After four years in USL, Orlando City fans have been used to seeing their team come out to Adrian Heath’s traditional 4-2-3-1 formation. But in Sunday’s win over the Portland Timbers, Heath made an adjustment to his lineup which saw three defensive midfielders for the first time.
Orlando City came into this season with three potential starting defensive midfielders as Amobi Okugo and Cristian Higuita joined USL carryover Darwin Cerén. In each of this season’s first five games for the Lions, two of the three midfielders had played a pivotal role. But on Sunday the trio took the field together for the first time.
Heath’s tactical change was valid considering Portland’s attacking prowess – especially at home. Heading into Sunday’s matchup, the Timbers had secured points in their last seven home games dating back to last August. In their most recent game held at Providence Park, the Timbers defeated FC Dallas 3-1, handing the Hoops their first loss of the season.
The new formation displayed Sunday was a surprise to many. Heath had been fiercely loyal to the setup that brought him five trophies in four seasons prior to entering MLS. But the veteran coach found that one particular Timber needed special attention which caused the adjustment Sunday.
Orlando City usually lines up a pair of defensive midfielders between the central defenders and attacking midfielders. Their primary role is to support defensively when the full backs push forward into the attack. But on Sunday Heath plugged Okugo between the center back pairing of Aurélien Collin and Seb Hines and the defensive midfield pairing of Higuita and Cerén with the primary objective of keeping track of Portland’s ever dangerous midfielder Darlington Nagbe.
“We thought that the way that they play, [Darlington] Nagbe comes in off the line very early and nearly plays off the striker. We just wanted to make sure that Amobi [Okugo] was in his area if he did.” Heath’s analysis turned out to be spot-on as the dangerous attacking midfielder found little space to create goal scoring opportunities, only then to be thwarted by Okugo and Collin.
One of the keys to the Lions leaving the Rose City with three points was to keep Nagbe from finding space to attack goal and following the win, Heath expressed his pleasure with how Okugo defended the Timbers playmaker, “I thought he worked really well.”
Darwin Cerén thriving in the Orlando City midfield
Even though the setup looked more defensive than normal, Heath was still happy with the team’s attacking potential. “We managed to get the ball to Brek [Shea] and Ricky [Kaká] out there, which we had been working on all week. I thought there was a little bit more space out there and if we can get two good players out there with time and space, you can create [opportunities] and that’s what we did in the first half.”
The tactical change once again showed Heath’s flexibility to adapt to difficult situations without losing the team’s well-known attacking prowess. Earlier this season in Montreal, injuries and national team call-ups left the Lions with only 15 players on the dress list. Despite falling behind 2-0 in that game, the undermanned Lions fought back to draw 2-2, effectively deploying a 3-4-3 formation to maximize the talent on the field and neutralize the Impact’s attack.
If there was any question as to whether Heath and his team could adjust to adverse situations at the MLS level, they have clearly been answered. Orlando City’s plan Sunday to feature three defensive midfielders worked as designed with Nagbe kept at bay. It’s a promising sign for the Lions as they work their way through their inaugural MLS season and certainly a challenge to opponents who have yet to face the same formation and line-up from the Lions this season.
