Orlando City Hosts Atlanta in U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal | OneFootball

Orlando City and Atlanta United drew 1-1 on Saturday, May 16, in MLS, with a goal from Griffin Dorsey (17th minute) for the Florida club and a goal from Ajani Fortune (53rd minute) for the visitors. They will have a chance for revenge on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup.

Tuesday and Wednesday will feature the matches to determine the semifinalists of said tournament, with, in addition to the aforementioned clubs, St. Louis CITY SC, Houston Dynamo, Columbus Crew, New York City FC, Colorado Rapids and San Jose Earthquakes all seeking to advance to the top four.

Below is all the key information you need to know before the Orlando vs. Atlanta game. Let’s get into it.

Orlando City vs. Atlanta United

Kickoff: 7:30 pm ET/4:30 pm PTInter&Co Stadium, Orlando, FloridaWatch on Paramount+ and CBS Sports Golazo Network

Orlando’s High-Scoring, High-Conceding Season Continues

Orlando City is going through at least a decent moment. Before the 1-1 draw against Atlanta, the Lions beat Philadelphia Union 4-3 on May 13.

A familiar scoreline for the Florida club this season: on April 29, they eliminated New England Revolution in the round of 16 of the U.S. Open Cup with that same scoreline, and on May 2, they beat Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami and co., yes, with that same 4-3 scoreline.

Orlando has managed to score many goals this season, but has also conceded many. Martin Perelman’s team has scored 21 goals in 14 MLS games this season, but has conceded 38. They are the worst team in the latter category.

Forward Justin Ellis addressed the press on Monday and declared he is aware of the mentality needed to qualify for the semifinals. “If we lose that, we’re out,” he said. “We have to go in there and just make sure we don’t lose. We have to win. I think we’re gonna play with that mentality, just do anything to win.”

Interim head coach Perelman, for his part, noted that the start of the season was complicated by many away games, and now he values playing in Orlando more often. “The calendar was hard for us in the first 11 games. We played eight away, two blocks of four games away in a row,” he said.

“It wasn’t easy for us, not only because we miss home and our stadium, but also because we travel a lot. Now we are playing a little bit more at home. We enjoy it.”

Atlanta’s Struggles Deepen as Almiron Remains Sidelined

Atlanta United, for its part, has had a more complicated season. They are currently in second-to-last place in the Eastern Conference, with only 11 points after 13 matches, although two of their only three MLS wins happened in the last month.

In fact, on May 2 they beat Montreal CF 3-1, and on April 28 they beat Charlotte FC 2-0, eliminating them from the U.S. Open Cup round of 16.

Atlanta has managed only 14 goals in their first 14 MLS matches this campaign, conceding 21 in that same period. Gerardo Martino’s team has a lot to improve on to hope to beat Orlando, and the Argentine coach himself acknowledged this before the match between the two teams, which ended in a 1-1 draw.

“Orlando City is a team that has the ability to switch their positioning a lot when they’re in the buildup, so that organized disorder can lead to challenges for opponents when they’re trying to understand how to best stop the buildup play,” he said. “That’s something we have to be aware of and the rest of our proposed style of play.”

Atlanta star Miguel Almiron injured his knee on April 17 and will not be available for this match. His return is expected in early June. In eight games this season, the Paraguayan recorded three assists.

Match prediction: Orlando City 3-1 Atlanta United.