Orlando City is back in action Saturday night, looking to bounce back from its 3-2 home loss Wednesday to Nashville City SC in the U.S. Open Cup. The Lions (6-2-6, 24 points) welcome the Portland Timbers (6-3-5, 23 points) to Inter&Co Stadium for the first time since 2018. “At this stage, where we have this many games together, it allows us to keep ascending and understanding our commitment like always,” Orlando City coach Oscar Pareja said. “Just trying to win in front of our fans and the importance of the game, I think we all know, and the players [know] as well.” Portland is an unfamiliar foe for Orlando, and the two sides are meeting for the first time since 2022. The Lions are 3-2-2 against the Western Conference Timbers. “Portland is a team that has been growing in the season. We don’t play in the same conference, but we have seen it lately,” Pareja added. “The preparation obviously has been intense in a short period of time, but knowing that they have that model that has been growing lately, we respect [them] and we will be ready.” Orlando City’s offense has been unstoppable lately, scoring 16 times in its last five games in all competitions. Martin Ojeda (8 goals, 3 assists) is having the best season of his career in purple while fellow forwards Marco Pašalić (6 goals, 2 assists) and Luis Muriel (6 goals, 2 assists) have been thriving as well. Portland brings plenty of attacking threats of its own. Antony (4 goals, 5 assists), Felipe Mora (5 goals, 2 assists) and Santiago Moreno (4 goals, 2 assists) lead the way for an offense that has scored 23 goals in 14 matches. However, the Timbers have conceded 20 goals in that same period, setting the stage for a high-scoring matchup. The Lions’ defense will need to tighten up after conceding three goals on Wednesday, but they have shown they can be elite against tough opponents this season.
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