ORLANDO, Fla. -- How does a team replace 54 percent of its goalscoring capability in one fell swoop?
You might think that issue would keep Orlando City SC head coach Jason Kreis up at night, but there wasn’t a hint of that as he prepared his team for Wednesday’s tough trip to Montreal Impact (7:30 pm ET, MLS LIVE | TSN5 in Canada) without both Cyle Larin and Kevin Molino.
The City duo have combined for 22 of the team’s 41 goals in regular season play so far this season but will be away on international duty this week, and that drop-off in firepower might be a daunting challenge for many coaches, let alone one still sitting just below the red line.
Yet Kreis insisted he is perfectly happy with the remaining goal power in his squad, and hinted he may be ready to throw a surprise or two at Montreal as they set out on a tough September schedule of four road games in five fixtures.
“We believe we have other attackingly gifted players and players that can score goals,” he insisted. “So there will be a player or two that will now get the chance to step into the starting lineup and show what they’re worth. From a team point of view we have a lot of belief in those players and we believe it can be done.”
Replacing Larin’s 13 goals without another out-and-out center forward in the squad will be Orlando’s biggest challenge but, again, Kreis was bullish about his team’s options.
“We’re going to have a player that has some different gifts playing in his position, so, as a team we need to think about how we can best take advantage of those gifts,” he added. “It’s a case of doing things differently to Cyle but, at the same time, we’re looking for the same simple things Cyle does in terms of holding the ball up well. It’s not a night and day situation, just a small adjustment.”
Each of Julio Baptista, with three goals in 17 appearances (five starts), Carlos Rivas with one goal in 14 appearances (four starts), and first-round 2016 MLS SuperDraft pick Hadji Barry, no goals in eight appearances (four starts) will be in line to take Larin’s place, while Brek Shea (one goal in 23 appearances) is likely to replace Molino.
Baptista is the most obvious candidate to lead the attacking line, but Rivas could well be the surprise package Kreis has in mind after recent training stints, despite most of his work coming on the left wing.
“I’m really, really pleased with that he brings to the table,” the head coach confirmed. “He was a player who, from the very first match against Stoke, did a really nice job and if Cyle Larin’s not in his position, he would probably already have gotten a few opportunities [in that spot].
“So first and foremost I would say he’s a guy we would be looking at to get an opportunity and I think he’s in the right place and the right frame of mind for that right now.”
Despite still being outside the playoff positions and having just two wins in their last 11 games, Orlando remains committed to a post-season future after beating New York City FC 2-1 last time out and only narrowly losing to Toronto the week before that. The Lions have managed just one road win all year, but Kreis is not daunted by the task ahead in Montreal.
“We’ll approach it in the mindset we’re in a pretty good moment,” he insisted. “From my point of view, we’re putting together a number of good performances in a row and if we can turn those good performances into points on the road, it would be fantastic.”
Defender Luke Boden is equally convinced the team can shake off the absence of Larin and Molino and get back in playoff contention.
“Sure, they are both good players and they have scored a lot of goals for us, but we still have great players in the team,” the left back said. “We have a good squad this year and players that can come in and do just as good a job as anybody in the league.
“It’s a good chance for people to come in and make a name for themselves. And the way the manager is, if you play well, you keep playing.”
