Perelman left 'hurt' as Orlando let NYCFC snatch late draw
Late equaliser leaves Orlando reeling
Orlando City interim head coach Martin Perelman was left "hurt" by his team's inability to close out their game against New York City FC, after a 2-2 draw that leaves them in a perilous position in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Orlando seemed set to seal a 2-1 comeback win on Saturday, and those three points would have helped them consolidate seventh place in the East. Instead, NYCFC substitute Jonathan Shore popped up with an equaliser in the ninth minute of second-half stoppage time.
The draw leaves Orlando seventh, but on the same points as eighth-place FC Cincinnati and only four points ahead of the Columbus Crew, who occupy 10th spot.
Perelman reflects on the result
Perelman lamented the result and the display. "The game was tough. Again, it wasn't our best night, and that's it," he said. "Unfortunately, they tied on the last play. That hurts a lot."
"But it's time to digest it. We are used to being at home. We came from, I think, [nine wins] and two [draws] since we've been here, so now it's 9-3. We like to win at home."
"Sometimes these things happen. The opponent plays. They had good players, and that's it."
Orlando head to Chicago
Next up, Orlando travel north to face the Chicago Fire, who snapped a two-game losing streak by beating Atlanta United 3-2 in their last outing.
Players to watch
Chicago Fire – Philip Zinckernagel: Zinckernagel recorded his 16th goal contribution of the season (seven goals, nine assists) against Atlanta. After recording 30 goal contributions last season, he is the third player in club history with 16+ goal contributions in consecutive campaigns (Ante Razov 1997 to 2002, Nemanja Nikolic 2017 and 2018).
Orlando City – Antonie Griezmann: Griezmann scored against NYCFC, marking his 11th straight game with a goal contribution. This is the third streak of 11 or more consecutive MLS matches with a goal contribution this season, alongside Hugo Cuypers and Lionel Messi. Before this season, there had been just two such streaks in the league's first 30 seasons, by Josef Martinez and Sebastian Giovinco.
Match preview and prediction
The Chicago Fire have won three straight matches against Orlando, including a 3-1 home triumph in the wild-card round of last year's playoffs. Chicago had gone winless in eight straight against Orlando (D2 L6) before those last three meetings.
Chicago's win over Atlanta took them to 51 points for the season, after totalling 53 points in 2025. It is the second time in club history the Fire have recorded 50 points in consecutive MLS seasons, also doing so in 2000 and 2001.
Orlando have won only three of their last 19 regular-season away matches (D5 L11) dating back to August 2025, conceding 61 goals in those games at an average of 3.2 per match.
Opta win probability
- Chicago Fire – 52.5%
- Orlando City – 23.2%
- Draw – 24.3%