Minnesota United will try to rebound from their first loss of the season on Saturday night when they host Orlando City in Saint Paul, Minn.

The Loons (3-1-2, 11 points) had a five-game unbeaten streak to open the 2023 campaign snapped last Saturday, losing 2-1 at the Chicago Fire. They entered that game on the heels of an impressive 1-0 road win at St. Louis City which handed the MLS newcomers their first-ever loss.

“I think we were all super disappointed,” Loons defender D.J. Taylor said. “We wanted to keep that undefeated streak going.”

“It’s a long season and you can’t bank on winning every single game,” Minnesota captain Wil Trapp added. “To do what we did to this point is good, but we have to continue to get better. We have to continue to learn.”

Despite their impressive start, Minnesota United are still in search of their first home win of the season. The Loons drew 1-1 in both of their previous games at Allianz Field against the New York Red Bulls and Vancouver Whitecaps but are still an impressive 5-1-5 in their last 11 home contests.

“It’s going to take a lot more energy than we saw last weekend (at Chicago),” Taylor said. “It will be a tough game. Orlando has quality players and their style of play is tough to defend against.”

Orlando City (2-2-2, 8 points) have had an up-and-down start to the season. The Lions, who have scored just five goals in six games, have had two weeks off since a 2-0 home loss to Nashville SC. That came after a very impressive 2-1 road win at the reigning Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia Union.

“It’s a process. It’s a long season,” Orlando City defender Kyle Smith said. “There’s a lot of new players on the team and we need to be at our best as the season progresses and (the loss to Nashville) was a learning experience.”

“We cannot lose our heads,” Lions coach Oscar Pareja said. “We were not the best team in the league after we beat Philadelphia. We’re not the worst (after losing to Nashville) either. We have to keep our heads up.”

–Field Level Media