Orlando City v New England Revolution – MLS Betting Preview + Prediction
17 Apr 2016, Orlando Citrus Bowl, 19:30
Orlando enter the game coming off the back of their first loss of the season, a 2-1 defeat against Philadelphia Union last weekend. Prior to that they had won two of their first four games of the season and looked in good shape. They’ve now scored 9 goals in 5 with Larin scoring three of those 9, with the midfield behind him chipping in with goals along the way. The side will be missing Larin for the game with Revolution, with Redding, Higuita and Donovan also missing through injury. The side will be able to give Baptista his first start since he signed for the club with Kaka playing just behind. The side will definitely need their fire power with Larin being out as the side hope to bounce back from their loss last weekend.
As stated before, Orlando come into the game missing four with Tommy Redding, Conor Donovan, Cristian Higuita and Cyle Larin all injured for the visit from New England Revolution. Joe Bendik will keep his place after a fine display last weekend. The defence is expected to change slightly with Rafael Ramos playing at right back but Brek Shea coming back in at left back after serving a one game suspension. Aurelien Collin and Seb Hines will continue at centre back with Tommy Redding injured. In midfield, Darwin Ceren will be partnered by Antonio Nocerino in deeper positions whilst the more attacking midfield positions will be occupied by Aaron Winter, Kaka and Kevin Molino with Julio Baptista expected to fill in for the injured Larin. There is a possibility that Kaka could move up front with Winter coming inside and Brek Shea moving into a more advanced position being flanked by Luke Boden.
New England come into the game with four draws from their first six games, with their only win coming against New York Red Bulls. The side have scored an average of a goal a game but conceded eight. The lack of firepower can be attributed to Davies suffering a hamstring injury and missing a few weeks of action. With Davies now back, New England will hope to pick up the amount of goals scored. The side have no first team injury problems and come into the game at almost full strength. Their away form so far this season has seen the side only pick up two points and they have conceded seven goals on the road so far something that will need to improve if the side hope to climb the table further and make an impact in the Eastern Conference.
The return of Kaka and signing of Baptista has increased expectations around the club and Kaka performed well on his debut scoring once and setting up two for his team mates. He was less influential last weekend but was played out of position and is more likely to fall deeper this week. Given the home advantage, we can surely expect for Orlando to grab all three points.
Prediction: Orlando City -0.25
Odds: 1.95 5Dimes
