Orlando City SC held off a persistent Columbus Crew side to win 3-2 at Exploria Stadium on Saturday, moving to 34 points in the Eastern Conference. Griezmann was central to the result, opening the scoring in the first minute and adding a second-half winner from the penalty spot after the Crew equalized twice. The Lions carried a 2-1 lead into halftime and survived heavy Columbus pressure after the break, giving interim head coach Martín Perelman three wins from three since taking over.
Key Moments
- 1′, Harvey Sarajian opened the scoring inside 60 seconds, finishing with an assist from Griezmann to give Orlando City an immediate advantage.
- 7′, Columbus pulled level quickly. Habroune converted with Rodríguez providing the assist to make it 1-1.
- 16′, Griezmann put Orlando back in front, scoring without a recorded assist to restore the home side’s lead at 2-1.
- 45′, Harvey Sarajian was substituted at halftime, replaced by Bernardo Rhein Goncalves, with Orlando leading 2-1.
- 53′, Brais Méndez equalized for Columbus eight minutes into the second half, finishing a move set up by Habroune to make it 2-2.
- 62′, Orlando made a double change, bringing on Dike and Luis Otávio for Marco Pasalic and Atuesta as Perelman looked to retake control.
- 89′, Angulo scored in the 89th minute, assisted by Ojeda, to give Orlando a 3-2 lead that the home side held through full time.
Tactical Breakdown
Columbus dominated the underlying numbers. The Crew finished with an xG of 3.13 against Orlando’s 1.8, took 27 shots to Orlando’s 20, had 15 on target compared to eight, controlled 53% of possession, and won 11 corners to Orlando’s two. By most measures, Laurent Courtois’s side should have taken at least a point from Exploria Stadium. Instead, Orlando’s goalkeeper Crépeau was called on heavily all evening and the Lions converted more efficiently when it mattered.
The game’s turning point came in the second half. Columbus equalized through Brais Méndez at 53 minutes after Habroune picked up his second involvement of the night. Perelman responded at the hour mark with the introduction of Dike and Luis Otávio, changing the shape of Orlando’s attack. Angulo, starting in a defensive role, was the one to settle the contest in the 89th minute, turning a late Ojeda delivery into the decisive goal.
Columbus’s failure to convert a clear xG advantage was the story of their evening. The Crew produced good numbers in areas that usually win matches, but finishing let them down. Habroune, their most effective player on the night with a goal and an assist across 83 minutes, could not conjure a third equalizer after Méndez made it 2-2, and a late flurry from Columbus’s substitutes arrived too late to change the outcome.
Player Ratings
Match Context
Standings
Head To Head
Verdict
The result lifts Orlando City to 34 points in seventh place in the Eastern Conference, keeping them inside the playoff positions. Columbus, sitting 13th at 29 points, remain in a difficult spot in the standings but are not mathematically out of playoff contention. For Perelman’s side, it is three wins from their last three and a run of form that has changed the feel around Exploria Stadium heading into the final stretch of the regular season.
Columbus Crew
Orlando City SC