Orlando City SC extended their league-best eight-match unbeaten streak with a 0-0 draw on the road against FC Dallas Sunday night.
With nine games left in the regular season, the Lions are 12 points above the playoff line in the Eastern Conference and it would appear well on their way to the first Audi MLS Cup Playoffs appearance in club history.
But Orlando aren’t satisfied with just playing in the postseason. They have loftier goals for the regular season.
“I think we are in a good way to go to the playoffs and maybe try to get in the first position,” midfielder Junior Urso said in a video conference call Sunday night. “I know it’s difficult, Columbus is good, but we’ll wait for a mistake from Columbus to get the first position. We just want to get to the top, it’s our dream to be first in the league and try to go to the playoffs and in the playoffs, play at home. This is our idea, so we will try to do that and again four points is good, this game and last game, it’s still good the four points.”
The Crew did drop points Sunday, losing to Toronto FC 3-1 in East Hartford. Toronto and Philadelphia, which beat Inter Miami 3-0 Sunday, moved within two points of the top spot in the East, while Orlando are just behind them with 26 points.
Highlights: FC Dallas 0, Orlando City SC 0
The top four teams will host a playoff game in the first round.
The Lions would have been level on points with the Union and Toronto if they extended their winning streak to four games Sunday night. Even though they were forced to play more than 20 minutes with 10 men after a red card for midfielder Jhegoson Mendez, coach Oscar Pareja said Orlando were disappointed not to get the win at Dallas — and that's a good thing.
“When you go away and play against good teams and you walk it out with a tie and it’s not enough, that just gives me good sensations about this team,” Pareja said after the match. “One of our best games, the way that I wanted them to play and the way we all wanted to do the things, without a doubt one of the best ones. But not finishing in the last third, we didn’t have the solutions, but that will come.”
