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Orlando City
Major League Soccer
Jul 5, 2023 at 12.30am UK
Exploria Stadium
Toronto FC

Orlando City
4 - 0
Toronto

Araujo (16'), McGuire (22'), Dan Thor­halls­son (77'), Kara (84')
Gallese (62')
FT(HT: 2-0)

Coello (45+1'), Bernardeschi (47'), Petretta (80')
Bernardeschi (62')

Preview: Orlando City vs. Toronto - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Tuesday's Major League Soccer clash between Orlando City and Toronto, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Aiming to stay on track for a playoff place, Orlando City host MLS Eastern Conference strugglers Toronto at Exploria Stadium on Tuesday.

Ending a three-match winless run at the weekend saw the Orange County club consolidate a top-six place, while their Canadian counterparts were beaten at home and remain second-bottom of the standings.


Match preview

Orlando City SC midfielder Facundo Torres (17) reacts after scoring a goal against the New York Red Bulls during the second half at Exploria Stadium on February 25, 2023© Reuters

Though they have won only four of their 11 home fixtures so far, victory on Saturday night extended Orlando's unbeaten streak in Florida to six consecutive matches; keeping fellow playoff contenders Chicago at arm's length in the process.

The Lions pulled eight points clear of their visitors in the Eastern Conference standings, largely thanks to a brace from in-form Facundo Torres, who found the net either side of the break.

After the Uruguayan, who recently returned from international duty with La Celeste, opened the scoring with a header, his second came from the penalty spot; providing the platform for maximum points with his sixth and seventh goals of the 2023 campaign.

Orlando's 3-1 win ends a brief barren spell stretching back to mid-June, and with 20 games played they are very much on course for another top-seven finish this season.

Occupying sixth spot in the East, Oscar Pareja's men have a five-point buffer to eighth-placed Montreal, and if they can improve their home record further by beating lowly Toronto on Tuesday they will become even tougher to dislodge from the playoff places.

Toronto FC forward Federico Bernardeschi (10) and forward Ayo Akinola (20) congratulate midfielder Michael Bradley (4) on his goal on April 2, 2023© Reuters

Having lost to Orlando twice last term, conceding five goals and failing to score even once themselves, Toronto surely travel south more in hope than expectation this week.

Recent form suggests their hopes of success are relatively slim, after the post-Bob Bradley era began with a last-gasp defeat on Canada Day: Real Salt Lake stole all three points in stoppage time on Saturday night, when the teams met at BMO Field.

Terry Dunfield's first match since stepping up from the Under-17s and being named interim first-team coach almost ended in a draw, but after a scoreless 90 minutes, the visitors delivered a late dagger blow to quieten the crowd in Ontario.

After the Reds finished 13th last year, only Inter Miami sit below them in the Eastern Conference standings this time around - by a margin of three points - and the club soon set to welcome Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and coach Tata Martino still have two games in hand.

Things could get worse before they get any better, as ahead of their trip to the Sunshine State, Toronto have picked up just four points on the road this year and are yet to win away from home in 10 attempts.

Orlando City Major League Soccer form:

Toronto Major League Soccer form:


Team News

Orlando City SC head coach Oscar Pareja reacts on June 21, 2023© Reuters

After Orlando coach Oscar Pareja made three changes to his starting lineup at the weekend - with Mauricio Pereyra, Rodrigo Schlegel and Kyle Smith all promoted to the first XI - further rotation could be in store on Tuesday.

In midfield, Cesar Araujo returns following a one-match ban for yellow card accumulation, which could see Pereyra slip down to the bench. Forward Facundo Torres - who recently scored for Uruguay against Cuba - is likely to be retained, as he now leads City's scoring charts with seven goals in all competitions.

Michael Halliday's participation remains in doubt due to a thigh problem, so Smith stays on standby to play at right-back, while Gaston Gonzalez (also thigh) and Abdi Salim (knee) are set to miss out.

While 18-year-old Favian Loyola made his Orlando debut as a late substitute at the weekend, Toronto's interim coach Terry Dunfield handed 16-year-old Lazar Stefanovic his first-team bow on Saturday.

Such opportunities have arisen due to a depleted squad, as Matt Hedges (hamstring) and Cristian Gutierrez (calf) are sidelined by injury, while Jonathan Osorio and Richie Laryea remain on Gold Cup duty for Canada.

Tomas Romero of El Salvador and United States goalkeeper Sean Johnson are also unavailable; Greg Ranjitsingh deputises for the latter once again.


Orlando City possible starting lineup:
Gallese; Smith, Schlegel, Jansson, Santos; Araujo, Cartagena; Angulo, Torres, Ojeda; McGuire

Toronto possible starting lineup:
Ranjitsingh; Marshall-Rutty, O'Neill, Mabika, Petretta; Kaye, Servania; Thompson, Bernardeschi, Insigne; Sapong


SM words green background

We say: Orlando City 1-0 Toronto

As Toronto have only scored seven away goals and are yet to win on the road, a team under interim management and shorn of several international stars is set to come up short once more. Orlando seemed to find their rhythm during Saturday's convincing win and will surely score at least once.

How to watch

You can watch Orlando City vs. Toronto and every MLS match this season live on Apple TV. Click here for more details on how to subscribe.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 2.5:data


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Game History

How you voted: Orlando City vs Toronto

Orlando City
72.2%
Draw
16.7%
Toronto
11.1%
18
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Eastern Conference

TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Inter MiamiInter Miami32208472472568
2Columbus Crew31169662362657
3FC CincinnatiCincinnati321751055441156
4Orlando City32147115547849
5New York Red BullsNY Red Bulls32111475245747
6New York City FCNY City32138115146547
7Charlotte FCCharlotte FC32129114137445
8CF MontrealMontreal321010124662-1640
9Philadelphia UnionPhiladelphia32910135950937
10DC United32910135066-1637
11Toronto33114184060-2037
12Atlanta UnitedAtlanta32810144247-534
13Nashville SCNashville3289153451-1733
14New England RevolutionNew England3194183462-2831
15Chicago Fire3379174059-1930

Western Conference

TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Los Angeles GalaxyLA Galaxy32187766471961
2Los Angeles FCLos Angeles31167855411455
3Real Salt LakeSalt Lake321411762471553
4Seattle SoundersSeattle32158949341553
5Houston DynamoHouston32149945351051
6Colorado RapidsColorado32155125956350
7Vancouver WhitecapsVancouver31138105044647
8Minnesota UnitedMinnesota Utd32137125348546
9Portland TimbersPortland32129116455945
10Austin FCAustin32109133544-939
11Dallas32107155255-337
12St Louis City32713124659-1334
13Sporting Kansas CityKansas3287175061-1131
14San Jose EarthquakesEarthquakes3263234074-3421


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