Despite Martin Ojeda’s hat trick, host Orlando City had to settle for a 3-3 draw with the New England Revolution on Saturday night.
The match marked Ojeda’s first hat trick as Orlando City (4-2-6, 18 points) jostled for prime playoff positioning. The Lions extended their unbeaten streak to ten games while New England (5-4-2, 17 points) saw its winning streak end at five games. Two MVP candidates in Ojeda and Carles Gil created chance after chance as the match was filled with rapid counterattacks.
After an early saved shot in the box, Ojeda scored Orlando City’s opener at the 24-minute mark. The Argentine attacker beat his marker and dribbled into the edge of the box before rocketing his shot against the crossbar. The ball hit the underside of the bar and rolled in, giving the Lions an early advantage.
Ojeda doubled Orlando’s lead nine minutes later off a counterattack. He got onto Joran Gerbet’s well-placed through ball before taking on and beating two Revs defenders.
The final product of the attacking sequence — a shot slotted in the bottom corner — put the game firmly in Orlando’s hands 33 minutes into the match.
Midfielder Alhassan Yusuf quickly replied, cutting the Lions’ lead to 2-1. Ignatius Ganago’s whipped-in cross found Ilay Feingold near the baseline. Feingold knocked the ball with one touch toward the center of the box, where Yusuf tucked the ball into the corner of the net.
New England leveled the match moments before halftime off a set piece. Coming off a corner, Gil’s in-swinging cross found Matt Polster open in the box. Polster’s header at point-blank range beat Lions keeper Pedro Gallese (three saves) in the 44th minute.
Ojeda completed his hat trick when he sent Revs keeper Aljaž Ivacic (five saves) the wrong way from the spot. Orlando was awarded the penalty after a lengthy VAR check to determine whether defender Tanner Beason kicked Gerbet in the face during a set-piece situation.
The Revs were awarded a late penalty when Orlando’s Robin Jansson tripped up Luis Diaz in the penalty box. Gil calmly chipped his penalty down the middle to level the match, 3-3, in the 85th minute.
Orlando nearly found a last-minute equalizer through Ramiro Enrique. However, referees ruled out the goal for offside when Duncan McGuire deflected the ball from an offside position. Despite having momentum on their side, the Lions couldn’t find the goal to push them over the edge and give them the full three points.
–Field Level Media
