RECAP: No Wins But a Road Point in Orlando

New York Red Bulls still do not have a win on the road in 2025 but they are able to keep a clean sheet to grab a point against Orlando City SC on Saturday afternoon. Goalkeeper Carlos Coronel was the man of the match for New York, having to make key saves in the first half to keep his team in the game. A second half red card to Orlando gave Red Bulls momentum but they weren’t able to find the killer instinct to put the game away.

Head coach Sandro Schwarz changed the line-up this week, choosing to have Peter Stroud in a more advanced role and giving Ronald Donkor his first start of the year. Early on it did not lead to positive results for the traveling team as Orlando pushed on the wings through Marco Pasalic and Martin Ojeda. Coronel had to make several key stops to keep the game level as New York either failed to move the ball up the field or give away possession in dangerous positions.

The poor play forced Schwarz into changes before the first half whistle. Donkor came off the field for Wiki Carmona, moving Stroud back into the defensive side of the midfield. Little changed until the second half where a second yellow card for Rodrigo Schlegel forced Oscar Pareja’s men to take a more defensive stance for the remainder of the game. New York was able to control the ball but created few dangerous chances to take the win.

Nothing worked for Red Bulls as Cameron Harper’s return and an appearance by Wiktor Bogacz weren’t enough to boost the team’s chances. While the result isn’t negative, New York still has not unlocked the key to consistent goal scoring or dynamic play making.

The draw momentarily sees the team take over seventh place. While it isn’t a perfect result, it is one that continues to show just how difficult it is to defeat the New York Red Bulls as they work on fine-tuning their offense in the weeks to come.

STARTING XI:

New York Red Bulls: Coronel; D. Nealis, Eile, Parker, Ngoma (62′ Hall)(79′ Bogacz), Donkor (45′ Carmona), Carballo, Stroud (78′ Harper), Valencia, Forsberg, Choupo-Moting

Orlando City SC: Gallese; Freeman, Jansson, Schlegel, Brekalo, Pasalic (62′ Santos), Gerbet, Thorhallsson (79′ Enrique), Angulo (79′ Smith), Ojeda (79′ Atuesta), Muriel (68′ McGuire)

SCORING SUMMARY:


DISCIPLINE:
19′ (Orlando City SC) Marco Pasalic – YELLOW CARD
31′ (Orlando City SC) Rodrigo Schlegel – YELLOW CARD
47′ (New York Red Bulls) Serge Ngoma – YELLOW CARD
56′ (Orlando City SC) Rodrigo Schlegel – RED CARD
64′ (New York Red Bulls) Peter Stroud – YELLOW CARD
89′ (New York Red Bulls) Omar Valencia – YELLOW CARD