to the foot of Mauricio Pereyra at the edge of the area, who laid off a ball to Facundo Torres, with the Uruguayan international able to cut it to his left foot before firing a shot that took a deflection straight into the back of the net.
83’ Ramiro Enrique (Facundo Torres) – ORL 2, COL 0
City doubled its advantage with Facundo Torres getting free on the right wing, taking on his defender before creating enough space to find Ramiro Enrique just inside the box. Enrique took a touch before firing off a strike with his right foot straight into the back of the net for his first goal as a Lion.
Head Coach Oscar Pareja:
“We are very pleased and excited to get three points in front of our fans. It was certainly something on our mind today, winning at home and getting that confidence back. It is not an easy job. Today was very necessary to get this win and have this performance. We know what happened out on the field and what matters is that we had a very good first half. The second half we could have been more aggressive, but the boys were cautious about just closing the game. This is something that we carry on our shoulders, and I understand that. We needed to win today. We are happy. We are having better performances and that is what we are aiming for.”
Match Notes:
- Ramiro Enrique scored his first goal as a Lion on the night.
- Facundo Torres recorded his fifth goal of the season, good for a team-high in league play and tying him for the team lead in all competitions with teammate Ercan Kara. It also counts as his third goal in the Lions’ last two matches.
- Torres picked up his third assist of the 2023 campaign earning the helper on the Enrique goal.
- Mauricio Pereyra tallied his fourth assist of the year on the Torres finish, extending his own Club-record with his 39th helper in purple.
- With the start on Saturday night, goalkeeper Pedro Gallese became the first Orlando City netminder to reach 100 appearances across all competitions as a Lion.
- After signing a short-term agreement earlier this week, Orlando City Academy product Alejandro Granados made his MLS debut coming into the match in the 90th minute, becoming the youngest player to make their MLS debut with Orlando City.
- Defender Antonio Carlos recorded his 85th start across all competitions as a Lion.
- Forward Iván Angulo tallied his 30th appearance across all competitions for City with the start.
- The Lions extended their unbeaten streak to six games, holding a 3-0-3 record during that stretch.
- Head Coach Oscar Pareja made no changes to his starting lineup from his side’s last match against the New York Red Bulls.
