Two seasons ago, both Orlando City and New York City FC began their ventures in the MLS by playing their opening match against each other in the City Beautiful. Now, NYCFC is about set to become a part of Orlando's history again, as the brand new, state of the art Orlando City Stadium will open its doors for the first time to a competitive match with the Sky Blues once again providing the competition.
This MLS duel will go down Sunday, March 5, 2017, at 5 p.m. ET at Orlando City Stadium. The match will be televised live on ESPN.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Orlando City +130
New York City FC +185
Draw +220
Over/Under 2.5
Odds Analysis
Ironically, the spread in this match is virtually identical to the one from two years ago at this time. Orlando City is the very slight favorite at +130, but with NYCFC set at just +185, it wouldn't be impossible to think that an upset could be coming here as well. Remember that OCSC fell behind 1-0 in that match in spite of all of the emotion coming into the game with a suddenly soccer crazy town behind it, and only a Kaka penalty in stoppage time salvaged a point.
The total of 2.5 with -120 vig on the over is actually a little lower than you might expect at this level this early in the season with so many teams expected to have some problems in defense this year.
Orlando City Season Preview
The Lions traded Kevin Molino in the offseason to Minnesota United, then dealt Brek Shea just a few days ago. But Jonathan Spector and Will Johnson are both veterans who were brought to Orlando to try to provide the side with a bit more stability and some more of a veteran presence than just the great Kaka, and we'll see how that ends up working.
OCSC is going to have a mess on its hands in net. Joe Bendik figures to get the first crack at the job, but this isn't exactly a strong back line in front of him either. Remember that OCSC gave up the most goals in the MLS last season, and manager Jason Kreis has said repeatedly that his main goal this year is to really improve upon that mark.
New York City FC Season Preview
Of course, the drama here in this match is that Kreis is going against the team that fired him after just one season at the helm. That said, Patrick Vieira took this team to the verge of stardom last year before bowing out in the playoffs, and this could be a legitimate MLS Cup club this year. David Villa remains one of the best players in this league, and Maxi Moralez should provide a lot more of a spark in the midfield as a designated player than Frank Lampard did.
Sean Johnson takes over in net for the departed Josh Saunders, and that figures to be a net positive for a team that really has never had that ultimate stopper in the pipes in its brief history.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
We just look at Kreis and Vieira and wonder if there's a tactical problem here for Orlando City. The Lions have always been very good here at home, but if they're going to be counting on Cyle Larin and Kaka to make up for the deficiencies of a back line again that might be amongst the worst in the MLS, they're kidding themselves.
NYCFC made strides quicker than Orlando City did, and though this is going to be a real wave of emotion in the first 15 minutes or so of this match, if City can figure out how to hold the fort during that time, we wonder if it can't strike gold late on thanks to Andrea Pirlo or Villa in front of goal.
MLS Odds: New York City FC 1, Orlando City 0
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