Player Ratings (Preseason Friendly vs NYCFC)
Orlando City played NYCFC in a 1-1 draw in the Carolina Challenge Cup this Saturday. The game was dominated early by Orlando City until Kaká scored in the 30th min. After Orlando took the lead, NYCFC started to increase the pressure and made the remaining minutes of the half a little stressful for the Lions. The second half started much like the end of the first with NYCFC switching to a 4-4-2 and keeping the pressure high on Orlando City until they scored in the 56th min on a play that saw St. Ledger looking for and offsides call only to find himself beat and behind Shelton who beat Ricketts low and to the right.
Orlando made a mass substitution in the 70th min giving minutes to Edwards, Heath, Boden, Avila, Ribiero, Donovan, Turner, Larin, and Cascio. The remainder of the match was very back and forward with some decent chances coming from either half.
**Below are player ratings on a +/- grading scale. C is a player who played an average game, A are players who played exceptional, and an F would be a player having the worst game ever.**
NOTE: C’s are not bad per se, in fact C’s get degrees! I am a teacher at UCF and A’s are hard to get in my classes.
Starters: B overall.
Róchez (B): Great hold up play and very nice feet. A nice triple dink that led to a quick release that hit the post. Very well could have been the decision maker. Nothing negative to be said about his performance.
Neal (B-): The old man still has it, many great touches and decisions in the mid. Nothing negative to say about this performance. Could definitely hold his own throughout the season.
Kaká (B) MOTM: Great first 30 mins. Made a lot happen in the offence and had a very nice finish for the lone goal for the night. In the 2nd half he was playing a bit high when we needed some relief in the mid and found himself a little out of place.
Molino (B): Is it me or does Molino look a lot bigger than he did last year? Holding his own out there and connecting really well with Kaká and Róchez. Again, after the goal and in the 2nd half, Molino did not provide the relief Orlando needed with the high pressure of NYCFC.
Higuita (A-): This guy is tough. Higuita took multiple knocks out there but was not afraid to stick it to David Villa and the rest of NYCFC. I was very impressed with his performance and I think subbing him at half time didn’t help stop the higher intensity of NYCF in the 2nd half.
Okugo (B+): Great first half! Strong presence in the mid and created some crucial turnovers in the first 30 mins. Okugo found himself a little lost in the 2nd half as did the rest of the team.
Shea (B): Great going forward providing an option in the attacking third. Defensively he was strong for the first half. Like the rest of the team, he looked a little shaken in the 2nd half with a couple miss touches.
Collin (B): Again, great first 30 mins, but its easy to look good on defense when you are dominating possession. Once NYCFC showed increased urgency, Collins had to step up. For the most part he did. Outside of a blunder that nearly led to a goal, he was strong.
St. Ledger (B-): This is a hard one to grade. For the most part, St. Ledger was great. Making crucial stops and playing smart out of the back. However, he led to the NYCFC goal. It cannot be said enough, and this is something you hate to see from your players, “Play the whistle and not the man”. That error alone could drop you below a C in my book but with an otherwise great performance in the back, I’ll give him an B-.
Ramos (B+): His intensity and skill give him a boost this week. The ref called it tight and really cramped Ramos’ style. However, he was solid defensively and offered an additional dangerous option going forward. Good match for Ramos.
Ricketts (C-): Multiple questionable decisions and an almost catastrophic miss on a corner, I was not impressed by Ricketts play tonight.
Substitudes: C overall.
45’ Cerén (C+): Cerén came in the game at a pivotal moment. Orlando needed to regain possession after an increased intensity. Though he did not play a bad half, he did not do much to help regain possession. Nothing bad about his performance, but nothing exceptional. He did make some very nice passes in the
middle.
70’ Larin (C+): Good movement up top with a few chances. With Orlando on the back foot most of the 2nd half, it was hard to see what Larin could do.
70’ Avila (C): Nothing crazy in his short time on the field. No huge blunders, but contributed nothing major. Again, hard to make an impact when struggling for possession.
70’ Ribiero (B): Big presence in the middle. Again, in a time where we needed to build some possession, he was always a bit too far forward. However, his touches up top were good and meaningful. Can’t wait to see what this guy can do.
70’ Cascio (C+): A few very meaningful and positive plays from Cascio but nothing extraordinary.
70’ Heath (C): Nothing bad, but nothing extraordinarily good. Tough spot to come into given the situation. I will say that the bleeding seemed to stop but I do not know if that was because of Heath or because of the NYCFC substitutions.
70' Boden (B+): Solid play. Even made the offensive push when we were on the back foot. He does not look fast, but he still makes penitrating runs with purpose. Great play from Luke.
70' Turner (C): Nothing special tonight. Again, not much of an opurtunity to show himeself off.
70’ Edwards (C): He did not have to do much. Hard to grade his time.
Coaching: C overall.
Heath (C): Great start but after the goal when NYCFC picked up the pace, we never regained possession. Grant it that Heath’s goal was not a win, his substitution of a center defensive midfielder when we needed to right the ship at half did not pay off. Maybe he was more concerned about taking Higuita out who took a few knocks, but we never quite gained control of the match after the 30th min.
These are the opinions of the author, please leave your comments below!
