ORLANDO, Fla. (Aug. 6, 2019) - Orlando City SC fell 2-0 to Atlanta United FC in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Semifinal on Tuesday night at Exploria Stadium. The Five Stripes scored on both sides of the break, finding the back of the net in the 37th and 78th minutes respectively.
The match served as the Lions’ first appearance in the Semifinal round of the nation’s oldest cup competition, with their previous best finish coming in the Quarterfinals in 2012 as a USL Pro franchise and in both 2015 and 2018 in the MLS era.
Head Coach James O’Connor:
“I think, obviously, very disappointed to get beat. I think when you look at the first half, I just said to the guys, I think we didn’t - first half especially - I didn’t think we really played anywhere near to our capacity. I think the occasion seemed to get to us. Second half our intent was a lot better; we were camped in their half, we had some momentum but we needed more quality. I think it was very evident to say second half we had the momentum but needed more quality to create some shots at goal. But, again, massive thank you to the supporters because when you look at the atmosphere tonight, the way they kept going, it’s incredible. It really is.”
Scoring Recap:
37’ Eric Remedi (Julian Gressel) - ATL 1, ORL 0
The Five Stripes got on the board first with Eric Remedi taking a shot just outside the area that was saved by City goalkeeper Adam Grinwis. Julian Gressel got on the end of the rebound, sending a ball across the face of goal from the right side for the easy finish for Remedi.
78’ Emerson Hyndman (Franco Escobar, Eric Remedi) - ATL 2, ORL 0
Atlanta added another late in the second half, with Remedi lofting a ball to the left side for Franco Escobar, who played it first-time to the middle of the area to Emerson Hyndman for the tap-in finish.
- Match Notes:
- The Lions made their first appearance in the Semifinal round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday night.
- Orlando City set a Club-record for attendance for a U.S. Open Cup match, with 18,461 fans in the building for the Semifinal match.
- Goalkeeper Adam Grinwis earned his fourth-consecutive start in U.S. Open Cup play this year, recording a tournament-high of five saves in the match.
Next Match: The Lions return to league play when they travel to face Toronto FC on Saturday, August 10 at BMO Field.
Scoring Summary:
ATL - Eric Remedi (Julian Gressel) 37’
ATL - Emerson Hyndman (Franco Escobar, Eric Remedi) 78’
Misconduct Summary:
ATL - Leandro González Pirez (Yellow Card) 59’
ORL - Tesho Akindele (Yellow Card) 68’
ATL - Franco Escobar (Yellow Card) 85’
ATL - Florentin Pogba (Yellow Card) 90’
ATL - Brad Guzan (Yellow Card) 90+2’
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando City SC - GK Adam Grinwis; D João Moutinho (Alex De John 78’), Robin Jansson, Lamine Sané, Ruan; M Will Johnson, Sacha Kljestan (Chris Mueller 58’), Sebastián Méndez; F Nani ©, Dom Dwyer (Benji Michel 58’), Tesho Akindele
Substitutes Not Used: GK Brian Rowe; D Shane O’Neill; M Dillon Powers, Uri Rosell
Atlanta United FC - GK Brad Guzan; D Franco Escobar, Leandro González Pirez, Miles Robinson, Julian Gressel; M Emerson Hyndman, Eric Remedi, Darlington Nagbe; F Ezequiel Barco (Andrew Carleton 50’), Justin Meram (Florentin Pogba 66’), Gonzalo Martínez (Héctor Villalba 80’)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Alec Kann; D Michael Parkhurst; M Jeff Larentowicz, Mo Adams;
Details of the Game:
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Weather: Clear
Date: Aug. 6, 2019
Attendance: 18,461
Stats:
Possession:
ORL - 49.4%
ATL - 50.6%
Shots:
ORL - 12
ATL - 15
Saves:
ORL - 5
ATL - 2
Fouls:
ORL - 15
ATL - 10
Corners:
ORL - 4
ATL - 6
