Antoine Griezmann's on fire as Orlando City surge | OneFootball

By Alex Calabrese

Antoine Griezmann and Orlando City are shaking up the Eastern Conference.

The legendary Frenchman scored in his fifth consecutive game on Saturday night, netting his third straight game-winning goal in a 3-0 victory over Toronto FC and further fuelling Orlando’s remarkable turnaround in the second half of the season.

The Lions now look like a contender to make serious noise in the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs, and Griezmann is delivering exactly what fans would have hoped for after his blockbuster arrival this summer.

“It’s a pleasure, a joy every day for me as a coach and as a person, because he’s unique, he’s magical on and off the field,” interim head coach Martin Perelman said in Spanish. “All I can do is enjoy every second of it, because it’s a privilege that football has given me and everyone at this club.”

The result extends Orlando's unbeaten run to five games, including four wins, with the Lions finding form ahead of the most important stretch of the regular season.

Terrific turnaround

Griezmann arrived at a struggling Orlando City team that were 13th in the East, averaging less than a point a game. Since then, that rate has more than doubled, and the Lions have climbed to sixth place.

With 20 points in 10 games since Griezmann’s debut, Orlando have found their best form of the season, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner is at the center of it all. The Lions are unbeaten in every match Griezmann has scored in all competitions in since his arrival (6W-0L-1D).

On Saturday, he opened the scoring against Toronto shortly before halftime, arriving in the box for an excellent first-time finish.

“It’s kind of like stuff I dreamed of as a kid,” said defender Zakaria Taifi. “I mean, it’s Griezmann. I’ve watched him for my whole life.

“In warm-ups and training, I always practice that ball with him because I know he just likes to fly and get his foot, get his head on the ball. And I know he’s going to be there.”

In a summer of star-studded arrivals in MLS, Griezmann has been among the brightest stars. The 35-year-old has seven goals in his last five games and nine across all competitions since joining Orlando.

Given both his prolific scoring rate and Orlando's dramatic improvement since his arrival, Griezmann has firmly entered the MLS Newcomer of the Year conversation.

Team effort

Griezmann was replaced in the 70th minute, but what followed showed the higher standard that has fueled Orlando’s turnaround.

“I really hate taking Griezmann off,” Perelman said. “He’s a player I always enjoy watching on the field. I hate taking Martín Ojeda off, I hate when he doesn’t start, and I hate when other players don’t play. It’s the hardest part.

“What stands out to me is that they put the team ahead of everything.”

Harvey Sarajian, a 2026 SuperDraft selection who spent the first half of the season with Orlando City B in MLS NEXT Pro, came off the bench to score his first MLS goal in spectacular fashion.

Iván Angulo, despite starting the game as a left back, stormed up the field to add the exclamation point in second-half stoppage time.

The resounding win makes a definitive statement as Orlando climb in the East, especially considering TFC entered the night unbeaten in seven matches and scoring goals for fun.

“It just shows the character we have with the entire team, with Griezmann, with Harvey, Justin [Ellis],” Taifi said. “It doesn’t matter who’s playing. We’re going to win.”

Orlando will face the Columbus Crew next in a U.S. Open Cup semifinal on Wednesday, a game that puts them just two wins away from a second trophy in club history.

They’ll round out September with intriguing road matchups against two of the other hottest teams since the World Cup break: Eastern Conference foes New England Revolution on Sept. 19 (7:30 pm ET | Apple TV) and the Philadelphia Union on Sept. 26 (7:30 pm ET | Apple TV).

WATCH: Antoine Griezmann sparks Orlando City in playoff hunt