Union and Orlando City play to scoreless tie in Bruno Damiani’s first start over Mikael Uhre

The Union outshot Orlando City by 15 on Saturday at Subaru Park, but none of their 21 shots went in the net.

Thus, after a scoreless tie in a game marked by striker Bruno Damiani’s first start over Mikael Uhre, the crowd on hand left, annoyed.

You can see it as a moment for Damiani, or you can see it as Mikael Uhre being benched after not scoring since the season opener. Either way, it happened, and it felt pretty significant.

The rest of the lineup was unchanged from last weekend’s game at Miami, save for one tactical tweak. Outside backs Nathan Harriel and Frankie Westfield switched sides, with Harriel on the left and Westfield on the right this time.

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Orlando’s lineup included its usual array of veterans and one notable youngster. Right back Alex Freeman, a 20-year-old Baltimore native, is the son of former Green Bay Packers star wide receiver Antonio Freeman. He has played in every Lions game this year, starting in all but the opener.

The Union (4-2-1, 13 points) outshot Orlando, 10-1, in the first half, but that one was a really big one. Andre Blake made a diving stop of Ivan Angulo’s shot on a three-on-two breakaway, sprung when Jakob Glesnes slid and missed at Martin Ojeda’s run up the middle.

It had felt for a while like Union manager Bradley Carnell would start Damiani over Uhre at some point. But it still had to pay off whenever it happened, which didn’t happen in the first half. Damiani did not register any shots in the period, with just one chance created.

Tai Baribo, who started next to Damiani, had two shots. Quinn Sullivan and Jovan Lukić also had two each. The loudest the crowd got was when it booed referee Ismir Pekmic for repeatedly letting Orlando City goalkeeper Pedro Gallese take a long time to restart play.

Orlando (3-2-2, 11 points) made a tactical substitution at halftime, sending in striker Duncan McGuire for Angulo to turn their usual 4-2-3-1 formation into a 4-4-2.

Damiani got his first shot just over a minute into the second half, set up from Gazdag on the right. It was a great cross, and Damiani was double-teamed, but he slid toward the ball and pushed a shot right at Gallese.

Though Uhre didn’t start, it was assumed that he’d get on the field at some point. He did as a substitute in the 67th minute, replacing Damiani.

That was part of a double move, and the other half was surprising. Indiana Vassilev replaced Dániel Gazdag, who hadn’t been subbed out of a game that early without an injury since November 2021 — his first year with the team.

The moves didn’t do much to spark the Union’s attack. In fact, Orlando had the better play in the minutes afterward, with three shots, including one that forced another big save from Blake.

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Carnell made another double-sub in the 81st, sending in Cavan Sullivan for Quinn Sullivan and Alejandro Bedoya for Baribo. It was Cavan’s fifth appearance with the first team and his first time in a swap with his brother. The Union emerged from the moves in a 4-2-3-1, with Sullivan, Vassilev, and Bedoya behind Uhre.

That didn’t produce much better soccer, either. Orlando sat back, Uhre was stuck in traffic, and Sullivan barely touched the ball. On the one occasion they got open, at the start of stoppage time, Bedoya crossed to Uhre for a flicked pass that Sullivan couldn’t get to in time.

Uhre had a chance at earning a penalty kick in the 92nd when he went down in a tussle with Rodrigo Schlegel, who then shouted some accusations in a seated Uhre’s face. The crowd made its opinion known, but Pekmic didn’t call it, neither did the video review officials.

There was one last chance with a corner kick on the last play, but Danley Jean Jacques blasted the Union’s 21st shot of the game high into the stands. Just four of the club’s shots in the game were on target. Orlando put three of its six on frame.