How Orlando City Dominated Their Way into a 2nd Place MLS Finish

ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN) — In an era of Messi-dominated headlines and massive overspending for lackluster results; Orlando City remains an anomaly within the league. In December, Oscar Pareja’s tenure at Orlando City will turn four years old. In that time, the Lions have slowly reformed themselves into a sleeping giant in the Eastern Conference. This 3-2 result against the Revs proves that Orlando City has evolved into a scary team. Coupled with their narrow win mid-week against Nashville, this nine-game unbeaten run secures home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Purple Revolution is officially here

Orlando City’s formula to success has been unorthodox, to say the least. Nonetheless, last night’s victory over New England — especially the offensive fluidity in the first half — was a testament to how far this team has come.

Just three short years ago, Orlando was a one-dimensional team relying on the heroics of a Nani, Mueller, or Dyke to turn a game around. After Nani’s departure in 2021, Orlando City indexed into South American talent with the likes of Facundo Torres, Cesar Araujo, and Antonio Carlos the summer prior.

Torres’ debut season was a smashing success as Orlando City won their first piece of silverware with the U.S. Open Cup trophy. The following summer, Orlando doubled down on their prospects in the southern hemisphere. Martin Ojeda and Ramiro Enrique both made the jump from Argentina to the United States.

Wilder Cartagena, the Peruvian ball-stopper, became a fundamental pairing alongside Araujo in midfield. But the real ace in the hole was Ivan Angulo’s loan transfer from Palmeiras. Once the Colombian international found his footing in an Orlando City shirt; Orlando’s offense has never looked better.

Where does Orlando’s depth rank among the best?

One of the best attributes of Orlando City’s nine-game unbeaten run is their strength in numbers. Orlando City possesses four players with more than ten goal contributions (goals + assists) on their roster. Martin Ojeda and Torres are the crafty left-footed wingers that can play on either side of the field. When Torres is on the right wing, the objective is to cut inside and score. When he occupies the left wing, the gameplan tends to be a lofted cross into space. Then, players like Angulo and Mauricio Pereyra fill in the gaps in midfield.

No championship-caliber team is complete without a plethora of strikers. Luckily, Orlando City has that in droves with their star rookie of the year candidate Duncan McGuire. After last night’s header, the Omaha native has 11 goals in 17 starts to his tally. Ramiro Enrique shared a lot of his time with the now-departed Ercan Kara. Even still, the former Banfield product has been efficient in front of the goal for Orlando City. He is averaging .46 goals/assists per 90 minutes which is a number that can only improve once he finds regularity. In fact, McGuire was called up to the United States Men’s Olympic National Team Sunday morning.

Playoff aspirations higher than ever before

So how does Orlando fare against the rest of the conference for their playoff run? Since their last loss to Inter Miami in the Leagues Cup, they have beaten or taken points off every team in the top five of the Eastern Conference. This is the first year Orlando City surpassed a +10 goal differential since their shortened 2020 season.

The best part about it? The City Beautiful is playing a beautiful brand of soccer that all fans can love. In a year where massive Messi headlines have dominated the league, the real storyline out of Florida is how Orlando City continues to churn out a successful style of play that dazzles the fans but also remains potent against the league’s best defenses.

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Nicolas Vera is a sports reporter for Florida National News, part of the FNN News Network. | info@floridanationalnews.com