Orlando City will host their first game of the season when they welcome New York Red Bulls to the Exploria Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Lions come into this MLS season off the back of a loss in their most recent pre-season friendly against New England, while Red Bulls head into this clash in fine form after flawlessly winning all four of their pre-season friendly matches.
Match preview
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After qualifying for the championship playoffs in back-to-back seasons, Orlando will once again set their sights on a top-seven finish in the Eastern Conference giving them a chance at a first MLS Cup in their history since they were introduced into the league in 2015.
Although, failure to overcome New England and Colorado in their last two pre-season fixtures may leave Oscar Pareja slightly worried about his side heading into the new MLS season, as they take on very strong opposition.
With eight goals in their previous four matches, Orlando have not shown any signs of weakness when it comes to creating and finishing goalscoring chances, but have displayed signs of defensive frailty in their last two matches, conceding twice in two consecutive games.
The home side will look to use motivation from their previous two affairs with the visitors, as last season an early goal by Facundo Torres proved enough to seal a 1-0 victory in the league, while they also enjoyed an emphatic 5-1 victory over Red Bulls in the US Open Cup semi-final.
The Uruguayan winger exhibited dazzling qualities in his first season in MLS last season, as the forward contributed 17 goals in the league while also helping his side achieve their first-ever US Open Cup victory, scoring four and assisting twice in the competition.
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Meanwhile, Red Bulls are currently in gleaming form after embarking on an undefeated pre-season run and managing to not concede a single goal.
The most impressive victory was against last year's MLS champions Los Angeles FC, as they managed to shut out one of the division's most lethal outlets to secure an uplifting pre-season result.
However, a consistent failure to break past the first round of the MLS championship playoffs has cursed the away side for multiple seasons and will be a wall that Gerhard Struber will be desperate to break down this time around.
The away side will be oozing with confidence heading into this matchup and will look to use their pre-season form as a platform to spring into the new season as they aim to compete for the MLS championship.
If Lewis Morgan is able to replicate the goalscoring touch he found last season then he will be vital for Red Bulls this season, with the forward striking 15 times last time out in the MLS.
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Team News
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Pareja is expected to make four changes from the side that featured in their previous friendly against New England.
Both full-backs are set to be replaced, with Kyle Smith and Rafael Santos due to start ahead of Michael Halliday and Luca Petrasso.
Ercan Kara is anticipated to lead the line in this matchup for Orlando in place of Duncan McGuire, with Ivan Angulo also expected to drop out of the side to make way for Wilder Cartagena.
Antonio Carlos will be unavailable for the opening fixture of the season due to a leg injury.
Likewise, Struber is set to make four changes to the side he deployed against San Jose Earthquakes in their last outing.
Dylan Nealis and Frankie Amaya are likely to be the only changes in the defence for Red Bulls, with Kyle Duncan and John Tolkin presumed to occupy the full-back roles for this upcoming matchup.
Daniel Edelman is also surmised to start the season for the away side in place of Tom Barlow, with Dante Vanzeir set to make his first Red Bulls appearance to replace Cameron Harper.
Dru Yearwood will miss the first game of the season, as the midfielder is currently out of action due to a hamstring injury and is expected to return in early March.
Orlando City possible starting lineup:
Gallese; Smith, Jansson, Schlegel, Santos; Araujo, Cartagena; Torres, Pereyra, Ojeda; Kara
New York Red Bulls possible starting lineup:
Coronel; Duncan, Nealis, Reyes, Tolkin; Morgan, Casseres, Edelman, Luquinhas; Vanzeir, Manoel
We say: Orlando City 1-2 New York Red Bulls
We believe that Red Bull's impressive pre-season run will extend into the MLS season with a narrow win away against Orlando.
We think that this will be a close match-up and that the away side will be tested defensively in this engagement, but will score the necessary goals to edge the contest.
How to watch
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