If Orlando City held a Black Friday fire sale, these players would be first on the chopping block | OneFootball

It's been a pretty unremarkable off-season so far for Orlando City.

Those players who we all expected to be renewed have been renewed, and those who we all anticipated would not have duly departed. Add to that Luis Otávio being the only concrete target of the few names that have been banded about, we haven't had much to truly get excited about.

However, with today being Black Friday, I thought it would be quite an entertaining exercise to take a look at some of those still in Óscar Pareja's roster who, for whatever reason, should probably be shown the door this winter.

And no, I will not be using this as an opportunity to pick on Iván Angulo, mostly because I've just been very vocal in defending the club's decision to renew his deal through 2026. A certain compatriot of his, though, won't be so lucky.

Nicolás Rodríguez

This one feels a little harsh given he's only amassed 385 minutes of playing time since arriving in January, but Nicolás Rodríguez already appears to be surplus to requirements.

Joining from Fortaleza CEIF for a reported $1 million, the 21-year-old was hailed as the replacement for club legend Facundo Torres, who'd just departed for Palmeiras for a club-record sale. Two weeks later, though, Orlando signed Marco Pašalić, who would go on to make the right-wing role his own.

I'm sure Rodríguez is a talented player. But there's no chance, unless Pašalić returns to Europe, that he will ever enjoy the sort of minutes required to truly stake his claim as a starter. You also can't ignore Gustavo Caraballo, Orlando's home-grown phenom, who will also be demanding increased opportunity to develop and impress in 2026.

Of course, as we saw in May away to Tampa Bay Rowdies, Rodríguez is happy to play off the left. But with both Angulo and Tyrese Spicer ahead of him in the pecking order there as well, it's very hard to picture a world in which he can be kept happy wasting away on the bench.

Adrián Marín

From a player who's struggled to stand out in limited appearances to one who you really can't fail to miss every time he steps on the pitch, Adrián Marín has been a disastrous addition at left-back.

Arriving from Braga in August, the 28-year-old was intended as a replacement for Rafael Santos, who'd been frozen out of Pareja's plans and was soon to be shipped off to Colorado Rapids.

His debut came in that month's chastening 5-1 defeat to Nashville SC, during which his glaring lack of physicality and defensive awareness became pretty evident. Still, Marín was trusted to start the following week's decisive Leagues Cup third-place match against LA Galaxy, in which a CONCACAF Champions Cup place was on the line. That too ended in disaster.

Replaced at half-time on a booking and 2-0 down to Toronto FC in October, Marín may well have already played his last game for Orlando.

Given his ample experience playing for multiple clubs across two of Europe's top leagues, I'm sure Marín is a talented player. But unless something miraculous happens this off-season, Orlando need to source yet another new left-back.

Luis Muriel

Let's be real. If there's one player that needs showing the door this winter, it's Luis Muriel.

17 goals in 84 games since arriving from Serie A giants Atalanta is nowhere near good enough for someone of Muriel's calibre earning a guaranteed $2.5 million a year. Add to that his questionable work rate, and it's clear that he has no future in Orlando.

Yes, he's still got one year left on his current deal, but the 34-year-old is said to already be weighing up his future in Central Florida. Earlier this month, he expressed his desire to play for boyhood club Atlético Junior before his career comes to an end.

If any apparent interest from his homeland results in offers being made, Orlando should jump at the chance to rid themselves of their highest earner and open up a Designated Player spot to be filled during the off-season.

With Christian Benteke recently being made available via free agency, there is already one Major League Soccer-proven striker out there who, on a sensible wage, would prove a shrewd addition. But with the invaluable resources that Muriel's departure would herald, Orlando would enjoy the creative freedom to recruit basically anyone they like.