photo: Rob Simmons
Orlando outplayed the Union for much of the evening with Group A honoras on the line and could have definitively won the match save for Andre Blake’s heroics. Warren Creavalle failed to impress replacing the suspended Jose Martinez and Ray Gaddis struggled to keep the dangerous Nani at bay for most of the evening.
Ilsinho continued his dangerous presence off the bench, netting a fine goal in the second half, but the Union couldn’t even hold the lead for a full two minutes.
Player Ratings
Andre Blake – 8
Good night for Blake who finished with 6 saves, some of which were of the highest quality. Not much he could do to keep out Pereyra’s powerful header.
Ray Gaddis – 3
Defending Nani is difficult and Gaddis struggled with the crafty winger all night. Poor in possession and did little to support Bedoya getting forward.
Jack Elliott – 5
Decent night for Elliott who finished with both 6 clearances and 6 recoveries. Was interesting to see the center back play in the holding midfield role for the final 20 minutes.
Mark McKenzie – 5
We’ve seen McKenzie play lights out defense for most of the tournament but he struggled to track Orlando’s movement more than Miami’s or New York’s.
Kai Wagner – 5
Decent night defensively for Wagner who finished with 4 recoveries and 5 clearances. Found space and time to throw in 8 crosses from the left side but failed to find a teammate with every single one – though hard to blame the left back when the Union had so few runners in the box.
Warren Creavalle – 2
Subbing in for the suspended Jose Martinez, Creavalle looked a step off the pace all night. Did little to help the Union midfield, which looked overrun for portions of the match. While the Union don’t look for Creavalle for his offense, he had a particularly poor evening in possession, often failing to find a teammate with his passes.
Jamiro Monteiro – 5
Monteiro was unplayable in midfield for periods of last season but hasn’t looked quite that same player so far in the MLS is Back Tournament. Some nifty tricks and deft passes, but little penetration in the final third from the Union’s #10.
Alejandro Bedoya – 6
Typical hardworking performance from the captain and did well to pick out Ilsinho for the Union’s goal. Finished with two key passes as well as the assist. Though he did fail to find a teammate with any of his 3 open play crosses.
Brendan Aaronson – 6
Like Bedoya, Aaronson put in the work and was often the most active player on the pitch for Philadelphia. Did very well to start the move that ended with Ilsinho’s goal. For all the great tricks and turns though, the final pass eluded the teenager most of the night. Should have scored right before halftime with a good chance inside the box.
Sergio Santos – 5
Led the team with 3 shots, and one on target. Threw his body around well but found little space to make runs behind the Orlando defense – which the Union need him to do. Looks intense with a shaved head.
Kacper Przybylko – 4
Outside of his well taken goal against Miami, the friendly striker has looked slightly off the pace for much of the tournament so far. Przybylko did well to pop up in space and get on the ball more against Orlando, but found himself in wide positions too often. The Union would much rather see him in the box looking to get on the end of crosses rather than providing them.
Subs
Ilsinho – 7
Often saw himself with two or three Orlando defenders after entering in the 59th minute. Still found space to pop up and drill a real quality finish for the Union’s lone tally on the night.
Jacob Glesnes – 6
Took one for the team with a necessary yellow card in the 80th minute as Orlando looked to break. Finished with 3 clearances and completed all of his 7 passes.
Matt Real – n/a
Lame cameo for Real.
Man of the Match – Andre Blake
Orlando could have won 3 or 4-1 if not for Blake’s heroics.
Geiger Counter: Rubiel Vazquez – 1
Its often said that players just want consistency from referees – and Vazquez was a model of inconsistency on the night. He definitely seemed to favor Orlando (he’s referred 3 of Orlando’s 5 games this season), calling so many niggly fouls on the Union. Missed an obvious foul right before Orlando scored that would have allowed the Union to clear their lines. I still have no idea what Glesnes yellow card for (going for the ball?). And the kicker – he didn’t consult VAR after a clear handball in the box from Orlando just before the final whistle.
1) it’s crazy that if a ref gets a “3”, it probably means he was acceptable, which just shows what we’ve come to expect from MLS refs. I feel like “don’t ruin the game” isn’t too much to ask.
2) I’m glad I never gave up on Blake, and shame on those who did.
3) I have faith in Curtin, but I think it says something about coaching when we’ve allowed 5 equalizers after 7 goals. We haven’t scored 2 unanswered yet this year. Not sure what the issue is, but FIX IT.
Those of us who gave up on Blake never did so because of his hands, but because of his feet. Then, when his hands went too, it was an easy decision to want to move on.
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Last night he was good with both hands and feet, which might be a first.
That’s very well put. His distribution has never been a strength, to say the least. I was more talking about people being hateful in comment sections, even going as far as changing their usernames to mock him. I guess the point I want to make is this: he may have poor performances at times, or even cost us points, but we can’t forget all he’s done for the club. He’s on our Mount Rushmore. I look forward to him being the 3rd member of the Ring Of Honor (after Gaddis of course)
I thought Gaddis had a good match. I’d give him at least a 5, maybe a 6.
And I’ve give Monteiro at least a 6, maybe a 7. Why? Because the man spent much of the match playing Creavalle’s position as well as his own, and he did a decent job of it too.
Oh — and Santos gets a 3. Dude was invisible except for one nice action in the first half. We need a lot more movement off the ball from him.
Glesnes’ yellow card wasn’t to stop a break, that was Ale. Glesnes’ yellow was because the ref thought he had a minimum quota of cards and hadn’t filled it yet.
Anybody who seriously gripes and complains about Andre Blake – man, I don’t know what to tell them. He’s an amazing keeper who can’t distribute. I am happy to have him, love watching him play. He came up big in this game.