Orlando City (10-10-7, 37 points) vs New England Revolution (8-15-3, 27 points)
When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m
Where: Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando, Fla.
TV: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
Radio: Real Radio 104.1, (English), Mega 97.1 (Spanish)
Everything you need to know for the Lions' Saturday night match hosting New England Revolution in "The Road Ahead" driven by Audi:
Milestones
- On his next appearance, Pedro Gallese will become the third player in Orlando City history to reach 150 games played in all competitions. Gallese has the club records for saves, clean sheets, and goalkeeper wins.
- After scoring his 40th and 41st goals for Orlando City on August 31 against Nashville SC, Facundo Torres is three goals away from tying Cyle Larin for the most in club history in all competitions. At 24 assists, Torres is two away from tying Nani for second on the all-time charts.
- Nicolás Lodeiro has 12 assists in all competitions this season, tied with Torres’ 2022 and Mauricio Pereyra’s 2023 for the club’s single season record. Lodeiro’s next assist will give him sole possession of the record.
- Duncan McGuire’s next goal will tie him with Dom Dwyer for fifth in club history. McGuire is two goals away from catching Kaká for fourth.
Stats & Storylines
- Orlando City comes off the international break in strong shape. The Lions are 6-2-2 in their past ten league matches dating back to June 19, a run that has seen them climb from 14th to seventh in the table.
- During Matchday 30 (two weeks ago), Orlando won while the three teams in front of them (New York Red Bulls, New York City FC, Charlotte FC) all lost, as did the team directly behind them (Toronto FC). RBNY dropped two more points on Matchday 31 (this past weekend) with a home draw against Sporting Kansas City.
- Headed into Matchday 32 (this weekend), Orlando is six points behind RBNY in fourth place with a game in hand. The Lions could be as high as fifth by the end of the night, with NYCFC just two points ahead of Orlando and Charlotte a mere point in front of City.
- Orlando’s next two matches and four of its final seven take place at Inter&Co Stadium. The Lions are unbeaten in seven at home dating back to June 15, outscoring their opponents 18-5 across those seven matches. Facu Torres has scored six times in his last seven home games, while Ramiro Enrique has notched four goals and Iván Angulo has added three.
- After being snubbed for Uruguay’s Copa America team in June, Facundo Torres went on an absolute tear for Orlando City, scoring nine goals and providing eight assists in 14 matches between the June and September FIFA windows. Torres earned his way back into Marcelo Bielsa’s side for this month’s World Cup qualifiers, appearing off the bench in La Celeste’s 0-0 draws with Paraguay and Venezuela.
- Pedro Gallese and Wilder Cartagena both started for Peru in a 1-1 qualifying draw with Colombia, a big result against one of the top teams in CONMEBOL. The two also featured in La Bicolor’s second match, a 1-0 loss to Ecuador.
- A center-back for Orlando City, David Brekalo started at right back for his native Slovenia in both a 1-1 draw with Austria and a 3-0 win over Kazakhstan in the first two matches of Slovenia’s UEFA Nations League campaign, subbing off minutes before full time in both.
- Orlando City announced a technical partnership with Portuguese giants Sporting CP, with the two clubs set to “share information on best practices and methodologies across the entire player pathway, from the academies onwards.” Several former City players also played for Sporting CP, including Nani, Uri Rosell, and João Moutinho.
Series History
All-time vs. New England - 5-8-7, -9 GD (4-2-5, +4 GD home)
MLS only vs. New England - 4-7-7, -8 GD (3-1-5, +5 GD home)
2015 - D 2-2 (H), L 3-0 (A)
2016 - D 2-2 (H), D 2-2 (A), W 3-1 (H)
2017 - L 4-0 (A), W 6-1 (H)
2018 - D 3-3 (H), L 2-0 (A)
2019 - W 2-1 a.e.t. (H/USOC), L 4-1 (A), D 3-3 (H)
2020 - L 1-3 (H/MLS Cup Playoffs)
2021 - L 2-1 (A), D 2-2 (H)
2022 - D 1-1 (A), L 0-3 (H)
2023 - L 3-1 (A), W 3-2 (H)
2024 - W 1-3 (A)
Meet the opponent: New England Revolution
- Orlando City achieved a historic victory when it last met the Revolution on July 13, winning at Gillette Stadium for the first time in nine tries. The win also marked the first time the Lions beat the Revs in consecutive matches. New England led 1-0 at halftime through Giacomo Vrioni, but Orlando erupted in the second half, as Facu Torres scored a brace sandwiched around Ramiro Enrique’s winner in the 58th minute.
- New England has struggled in Orlando almost as badly as the Lions have in Foxborough. The Revs have just two wins in 11 total visits to Central Florida, though one of those did come in the 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs. Orlando defeated New England 3-2 at home last season, overcoming a Carles Gil brace with goals from Duncan McGuire, Torres, and Iván Angulo.
- Gil did not play in the July game in Massachusetts, but he should be available this weekend. The 2021 Landon Donovan MLS MVP returned from a two-month injury layoff on August 24 and has started all three of the Revs’ post-Leagues Cup matches, providing two assists in his return and scoring last weekend in a 2-2 draw with St. Louis City. Gil has 6 G/8 A in 10 career games against Orlando in all competitions.
- The Revs also strengthened during the summer transfer window, adding Argentine winger Luca Langoni on a U22 Initiative contract for a club-record fee. Langoni, nicknamed “La Langosta” (“The Lobster”), has taken to MLS like a crustacean to water, scoring two goals and assisting another in just 118 minutes of play.
- After a historically poor start to 2024, Caleb Porter and the Revs have dragged themselves into play-in contention, though dropping two points against St. Louis did not help their cause. New England sits in 12th place on 27 points, five back of the red line but with two games in hand.
