Sebastián Méndez made his return to the Lions’ lineup for the first time since July 7 at Chicago, starting for City in the match.
Head Coach Oscar Pareja:
“It is painful to say that after playing a good game we’re still leaving with the disappointment of not getting a result. I thought we came here to New England against a team who has a lot of confidence. We came here to fight…we know how dangerous they [New England] were. But we did not come here to put eight or nine players behind [the ball]. We wanted to come and fight our game. The game gave us the chance to equalize and probably, after that, would [have been] much more. But we ended up with this frustration that we have to deal with. Players showed a lot of character and that’s something that’s very valuable today. You all know the responsibility of the results is carried on the coaches’ shoulders and that’s something that I want today, more than any other night, to happen. The players did a good job, they played their games and they deserved more. But we have to keep going.”
Scoring Recap:
9’ Adam Buksa (Gustavo Bou) – NE 1, ORL 0
The home side took the lead early on with Gustavo Bou sending a bending cross in from the left side that teammate Adam Buksa was able to volley into the net from close range.
18’ Daryl Dike (Mauricio Pereyra) – ORL 1, NE 1
The Lions responded just nine minutes later, after Mauricio Pereyra threaded a ball into the box to Daryl Dike. The forward used his size to fend off the Revolution defender before powering a shot past USMNT teammate Matt Turner.
36’ Rodrigo Schlegel (Own Goal) – NE 2, ORL 1
Before the first half whistle, the Revs got a second on the board after an own goal from Rodrigo Schlegel in what would prove to be the game-winner.
Match Notes:
- Daryl Dike netted his fourth goal of the campaign in the match, now with 12 goals in his MLS career.
- Mauricio Pereyra tallied his 10th assist of the calendar year on the night, extending his team-high and becoming the fourth player in Club history to record a double-digit assist season (Kaká 10, 2016; Yoshimar Yotún 10, 2018; Nani 10, 2019). Pereyra now sits tied for second in Club history in assists at 22 with former Lions’ captain Kaká and teammate Chris Mueller.
- Mauricio Pereyra and Andrés Perea each tallied their 50th appearances for the Lions on the night across all competitions.
- Sebastián Méndez made his return to the Lions’ lineup for the first time since July 7 at Chicago, starting for City in the match.
- Head Coach Oscar Pareja made four changes to his starting lineup in the match, with João Moutinho, Sebastián Méndez, Andrés Perea and Daryl Dike all reentering the fold for the side.
| Teams | 1 | 2 | F |
| New England Revolution | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Orlando City SC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
NE – Adam Buksa (Gustavo Bou) 9’
ORL – Daryl Dike (Mauricio Pereyra) 18’
NE – Rodrigo Schlegel (Own Goal) 36’
Misconduct Summary:
ORL – Benji Michel (Yellow Card) 19’
ORL – Robin Jansson (Yellow Card) 39’
NE – Tajon Buchanan (Yellow Card) 80’
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando City SC – GK Pedro Gallese; D João Moutinho, Robin Jansson, Rodrigo Schlegel (Kyle Smith 87’), Ruan; M Mauricio Pereyra ©, Sebastián Méndez (Silvester van der Water 70’), Júnior Urso, Andrés Perea (Tesho Akindele 87’); F Daryl Dike, Benji Michel (Nani 57’)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Adam Grinwis; D Emmanuel Mas, Rio Hope-Gund; M Raul Aguilera; F Alexander Alvarado
New England Revolution – GK Matt Turner; D Andrew Farrell, Henry Kessler, Matthew Polster, Brandon Bye, DeJuan Jones; M Gustavo Bou (Teal Bunbury 90+3’), Carles Gil ©, Thomas McNamara; F Adam Buksa, Tajon Buchanan (Arnor Traustason 84’, Jonathan Bell)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Brad Knighton; D A.J. DeLaGarza, Christina Mafla; M Wilfrid Kaptoum, Scott Caldwell, Luis Caicedo
Details of the Game:
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Weather: Clear
Date: September 25, 2021
Attendance: 23,506
Stats:
Possession:
NE – 54.1%
ORL – 45.9%
Shots:
NE – 13
ORL – 13
Saves:
NE – 2
ORL – 0
Fouls:
NE – 13
ORL – 10
Corners:
NE – 4
ORL – 3
Heineken Man of the Match: Daryl Dike
