ORLANDO, Fla. (July 27, 2022) – As halftime approached in the first ever Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup meeting between Orlando City SC and the New York Red Bulls, the two Division I MLS combatants were showered with a cooling rain as they battled in the heat and humidity of Exploria Stadium in Orlando for the right to play in the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final.
Shortly before the skies fully opened to pour a deluge onto the pitch, the game also opened to produce a flood of goals. “It was a great night and we got to move on,” Orlando City coach Oscar Pareja said after the match. “It was an important moment to score five goals and know that we move onto the Final. This is the next step in us continuing to grow and fight.”
Orlando were the aggressors over the first ten mins but, as the Red Bulls grew into the game, they carved out the first truly dangerous chances in the 20th minute when Patryk Klimala thundered a bicycle kick square off the crossbar. The rebound was also nearly put home by Luquinhas, whose point-blank header was saved magnificently by the outstretched arm of Orlando goalkeeper Pedro Gallese.
Klimala went close again seven minutes later, smacking a snapshot off the left post. Orlando’s Brazilian star Pato and his fellow countryman Luquinhas also traded close-range misses immediately thereafter as the weight of the Semifinal hung thick in the air.
With halftime beckoning, a Lewis Morgan lightning bolt gave the visitors a 1-0 lead in the opening minute of stoppage time. The strike set off a goal-storm from the hosts who responded with only a minute of first-half stoppage time remaining -- César Araujo notching his first professional goal to draw matters level.
The Lions picked up right where they left off when the second half started, going up 2-1 in the 47th minute. Captain Mauricio Pereyra picked out the lower left corner to give the hosts a lead they would only extend into the Florida night.
Araujo add his second and Orlando’s third in the 62nd minute as the home side, who reach the Final after playing all of their Open Cup matches at the familiar confines of Exploria Stadium, methodically distanced themselves from the Red Bulls.
Facundo Torres put the exclamation point on the evening for the home side. He converted a breakaway opportunity in the 75th minute before turning provider for Benji Michel to add Orlando’s fifth and final strike in the 85th minute to send the purple faithful home singing in the rain.
“I think the confidence that [the players] showed today as a group helped them a lot to put things together. The team showed that we have talent,” Pareja concluded. “Congratulations to the players and congratulations to the fans for taking our club to another Final.”
Orlando City SC (Div. I MLS) vs. New York Red Bulls (Div. I MLS) - Semifinal
July 27, 2022 – 7:30 p.m. ET – 85 degrees, mostly sunny
Exploria Stadium; Orlando, Fla. (attendance - TBA)
Scoring Summary:
NYRB – Lewis Morgan (Patryk Klimala) 45 + 1
ORL – César Araujo 45+4
ORL – Mauricio Pereyra (João Moutinho) 47
ORL – César Araujo (Benji Michel) 62
ORL – Facundo Torres (Júnior Urso) 75
ORL – Benji Michel (Facundo Torres) 83
Lineups:
ORL: 1-Pedro Gallese; 4-João Moutinho, 6-Robin Jansson (15-Rodrigo Schlegel, 85), 25-Antônio Carlos, 2-Ruan (24-Kyle Smith, 69); 10-Mauricio Pereyra (C) (21-Andrés Perea, 81), 5-César Araujo (13-Tesho Akindele, 85), 17-Facundo Torres, 11-Júnior Urso, 7-Alexandre Pato (20-Nicholas Gioacchini, 85); 19-Benji Michel
Substitutes not used: 40-Adam Grinwis, 9-Ercan Kara
Head coach: Oscar Pareja
NYRB: 1-Carlos Coronel; 33-Aaron Long (C), 15-Sean Nealis, 12-Dylan Nealis, 47-John Tolkin; 23-Cristian Cásseres Jr, 8-Frankie Amaya (16-Dru Yearwood, 66), 10-Lewis Morgan (17-Cameron Harper, 66), 21-Omir Fernandez (37-Caden Clark, 56), 82-Luquinhas; 9-Patryk Klimala (74-Tom Barlow, 56)
Substitutes not used: 18-Ryan Meara, 4-Andrés Reyes, 75-Daniel Edelman
Head coach: Gerhard Struber
Stats Summary: ORL / NYRB
Shots: 14 / 18
Shots on Goal: 9 / 3
Saves: 2 / 4
Corner Kicks: 2 / 5
Fouls: 12 / 15
Offside: 1 / 3
Misconduct Summary:
NYRB – Luquinhas (Caution) 30th minute
ORL – Ruan (Caution) 51
ORL – Alexandre Pato (Caution) 52
NYRB – Sean Nealis (Caution) 55
ORL – César Araujo (Caution) 71
NYRB – Carlos Coronel (Caution) 77
ORL – Nicholas Gioacchini (Caution) 89
Officials:
Referee: Victor Rivas
AR1 & 2: Ben Pilgrim, Artyom Arustamyan
4th Official: Luis Arroyo