ORLANDO, Fla. — Orlando City lit a spark in its attack on Saturday night against FC Dallas, building off of scoring chances to secure a 2-0 win at home.
After an early goal, the Lions (8-11-5) held onto their slim lead until the 95th minute of play. A clean combination of attacking misdirection crushed any chance of an equalizer by the Bulls (9-9-6). Nani took the ball up the left side and crossed it through to Tesho Akindele, who slipped the ball back to the middle of the box.
Sacha Kljestan flicked the ball back between his legs, sending it skipping into the box for Carlos Ascues to run through and rifle into the netting right in front of Orlando City’s supporters section. As he ran to the corner, Ascues shook his fists and roared, teammates leaping onto his back as the crowd of 22,479 fans at Exploria Stadium rumbled with the most joyful celebration the team had seen in several weeks.
The goal sealed Orlando City’s 2-0 victory, inching the Lions three points closer to the postseason cutoff line as they begin their final push for a playoff berth. For a team that has yet to produce back-to-back wins in regular season games, tonight is only the first step toward creating a pattern of consistency to reach that goal.
“To get two in a row would be huge,” Kljestan said. “I think every time we’ve come off a good result, we’ve had a bit of a letdown. We need to focus and keep the mentality really strong.”
Dallas boasts one of the most smothering defenses in the league, allowing only 26 goals before Saturday night’s match. Heading into the game, the Lions knew that they would need to take advantage of the few chances they could create, putting a heavy emphasis on finishing after struggling to net score the past two games.
In the 13th minute, the team executed its game plan. Seeing a wide gap in the middle of the pitch, Ruan cut inside, hesitating and then driving hard into open space while Tesho Akindele slipped his defender with a back door cut into the box. With a spot-on ball weighted just past his defender, Akindele took one touch and fired the shot home to give Orlando City a 1-0 lead.
It was a special night for Akindele, who wore the captain’s armband for the first time in his senior career. With Nani and Kljestan both starting the game on the bench, coach James O’Connor approached the forward and told him that he had deserved the honor as a leader for the Lions.
“It’s weird, you feel like a rookie for a long time,” Akindele said. “I felt like a rookie even two years ago, like I was a new guy in the league. Now, kids are coming in that are five, six, seven years younger than me [and] I want to guide them and give them the best possible career. I’m happy to embrace that role.”
The captain’s shot was one of only four that Orlando City took in the first half, and the team only took nine total Saturday night. But in capitalizing on a rare opportunity against a high-powered defense, the Lions were able to snap a scoring funk.
Although Orlando City took charge with aggressive, attacking possession, Dallas dominated the majority of on-ball possession time, holding onto the ball for more than 60% of the game. But Dallas struggled to produce anything out of those sustained possessions, taking only three shots in the first half.
“Back in the day, people used to be all about Barcelona’s possession, but I think the game’s changed,” Akindele said. “It wasn’t something that was really concerning to us. We hit them a lot on the counter, and I think every time we had the ball we were creating good chances.”
Dallas continued to challenge the Orlando City defense, applying heightened pressure throughout the final half to intercept several back passes and force goalkeeper Brian Rowe to make flying punch-away saves. FC Dallas’ addition of midfielder Michael Barrios and forward Dominique Badji in the second half added an extra jolt in the second half, giving João Moutinho a rigorous task on the left flank of the defense.
Still, Dallas only took 10 total shots despite dominating the ball and Ascues’ last-minute goal cinched a much-needed home win for the Lions.
“For us, the key was understanding what they were going to do and then trying to take them out of their comfort zone a little bit,” O’Connor said. “The biggest thing for us was managing the transition moments. Overall, when you look at the way the game went, the biggest thing was that we made it hard for them when they attacked.”
The night also saw designated player Dom Dwyer’s return to the starting lineup. It was Dwyer’s first start since July 7, and he has struggled to consistently return to the starting lineup since suffering a hamstring injury in May. The striker had only played in four of the team’s last 10 games, missing a road trip due to the birth of his daughter and two games due to a red card suspension.
Although Dwyer’s performance wasn’t visible on the scoresheet, recording only one shot, the striker was active on both sides of the ball, drawing defenders with probing runs on the attack and swallowing up several of the counter plays that make Dallas dangerous in transition.
“That’s the Dom Dwyer that I personally know and love,” O’Connor said. “I love to see Dom charge around like that, flying into tackles. The energy that he showed tonight — that’s Dom Dwyer for me. That’s what we all want from Dom.”
After New England fell 2-0 to LAFC on Saturday night, Orlando City now sits only four points below playoff contention. The team will look to continue push for a postseason bid next weekend, but first the Lions will take on Atlanta United on Tuesday night in the semifinals of the U.S. Open Cup.