Tesho Akindele’s Late Strike Lifts Lions to Victory in Charlotte

August 21, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – Orlando City SC News Release

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Orlando City SC (10-10-6, 36 points) earned a hard-fought three points on the road on Sunday night, defeating expansion side Charlotte FC (10-15-2, 32 points) 2-1 at Bank of America Stadium. The Lions were backed by second-half goals from Ercan Kara and Tesho Akindele, the latter coming in the 89th minute to secure all three points for the visitors.

The win was an important one for the Lions, taking down a Charlotte FC side that sat just one point below them heading into the match. With the victory, the Lions have jumped above the playoff line, going from ninth to fifth position as of the conclusion of the match.

The win also marked the first time the Lions have defeated an expansion side in their inaugural road meeting, completing the season series with two 2-1 over Charlotte this season.

Defender Kyle Smith, who earned the start at left back, also earned his 100th appearance across all competitions on the evening, with each coming as a Lion.

Head Coach Oscar Pareja:

“An excellent game for us to show the character of the players, an excellent game to prove that these guys are working hard and the game would reward them. What I saw in the first half, the football that the team played in the first half was very good. We dominated the tempo, we created chances, we avoided [letting Charlotte] create chances, we made superiorities in the spaces that we needed. I saw a lot of discipline, tactically, especially with the ball with these players. Second half we understood that, being away, sometimes you just want to hold the game higher but it’s normal that the reaction of the other team is aggressive and cost us that tie goal. But, I noticed that our reaction after that goal was very professional and calm, and that made us score the second one which is something that hasn’t happened much this season. So we’re proud.”

Scoring Recap:

62′ Ercan Kara (Facundo Torres, Júnior Urso) – ORL 1, CLT 0

The Lions drew first blood on the night, stringing together some key passing in the Charlotte third and breaking through the line. Midfielder Júnior Urso played the ball to Facundo Torres at the top of Charlotte’s box, where the Uruguayan slid a pass between defenders to Ercan Kara. Kara took the ball and slotted the ball low to the left of Kristijan Kahlina and into the net.

66′ McKinzie Gaines II (Kamil Józwiak, Brandt Bronico) – ORL 1, CLT 1

The hosts leveled just four minutes…