PHOTO BY MARK THOR VIA ORLANDO CITY SOCCER
An insane red card in just the 16th minute set the tone for a difficult afternoon as Orlando City SC fell 5-0 to New York City FC at Yankee Stadium on Saturday. Goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau received a direct red card for handling the ball outside his box, forcing Orlando to play the vast majority of the match with only ten men, and New York wasted no time taking advantage.
Agustín Ojeda opened the scoring in the 22nd minute. Nicolás Fernández made it 2-0 in the 42nd minute before Maxi Moralez converted a penalty kick deep in first-half stoppage time to put the home side up 3-0 at the break. Keaton Parks added his own goals in the second half, in the 49th and 54th minutes, to complete the embarrassing rout.
Javier Otero entered as a first-half substitute after Crépeau’s dismissal, for his first appearance of the 2026 campaign. Midfielder Luís Otávio also made his club debut, earning a start alongside Tyrese Spicer, both of whom entered the XI from Orlando’s last match against Inter Miami.
“That was such a bad performance from our end,” said head coach Oscar Pareja. “I take full responsibility, sincerely. I feel very responsible. The match is really something that doesn’t represent us, but we have to put our chest on this situation, and I’ll be the first one to do it.”
Orlando City returns home to face CF Montréal at Inter&Co Stadium on Saturday, March 14. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. Rockstar defender and handsome ex-horse-shoe-maker Robin Jansson, who had foot surgery in February, is expected to return to the field in April or May, which couldn’t come sooner.
