ORLANDO, Fla. (May 19, 2019) - Orlando City SC (4-6-3, 15 points) was victorious over 2019 Major League Soccer (MLS) expansion side FC Cincinnati (3-8-2, 11 points) on Sunday afternoon, seeing a 5-1 victory at Orlando City Stadium.
Lions’ forwards Nani and Tesho Akindele each recorded a brace on the night, with Nani’s second goal of the evening marking the 200th goal scored by Orlando in MLS play. Dom Dwyer also scored his fourth goal of the season in the match.
Head Coach James O’Connor:
“Obviously very pleased, not just with the result, I thought overall the mentality of the players was excellent. To play at three o’clock in Florida is a test, a mental test, and I thought the mentality of the players showed - going a goal down and then coming back and reacting the way they did. I just said there, on TV, the supporters have been fantastic. We’ve gone a goal down and the supporters are trying to encourage the players, really trying to lift them and get them going and they played a big part again tonight, like they always do.”
Scoring Recap:
24’ - Darren Mattocks (Eric Alexander) - CIN 1, ORL 0
Alexander sent a ball through the defense to Mattocks’ feet, who got by a City defender in the box and sent a shot over the head of goalkeeper Brian Rowe to give the visitors the lead.
37’ Tesho Akindele (Will Johnson, João Moutinho) - ORL 1, CIN 1
The Lions got on the board thanks to a quick combination outside the box, with Moutinho finding the foot of Will Johnson. Johnson then played Akindele first time at the top of the area, who took a touch and hit a shot over the head of Spencer Richey for the equalizer.
50’ Nani (PK) - ORL 2, CIN 1
After Lamine Sané was dragged down in the box on a corner kick by a Cincinnati defender, the Lions were awarded their second penalty kick of the season. Nani stepped up to the spot and, after an initial save by Richey, the captain put away the rebound to give the Lions the lead and his sixth goal of 2019.
59’ Nani (Ruan) - ORL 3, CIN 1
Ruan used his speed to get by a Cincinnati defender on the right wing and laid a ball across the face of goal to Nani, who put away the simple finish to double the lead for the Lions. The goal served as City’s 200th in MLS play.
64’ Tesho Akindele - ORL 4, CIN 1
After a poor clearance by the Cincinnati defense following a City corner, the ball fell to the foot of Akindele in the box who hit it first time with his left to extend the lead for the Lions.
82’ Dom Dwyer (Josue Colman) - ORL 5, CIN 1
Dwyer capped off the night of scoring, powering a header home off of Josue Colman’s right footed corner.
Match Notes
- FC Cincinnati was forced to make an early substitution in the 10th minute after Greg Garza left the game due to injury.
- Sunday’s contest served as Orlando and Cincinnati’s first ever matchup in MLS history.
- Nani scored his sixth and seventh goals of the season, extending his team lead.
- Nani’s second goal, which came from the spot, served as his second goal from a penalty kick this campaign.
- Following Orlando City’s third goal in the 59th minute, scored by Portuguese forward Nani, the team reached 200 goals in MLS play. The Club now has a total of 202 total goals in MLS play following Sunday’s five goals.
- Sunday’s match served as Nani’s second brace of the season, both coming at home. The first occurred when City hosted the Colorado Rapids on April 6, a 4-3 victory.
City’s five goals on Sunday served as the most scored by the Lions this season.
Next Match:
Orlando City remain home on Friday, May 24 as it hosts LA Galaxy at Orlando City Stadium in a 7 p.m. ET kickoff.
Scoring Summary:
CIN - Darren Mattocks (Eric Alexander) 24’
ORL - Tesho Akindele (Will Johnson, João Moutinho) 37’
ORL - Nani (PK) 50’
ORL - Nani (Ruan) 59’
ORL - Tesho Akindele 64’
ORL - Dom Dwyer (Josue Colman) 82’
Misconduct Summary:
ORL - Will Johnson (Yellow Card) 43’
ORL - Sebastián Méndez (Yellow Card) 45 + 4’
CIN - Alvas Powell (Yellow Card) 45 + 6’
CIN - Victor Ulloa (Yellow Card) 71’
ORL - Dom Dwyer (Yellow Card) 74’
CIN - Frankie Amaya (Yellow Card) 75’
CIN - Emmanuel Ledesma (Yellow Card) 87’
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando City SC - GK Brian Rowe; D Ruan, Robin Jansson, Lamine Sané; M João Moutinho, Will Johnson, Sebastián Méndez, Christian Higuita (Josué Colmán 78’); F Nani © (Dom Dwyer 67’ ©), Chris Mueller (Benji Michel 85’), Tesho Akindele
Substitutes Not Used: GK Greg Ranjitsingh; D Kyle Smith, Kamal Miller; M Uri Rosell
FC Cincinnati - GK Spencer Richey; D Greg Garza (Alvas Powell 10’), Kendall Waston ©, Justin Hoyte, Mathieu Deplagne; M Frankie Amaya, Victor Ulloa, Eric Alexander; F Kekuta Manneh (Kenny Saief 65’), Darren Mattocks (Fanendo Adi 64’), Emmanuel Ledesma
Substitutes Not Used: GK Przemyslaw Tyton; D Nick Hagglund; M Caleb Stanko, Nazmi Albadawi
Details of the Game:
Time: 3 p.m. ET
Weather: Clear
Date: May 19, 2019
Attendance: 22,341
Stats:
Possession:
ORL - 61.1%
CIN - 38.9%
Shots:
ORL - 17
CIN - 5
Saves:
ORL - 2
CIN - 4
Fouls:
ORL - 9
CIN - 13
Corners:
ORL - 11
CIN - 4
