Orlando City are among the worst defensive teams in the MLS, but they were more disappointed in allowing their latest goal shortly after their offense responded last week.
The New York Red Bulls are struggling to score so far and are facing numerous injuries.
While Orlando attempts to improve defensively, the Red Bulls hope to find ways to produce offensively with a depleted roster Saturday afternoon when the teams meet in Harrison, N.J.
The Lions (1-2-0, 3 points) are among six teams with at least seven goals in the early going. Of those teams off to decent offensive starts, they are the only group to allow eight goals and are tied with Toronto FC for the league lead.
Orlando City allowed six of those goals in splitting its first two games by 4-2 margins against the Philadelphia Union and Toronto. In last week’s 2-1 loss at New York City FC, the Lions allowed the tiebreaking goal on a header just two minutes after Luis Muriel scored.
“It is very obvious that we have conceded too many goals in the first three games,” Orlando City coach Oscar Pareja said. “We can share the same thoughts. We need to defend much better. When you see the nature of the goals, it may be even more painful because it wasn’t structural, it was probably something we could correct better individually.”
New York (1-1-1, 4 points) scored its only goals in a 2-0 win over Nashville SC two weeks ago. The Red Bulls saw Carlos Coronel make seven saves in a scoreless draw at Atlanta last week when his teammates did get any of their seven attempts on target despite holding possession for 59.8 percent of the match.
Lewis Morgan, who has yet to play after scoring 13 goals last season, is out at least six weeks following left knee surgery. Mohammed Sofo scored two weeks ago when he started for Morgan but is out at least two weeks with a groin injury.
Besides Morgan and his replacement being injured, Cameron Harper injured his knee in the home opener against Nashville and is out again Saturday while Wiktor Bogacz is awaiting his debut due to a back injury.
“It’s a big challenge now with some injuries that we have, but this is also a big, big chance for us as a group to show our face with a smaller group, maybe with more younger players,” Red Bulls coach Sandro Schwarz said. “This is a big chance, a big opportunity for us.”
–Field Level Media
