St Louis City v Orlando City SC: Pasalic motivated for more away wins

Orlando City SC's Marco Pasalic is determined to continue his team's winning run away from home when they travel to Energizer Park to face St. Louis City next in the MLS. 

Pasalic played a starring role in their last away triumph, assisting Martin Ojeda for the only goal in their 1-0 victory over the Colorado Rapids last time out.  

It was their second away win in three attempts, with the Lions accruing the fifth-most points away from home in the Eastern Conference. 

They could rise to second on that list with a win against St. Louis, and Pasalic explained why away wins that require perseverance can feel better than victories at home.

"When I heard that we play in Colorado, it was explained to me that we don't have so much air to breathe here, so it was difficult," Pasalic said. 

"But I had a good feeling before the game, a good feeling from training.

"I think it tastes better when you win away and under these circumstances when it's so difficult to breathe and difficult to adapt, and I'm really happy that we win this game.

"Now, we have this rest and I think everybody's going on the rest with a good feeling and can’t wait to be back and to win games again."

Orlando boss Oscar Pareja was also glad that his side were able to regain some confidence after consecutive defeats before their win over the Rapids. 

"We had a bunch of difficulties that you can imagine," said Pareja.

"But today the most important was to get a result here in the altitude against a good rival and that provided us, again, more confidence.

"I know that we can play better, especially in the second half, but we're good. We needed these three points, and we're proud of the boys."

Orlando are fifth in the Eastern Conference, seven points behind leaders Philadelphia Union, while St. Louis are 14th in the Western Conference. 

Players to watch

St Louis City – Joao Klauss

Klauss has led St. Louis during their struggles this season. The striker is the side's top scorer with five goals, three of those having been the crucial first of the match.

The Brazilian scored a hat-trick in St. Louis' last match in a bottom-of-the-table clash with the Los Angeles Galaxy as the spoils were shared. 

Orlando City – Martin Ojeda

Orlando's main attacking threat has been Ojeda, who has netted on nine occasions, including three match-opening goals.

The Argentine forward has directly contributed to seven goals in his last eight appearances in all competitions, and will be keen to strike once again this week. 

MATCH PREDICTION – ORLANDO CITY WIN

In their last six league matches, St Louis have won one, drawn two and lost three. Orlando, meanwhile, have won four and lost two in their last six.

Hosts St. Louis have two wins, four draws, and three losses this season in nine MLS contests at home. Orlando have earned 13 points from 27 available this season in league matches on their travels.

Orlando won the last MLS meeting between the teams, triumphing 2-1 at Inter&Co Stadium in August 2023. Facundo Torres led the Lions with two goals, netting in the 48th and 91st minute. Rasmus Alm scored the only goal for St. Louis City SC in the 78th minute.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

St Louis City – 29.1%

Draw – 24.6%

Orlando City – 46.3%