Atlanta United is in the rare position of playing the same opponent in a span of four days. That’s Orlando City, who will host Atlanta in league action on Saturday before the two sides meet again for a U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal on Tuesday. After that, Atlanta has one final match before the World Cup break.
For more on Orlando, I caught up with Mike Spillane (X) from the Orlando Lions Den Podcast (X, Apple Podcasts, Spotify).
Since MartÃn Perelman took over for the fired Óscar Pareja, Orlando is 3-5-1, including that massive 4-3 comeback win at Inter Miami. What tweaks, if any, has Perelman made tactically since taking the reins as interim head coach?
So the main difference is we’re playing more of a hybrid 5 at the back — three CBs and two wing backs. Iván Angulo has shifted to more of a wingback, and Griffin Dorsey gets really forward.
While the results have improved, I’m not sure it’s necessarily a kind of tactical masterclass by Perelman or anything. I would say a lot of it comes from players just doing their thing. The first half against Miami was a disaster, and we had an awful tactical game plan. But the players’ quality, I think, contributed a lot to getting us the W
After a 16g/15a season in 2025, MartÃn Ojeda was at 7g/0a through 12 matches going into the match against the Union. Three of those goals were against Miami; two came against Charlotte FC. He has four goals in the other 11 matches after his brace against Philadelphia. How does Orlando get him closer to the form he enjoyed last season?
Attack has been…weird this year, to say the least. He’s become more of a scorer than a creator, and he added two more goals tonight against Philly.
The emergence of Justin Ellis, though, I think, is going to be the key. He turned 19 today, but he has ball control and vision well beyond his years. If he keeps playing like this, eventually combining with the likes of Ojeda, Marco Pasalic when healthy, and an incoming Antoine Griezmann, the second half of the year is going to be a lot of fun from an attacking standpoint. Defense is still a major, major worry.
But now that I rambled, I’m not too concerned with Ojeda’s numbers. He’s up to 9 goals now for a team that has been struggling for the most part. A lot of pieces are coming in that will bring it all together.
This is the first of two matches between Orlando and Atlanta in the span of four days, with Tuesday’s being, of course, a U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal. I’m under the impression that Atlanta will heavily rotate with an eye toward a first-choice XI on Tuesday. Is your mindset one of Orlando putting all of its chips on the table at this stage when it comes to the Open Cup, given that it provides the easiest path to the Concacaf Champions Cup?
Honestly, Martin Ojeda looked absolutely gassed at times tonight. Robin Jansson is on the wrong side of 30. Guys like David Brekalo and Pasalic are working their way back from injury. If I had an opportunity with the Open Cup to have Antoine Griezmann here and be in a semifinal for a trophy, knowing we could host the final, and if I were the one making the decisions, I would absolutely rest more of our first team guys on Saturday to prioritize Tuesday. It’s a quick turnaround, and this season undoubtedly did not go the way that we envisioned with a lot of turnover, a coaching change, defensive instability, etc.
If you have a chance to win a trophy, you have to go fully after it, in my opinion. Both of us are former Open Cup winners; we know and love the tournament. I expect a very good game on Tuesday and have no effin’ clue what to expect on Saturday.