Orlando City Wins Sloppily Against DC United

By no means was Orlando City’s performance clean or desirable, but it held out in the end.

Cyle Larin netted his 8th goal of the season to break the 0-0 deadlock in the 66th minute. DC United created more than a handful of chances to score the equalizer, but Giles Barnes put the game away as he registered his first goal as an Orlando City player in the 88th minute. Securing a 2-0 win and ending their six-game winless drought.

The Good

Barnes was the impact player in this game. He entered the game as a substitute in the 59th minute and immediately felt his presence known with a crunching tackle he delivered in the midfield to win a 50-50. Using his speed and creative footwork, Barnes earned a free kick outside the box on the wing which set up Orlando’s first goal.

.@CyleLarin inside the six? 💰 #ORLvDC https://t.co/K7ll0AZY49

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) June 1, 2017

Will Johnson, despite his wayward corner kicks during the match, delivered a brilliant ball into the box just begging to be met by an attacker. The ball traveled all the way to Cyle Larin who knew what to do with it. This was only his second goal in eight games but could provide the confidence needed going forward.

The Bad

The defending by Orlando City was nothing to be proud of. In the first half, the Lions could not get the ball out of their own final third as they played the counter-attack in the hopes of Carlos Rivas and Cyle Larin being on the same wavelength.

The second half defending was much worse. Unmarked players from DC United ran straight through the backline creating multiple chances that somehow didn’t find the back of the net. Back passes made by Jose Aja created a crisis almost every time.

For example:

What. An. Effort. #ORLvDC https://t.co/t1jaABVkst

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) June 1, 2017

The Ugly

This goal basically sums up the performance on the pitch from both squads.

You can’t score if you don’t shoot, kids. 😈 pic.twitter.com/fdWy4eD37f

— Orlando City SC (@OrlandoCitySC) June 1, 2017

Orlando City returns to action this Sunday as they host the Chicago Fire. Orlando City Stadium has been a fortress for the Lions so far this season as they are 6-1-1 at home. The Fire will be trying to defend their second place position in the Eastern Conference standings as Orlando is only one point behind them.