ORLANDO, Fla. – Prepare to win every game – that’s Kaká’s rallying cry as Orlando City SC approach their final four regular season matches with their playoff hopes hanging by a thread.
The Lions have revived their hopes with back-to-back wins, but still face a huge task to move above the red line. Orlando sit in seventh-place in the East, four points behind Montreal – who have two games in hand on the Lions after beating Chicago 2-1 on Wednesday – for the sixth and final playoff spot.
While postseason play looks unlikely, Kaká insists that it isn’t out of reach for expansion side Orlando. The high-profile Designated Player is demanding a strong finish from his teammates, starting with a win on Friday against the Supporters’ Shield-leading New York Red Bulls (7 pm ET, UniMás).
“Obviously it doesn’t depend just on us now,” Kaká said. “We depend also on other results but we have to take care of what’s in our hands and prepare to win every game. We have to believe until we no longer have the possibility, and we still have this opportunity now. We have just won two games and, if we win the four remaining games, then probably we can still arrive in the playoffs.”
The Brazilian’s confidence comes from Orlando’s recent win streak and renewed health, with several players – including Kaká and Brek Shea, who became a father for the first time on Wednesday morning – set to return from injury on Friday.
Still, he knows Friday match at New York will be a tough test, with the Red Bulls entering the nationally televised contest having won three of their last four and eight of their last 11.
“Sure it is going to be tough because they are playing very good right now,” Kaká said. “But also [for us] now, after two great wins, I think we are more confident and ready to face them in this type of situation. So we are going to New York to try to reach our place in the playoffs.”
He also insists he will have no hang-ups about returning to Red Bull Arena, where he suffered a thigh injury while playing for Brazil earlier this month in a friendly against Costa Rica.
“I think it will be very nice,” he said. “I have been waiting for this moment to be back in that stadium where I got injured and now I can play again. It is no problem. I am training with no pain and ready for the game.”
Head coach Adrian Heath is delighted to have almost a full squad to choose from for the first time in months. He knows a positive result at Red Bull Arena will make next week’s home clash against Montreal even more meaningful, and is looking to his big names to step up against New York.
“Big players normally come alive in big games,” he said. “This is probably the biggest game of the season for us, so we need the likes of Kaká and Brek to step up, for Cyle Larin to get on the scoresheet and everybody to raise their game.
“I said a few weeks ago I really believed we were capable of putting four or five wins together, and we have two now. The challenge is to keep it up so there is something to play for when Montreal come to our place and we can get a big crowd behind us in a do-or-die atmosphere.”
Veteran goalkeeper Tally Hall knows the Orlando defense are likely to be in for a busy day against a team with plenty of weapons, but he is especially wary of striker Bradley Wright-Phillips.
“He works so hard to get into dangerous spots, and it is not always the spots you expect,” Hall said. “In the last couple of years now he has been willing to make runs behind players, check off players and then find the open spaces.
“He moves and then moves again. When you think he’s coming in at the near post, he comes in at the far post. We have to make sure we keep a tight shape and support each other along the backline. With four games left, a lot of things can still happen and we just have to focus on us and win the games ahead of us.”
