Tag: Pedro Gallese

Kara bicycle kick equalizer not enough for Orlando City as Tigres advance in CCL

Orlando nearly stole it at the end, but Tigres is moving on

ORLANDO – André-Pierre Gignac stayed home for the second leg of Tigres’ CONCACAF Champions League round of 16 tie with Orlando City. His substitute, on the other hand, netted the vital goal for the Liga MX side to progress.

Sebastián Córdova controlled a cross with his chest and fired a 21st minute strike past the seemingly impenetrable Pedro Gallese as Tigres advanced via away-goals tiebreaker with a 1-1 draw at Exploria Stadium.

Tigres will face either Honduran side Motagua or Liga MX’s Pachuca, who after a scoreless first leg will settle their clash Thursday in Mexico.

Attacking woes continue to plague Orlando, which made its first CCL appearance in club history. The Lions have scored just three goals in five matches across all competitions this season.

Gallese, however, once again kept Orlando in contention. He made three crucial saves in the opening 15 minutes, including one to deny Nicolás Ibáñez on a header from point-blank range. Across the two legs, the Peruvian international stopped 15 Tigres shots.

“Obviously, he represents a lot of security for us, especially in the second half as we pushed. The lines were higher, and we left spaces in behind,” Orlando manager Oscar Pareja said. “It’s very, very good to see him in good form.”

Gignac, the 37-year-old Frenchman who has five goals and two assists in eight Liga MX Clausura matches, was unavailable due to his unvaccinated status. Current U.S. government rules state all air travelers who are not U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents must be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 before entering the country.

Orlando very nearly struck against the run of play shortly after that stop on Ibáñez, building up an attack down the left flank. Iván Angulo took a delicate touch in the box, but his curling shot drifted just wide of the far post.

Tigres cashed in its very next opportunity as Córdova evaded Luca Petrasso with the ball in the air. Córdova took it down with his chest and lashed it past the diving Gallese.

Córdova was one of two players inserted into Marco Antonio Ruiz’s starting 11, along with midfielder and captain Guido Pizarro replacing Juan Pablo Vigón.

Orlando nearly staged a miraculous comeback in the final minutes. Ercan Kara equalized on a 90th minute bicycle kick from a corner. Tigres defender Samir was then sent off for a second yellow in the 95th minute, while Orlando rookie Duncan McGuire blazed one last chance over the bar at the final whistle.

“We gave it our all and played to the end,” McGuire said. “From now on, in the games that we play, we have to play the way we finished that game.

“It’s definitely tough to lose a game like that, definitely thought that there maybe should have been more [stoppage] time. … We’ll keep our heads high and move on to the next one.”

Pareja was shown a red card following the match’s conclusion. In the post-game press conference, he argued that Orlando should have been given more stoppage time due to Tigres’ numerous delay tactics.

“Between the 89th and 96th minutes, there were four minutes and 50 seconds that they did not play. They did not allow us to play the game,” Pareja said. “We saw it in the World Cup, guys. If you give five minutes, and they are wasting time, you need to add more time.

“We are respectful, but we are not stupid. We are competing, and they need to realize that.”

Asked about the late stages of the match, Tigres boss Ruiz said, “It’s things that happen in soccer. Logically, a team doesn’t advance, and they get bothered. I don’t know what exactly happened or what the motive was, but people know those things happen in soccer and it’s the passion of the players.”

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Orlando City roars into 2022 U.S. Open Cup final with 5-1 demolition of New York Red Bulls

Orlando will host the U.S. Open Cup final after a big win

César Araújo wasn’t supposed to be the hero, but Orlando City is in the 2022 U.S. Open Cup final after the young midfielder scored his first two goals for the club in a wild 5-1 win over the New York Red Bulls Thursday night.

Despite the typical Florida heat, a high-tempo, acrimonious game saw both teams create plenty of chances. Patryk Klimala’s bicycle kick thwacked off the crossbar, with Luquinhas nearly scoring in the chaos that followed only for Pedro Gallese to make a sharp save.

Klimala beat Gallese again just minutes later, but that 20-yard bid thumped off the post and away to safety. Orlando were struggling as the half wore on, but produced a beautiful 39th minute counter-attack that ended with Alexandre Pato firing over the bar from a promising spot.

There were chances galore, but in first half stoppage time Lewis Morgan finally produced the finish required. The Red Bulls went long on the counter, and while Klimala’s pass missed Omir Fernandez, Morgan pinged a laser of a first-time shot into the upper corner to give the visitors the lead.

It wasn’t enough for the Red Bulls to actually get into the locker room ahead, though. With virtually the last play of the half, Antonio Carlos snapped a header down past Carlos Coronel, only for it to, you guessed it, hit the post. Orlando’s César Araújo swept the rebound home, capping off a wild half.

The clouds opened during the break, but nothing much else changed. Joao Moutinho’s cutback fooled the Red Bulls defense, leaving a window for Maurico Pereyra to make it 2-1 roughly 100 seconds after play resumed.

Just after the hour mark, Araújo bagged a brace in a near repeat of his first goal. Again, it was an Orlando corner that wasn’t initially cleared, and though it didn’t take a shot off the post this time, Araújo guided the rebound home through a herd of players.

From there, Orlando were rampant on the counter. Facundo Torres, amid suspicions of Benji Michel being offside earlier in the counter, made it 4-1, a goal that required nearly a full minute of discussion between referee Victor Rivas and his crew to sort out. Michel then cleverly flicked a fifth past Coronel seven minutes later.

The win means Orlando is guaranteed to host the Open Cup final, which will take place in either the first or second week of September. They’ll play either Sporting Kansas City or Sacramento Republic FC.

Check out all the goals here!

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