In their second season in Major League Soccer, Orlando City have gotten off to a strong start; and sit 4th in the Eastern conference. They come into tonight’s game with a chance of reaching the top; possessing a game in hand on the three teams currently ahead of them.
The Red Bulls have seen a contrasting start to the season, but have another shot at getting it right if they manage to turn things around back at the Red Bull Arena. After taking a look at OCFC myself, I’ll be going through the keys for the game if Marsch’s team are able to clinch a vital three points.
Open the Channels
Marsch’s side will be faced with a reasonably solid defensive block as they play host to Orlando City. Usually positioned between a 4-1-4-1 and a 4-4-1-1 shape, Orlando defends well with loose man-orientations in what is mostly a zonally marking mid-block.
In order to break through this defence, the Red Bulls’ attack may want to look towards the inside channels. Although Orlando are organised with okay compactness, they can lack control over the spaces between their central midfielders and wingers. This can be a result of a number of different issues and it often depends on the situation, but there seems to be a lack of coordination in the positioning of the winger and his near CM.
Their opposition in recent weeks have found some success in penetrating these spaces, with dangerous situations being created from this strong position. When facing towards goal from these positions, the ball carrier has a very strong field of view. Looking over the large majority of the attack, he can watch the movements unfold and has sight of nearly all possible options.
With their commonly narrow attack, Marsch’s team will not have to adapt their strategy to great lengths in order to expose this defensive deficiency. The inside-nature of the two wide attackers means that they commonly move through these positions in any other game and could be a key focal point when the two teams come together on Sunday night.
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