ORLANDO, Fla. (October 15, 2017) ā In its regular season home finale, Orlando City SC (10-14-9, 39 points) fell 1-0 to Columbus Crew SC (16-12-5, 53 points) on Sunday evening at Orlando City Stadium. The match was KakĆ”ās last in MLS; his last match at Orlando City Stadium will be on Saturday, Nov. 4 in the āFuerza Puerto Rico Friendlyā.
āVery difficult to finish the [home schedule] with a loss at home, to feel like we didnāt live up to the expectations. We didnāt live up to what our fans and our Club and our community ultimately deserved this season,ā Lions head coach Jason Kreis said. āFor me, with the atmosphere that we have, with the stadium, with everything that the ownership group has given, we need to do better than that. So weāll spend the offseason getting really focused on where and how and when we can improve.ā
Kreis came out with a starting XI of Donny Toia, Jonathan Spector, Seb Hines and Scott Sutter on the back line; Servando Carrasco, Antonio Nocerino, Giles Barnes and Yoshimar YotĆŗn, who helped Peru qualify for the FIFA World Cup playoff stage last week, at midfield; and Dom Dwyer and captain KakĆ” up top. Joe Bendik started his 67th consecutive MLS match in goal for City.
Ola Kamara scored the only goal in the 66th minute with assists from HĆ©ctor JimĆ©nez and Federico HiguaĆn.
Many of the 25,166 fans in attendance stayed after the final whistle to watch KakĆ”ās interview on the jumbotron. The captain took time to hug all his teammates and coaches while the crowd cheered on following his Man of the Match performance and a special video tribute to the first season at Orlando City Stadium. KakĆ” and the rest of the Lions were joined by their children and families for a lap around the pitch after the match.
KakĆ” scored the Clubās first MLS goal in stoppage time of its inaugural MLS match and finishes the latest chapter of his illustrious club career as Orlando Cityās all-time MLS leader in assists (22) and as its second leading scorer (24).
In all, KakĆ” made 78 MLS and U.S. Open Cup appearances for City, was selected to the MLS All-Star Fan XI roster in all three years and captained the All-Stars in 2015 and 2016, winning MLS All-Star Game MVP in 2015.
KakĆ” was a major reason for Orlando Cityās local and global popularity and, with KakĆ”, Orlando City was second in MLS in average attendance at the 65,000-seat Camping World Stadium and second in visiting attendance. Since opening the doors of Orlando City Stadium in March 2017, the Club has sold all 18,000 season tickets for the third straight year and consistently hosts sold out crowds for MLS games.
āI canāt credit him enough for everything that heās given,ā Kreis continued. āIn every single minute that heās played, heās given everything of himself. You canāt ask for more than that.ā
It was the 12th match of over 25,000 fans at Orlando City Stadium. After hosting its inaugural match on March 5, Orlando City Stadium hosted every home match for City, Orlando Pride and Orlando City B. It also hosted the U.S. Menās National Team in a World Cup Qualifier, the 2017 National Womenās Soccer League Championship match yesterday and will host the NCAA Womenās College Cup in December. Orlando City Stadium will also host the āFuerza Puerto Rico Friendlyā on Nov. 4, with all proceeds going to the United for Puerto Rico initiative to help raise funds and aid recovery efforts for the island following the hurricane devastation.
The Lions will finish their third season in MLS on Sunday, Oct. 22, when they visit the Philadelphia Union. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. ET at Talen Energy Stadium.
Scoring Summary:
CLB - Ola Kamara (HĆ©ctor JimĆ©nez, Federico HiguaĆn) 66ā
Misconduct Summary:
ORL - Richie Laryea (Yellow Card) 81ā
ORL - Will Johnson (Yellow Card) 83ā
CLB - Josh Williams (Yellow Card) 87ā
ORL - Yoshimar YotĆŗn (Yellow Card) 90+4ā
Lineups/Substitutions:
Orlando City SC - GK Joe Bendik, D Donny Toia (Will Johnson 57ā), Jonathan Spector, Seb Hines, Scott Sutter, M Servando Carrasco (Richie Laryea 70ā), Yoshimar YotĆŗn, Antonio Nocerino, Giles Barnes (Carlos Rivas 57ā), F Dom Dwyer, ā KakĆ”
Substitutes Not Used: GK Earl Edwards, Jr., D Tommy Redding, M Dillon Powers, F Hadji Barry
Columbus Crew SC - GK Zack Steffen, D Hector Jimenez, Jonathan Mensah, Josh Williams, Harrison Afful (Jukka Raitala 85ā), M Artur, Wil Trapp, Justin Meram (Kekuta Manneh 63ā), Federico HiguaĆn (Adam Jahn 90+5ā), Pedro Santos, F Ola Kamara
Substitutes Not Used: GK Brad Stuver, D Lalas Abubakar, M Mohammed Abu, Cristian Martinez
Details of the Game:
Time: 5 p.m. ET
Weather: Clear
Date: Oct. 15, 2017
Attendance: 25,166
Stats:
Possession:
ORL - 46.5 %
CLB - 53.5 %
Shots:
ORL - 13
CLB - 11
Saves:
ORL - 3
CLB - 0
Fouls:
ORL - 10
CLB - 10
Corners:
ORL - 6
CLB - 5