Orlando City took an early lead with a goal from Martin Ojeda and later scored again with a goal from Ramiro Enrique. However, their replacement players in the second half were unable to maintain the advantage, resulting in a late goal that led to a 2-2 draw with Inter Miami at Raymond James Stadium.
A total of 42,017 spectators at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Florida, with many hoping to witness Lionel Messi’s greatness, witnessed Tadeo Allende and Fafa Picault scoring for Miami, ruining Orlando’s night as they ended the preseason without a single win for the first time.
Eduard Atuesta made his first appearance for Orlando City in midfield alongside Cesar Araujo, while Ivan Angulo, Ojeda, and Marco Pasalic led the attack with Enrique as the forward. Both teams had opportunities to score early in the Florida derby match. Atuesta deflected a shot, causing Pasalic to miss high from just outside the penalty area.
Orlando City’s defense started to generate scoring opportunities in the ensuing moments. Ojeda created an opportunity for Enrique, but he failed to control the ball with his first touch, and the referee turned down penalty appeals after Enrique was fouled. Following a turnover, Ojeda passed to Angulo, who then set up the Argentine player for the opening goal with a delicate finish.
Schlegel was fortunate to only receive a yellow card after committing a foul while trying to thwart an attacking move from Miami. Miami leveled the score in the 22nd minute when Santos was unable to clear the ball, allowing Allende to find the back of the net with a shot into the bottom corner.
Allende came close to scoring a second goal shortly after but missed the target. Both Suarez and Segovia had opportunities to score for Miami but were unable to find the back of the net. Orlando failed to take advantage of two corner kicks and almost scored a third goal when Ojeda’s cross was blocked by Schlegel, preventing Enrique from taking a shot as the goalkeeper was out of position. Atuesta made a superb pass to release Pasalic towards goal, but Ustari saved the Croatian’s shot.
Pedro Gallese made consecutive saves to thwart Suarez and Messi, the latter was called offside. At halftime, the teams were tied at 1-1.
Orlando began the second half positively, with Angulo sending a dangerous cross to Enrique, who believed he should have been awarded a penalty for a handball. Atuesta failed to hit the target with his shot despite having an opportunity to score.
Orlando capitalized on a mistake by Miami and scored a goal just two minutes later. Ojeda took advantage of a mishandled pass in Miami’s half by their defense, setting up Enrique for a goal to make it 2-1 in the 54th minute.
Suarez had a chance to score in the 57th minute, but Gallese made an easy save. Gallese made a perfect save on Messi’s header ten minutes later. Substitutions were made by both teams in the following 15 to 20 minutes.
Some fans left the game when Messi was substituted out. The game became more chaotic after the substitutions, particularly when Nicolas Rodriguez made his first appearance. In the 82nd minute, Orlando had an opportunity to secure victory when Muriel passed to Caraballo, but Ustari saved his shot. Three minutes later, Muriel missed a shot that went over the bar. During extra time, Orlando’s reserve players had difficulty clearing the ball from their goal. Taylor attempted a shot that Guske blocked, and Picault managed to score, leveling the score despite Morales using his hand illegally before.
Talks were held regarding the chance of penalty shootouts, however, none were taken, resulting in a final score of 2-2.
See you at Inter&Co Stadium for the home opener next Saturday.
Vamos Orlando!
