• Final stats

Orlando City SC has finally done it.

The Lions scored first in a game for the first time in 2018, and that propelled them to their third-straight win. City (3-2-1, 10 points) defeated the Philadelphia Union (1-2-2, 5 points) 2-0 on April 13 in Philadelphia.

“It felt different. We didn’t quite know how to handle ourselves,” City head coach Jason Kreis said after the match, per the Union. “I’m really, really proud of the guys’ effort tonight and the performance. For me, it was the most complete game of the year–no question about it.”

City scored two first-half goals to sweep the building momentum from underneath the Union. Forward Dom Dwyer, who has now scored four goals in his first three appearances of 2018, opened the scoring off an assist by midfielder Sacha Kljestan in the 38th minute.

Kljestan received the ball from Yoshimar Yotún and was given time and space near the top of the box. Dwyer, moving from the middle to the left part of the box, made a cut toward goal, as Kljestan chipped the ball to Dwyer. The second-year Lions player let the ball bounce off his body before turning and striking the ball toward the far post for the first goal of the evening.

The Lions’ goal-scoring chances almost seemed to open up after the necessary substitution of midfielder Cristian Higuita, who entered the game for an injured R.J. Allen. The 29th-minute decision also moved midfielder Will Johnson to right back, a position he had experience playing last season.

“Cristian, for me, was one of the top performers for us tonight,” Kreis said. “He’s been training really, really well, and so we knew he was ready. And then Will put a shift in for us at right back for us last year for the first opening five or six matches. We knew that he was quite capable of that as well.

“We had [left back] Donny Toia on the bench that we could have played, but Donny is left-footed, and I really wanted to have a right-footed player over there for us to alleviate some pressure.”

Just before the first half ended, rookie Chris Mueller doubled the Lions’ lead with a persistent, solo effort and a little bit of luck. In the 45th minute, the 21-year-old made an aggressive turn from just past midfield and drove the ball all the way to the top of Philly’s box.

His initial effort was thwarted by two Union defenders, but a fortunate bounce dropped the ball in open space for Mueller inside the penalty box, as he finished it with a grounded, far-post shot.

Mueller also partially credits Higuita for his second Major League Soccer goal, his second in as many games.

“Honestly, attack through the channels was on for us,” Mueller said after the win, per the Union. “We found some pockets with Stéfano [Pinho] and me. Cristian and Yoshi moved the ball so well that it made it easy to open up the space and the gaps for us. So, found a good time to get on the ball and make a good run and make a good goal.”

Despite staying scoreless for the entirety of the match, the Union were statistically the better offensive team. Philly out-shot the Lions 20-8 (6-3 on-target) and recorded more corners (14-3), too. Those chances were most apparent in the second half when Lions keeper Joe Bendik was forced to make game-solidifying save after game-solidifying save.

Bendik made one of his six saves in the 55th minute. Philly midfielder Fafà Picault found space down the right side and narrowly beat his defender, sending an on-target shot to the far post. An out-stretched, falling Bendik made the tip save with his right hand to keep the Lions’ lead at a commanding 2-0 score.

No more than seven minutes later did Philly return with another on-target shot. Midfielder David Accam evaded multiple Lions defenders down the left flank before centering the ball inside the penalty box to forward C.J. Sapong.

Sapong, then, one-touched the ball to midfielder Alejandro Bedoya at the top of the box for a low, on-target shot that, once again, tested Bendik’s reaction and flexibility.

“I think we did a really good job of containing them,” Bendik said after the win. “I think they had more pressure in the first 20 minutes of the second half, and then they just kind of fell off because, time after time, we won our duels, and we completely fended them off.”

Who’s Next?

City will have a little more than week’s rest before returning to Orlando for a matchup with their third Western Conference foe of the season: the San Jose Earthquakes. The Lions host San Jose (1-2-1, 4 points) on April 21 at 7:30 p.m.

For more on the Lions, as they prepare for another home game, follow Victor Tan on Twitter at @NDR_VictorTan.

To contact Victor, you can email him at vtan@newdayreview.com.