ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Tai Baribo scored two goals Saturday night to help the Philadelphia Union beat Orlando City 4-2 in the season opener for both teams.
Dániel Gazdag redirecting an arcing cross played by Quinn Sullivan from outside the area on the left side to the back corner to make it 2-1 in the 48th minute and give Philadelphia the lead for good.
Andre Blake stopped six shots for the Union.
Marco Pašalić scored two goals in his debut for Orlando City. The 24-year-old forward opened the scoring in the eighth minute — the fastest ever goal scored in an Orlando City debut, breaking the mark of 18 minutes set by Daryl Pike in 2020 — and capped it with a tap-in to finish a wild scramble in front of the net in the 79th.
Martín Ojeda played a low entry from the left edge of the penalty box to the near post where Baribo redirected the ball into the net from point-blank range to make it 1-1
Orlando defender David Brekalo mishandled a touch and Mikael Uhre pounced, blasting a first-touch shot from just outside the area that beat goalkeeper Pedro Gallese to give the Union a 3-1 lead in the 51st minute and Baribo redirected an entry played by Francis Westfield for a one-touch finish that made it 4-1 in the 64th.
The 19-year-old Westfield, in his second season with Philadelphia, made his first MLS appearance.
Orlando had 56% possession and outshot the Union 23-10, 10-4 on target.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/soccer
The Associated Press
