An Eastern Conference final few could have predicted at the start of the MLS Cup playoffs will occur on Saturday when Orlando City host the New York Red Bulls at Inter & Co Stadium.
The Lions advanced into this round thanks to a 1-0 victory over Atlanta United, while the Red Bulls managed to defeat their arch-rivals New York City FC 2-0.
Match preview
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For the first time in club history, Orlando City are through to the conference finals after a near-flawless defensive display in their semi-final affair.
Oscar Pareja's men did not concede a single effort on target to the Five Stripes, collecting their 15th clean sheet of 2024 across all competitions.
They are undefeated after 90 minutes in their last four MLS encounters, conceding just once in three playoff games this season at Inter & Co Stadium.
With a victory this weekend, the Lions would become the first side from the Sunshine State to book a place in the MLS Cup final.
Over the past couple of months, Orlando have done a terrific job at controlling second balls, which have limited their opponents' opportunities and enabled them to suffer just one defeat in their last eight league contests, including the playoffs.
Orlando City are unbeaten in their previous three competitive home fixtures against the Red Bulls, including an emphatic 5-1 victory in the 2022 US Open Cup semi-finals, lifting that trophy later in the year.
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Throughout his first season as head coach, Sandro Schwarz has opted to play a little more with the ball than we are used to seeing with most Red Bull teams.
In the post-season, however, they have returned to what they know best, possessing no more than 35% of the ball in any of their previous three games.
Last Saturday, they made the most of their chances, scoring on two of their three targeted efforts to advance into the conference finals for the first time since 2018.
The Red Bulls have been eliminated from the conference finals in their last three appearances and have not made it beyond this phase since 2008.
In 2024 the New York Red Bulls have not lost to an MLS opponent after netting the opening goal, winning three successive encounters when doing so.
This season, they suffered just one defeat against Florida-based teams (6-2 to Inter Miami) but have not beaten Orlando City at Inter & Co Stadium since 2022 (3-0).
Team News
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Last weekend, the Lions were without Mason Stajduhar, who is still dealing with a lower leg injury, while Robin Jansson became the first Orlando player to appear in 200 matches across all competitions.
Ramiro Enrique had the only goal against the Five Stripes, which was all they would need, as Pedro Gallese did not have to make a single stop to collect his second post-season clean sheet of 2024.
For the Red Bulls, Roald Mitchell was sidelined last week because of a knee injury, Kyle Duncan is recovering from knee surgery and Sean Nealis managed to clear concussion protocol in time to start in their back three.
Felipe Carballo notched the winner in the early stages of their conference semi-final, with Dante Vanzeir adding an insurance marker and Carlos Coronel making six stops for his second clean sheet of the post-season, both of which have come away from home.
Orlando City possible starting lineup:
Gallese; Thorhallsson, Schlegel, Jansson, Santos; Araujo, Cartagena; Torres, Ojeda, Angulo; Enrique
New York Red Bulls possible starting lineup:
Coronel; S. Nealis, Reyes, D. Nealis; Harper, Edelman, Carballo, Tolkin; Forsberg; Vanzeir, Morgan
We say: Orlando City 1-0 New York Red Bulls
Like the Red Bulls, Orlando have no problem playing the waiting game, except we believe they are better equipped to convert opportunities that fall their way.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
