The Lions started slowly on Wednesday night in the heat and humidity on short rest, but Orlando City got it together in the second half, scoring twice to beat Charlotte FC, 2-0. The goals were worth the wait, as both were nice team buildups capped by quality strikes. We broke down the few chances in the boring first half and discussed the changes that opened up the match after halftime.

We looked back at our score predictions (both getting the right result without picking the correct score) and made our selections for Man of the Match. We also tell you which Lion made the MLS Team of the Matchday.

This episode's mailbagbox was brief and touched on the subject of fixture congestion in Major League Soccer and what (if anything) we would do about it. Remember, if there’s anything — and we do mean anything — you want us to address on the show, just ask us by tweeting it to us at @TheManeLand with the hashtag #AskTMLPC, or hitting us up on Bluesky Social with that same hashtag.

After the mailbagbox, we look ahead to OCB's big match on Monday against Chicago Fire II, an important game for both sides in the tight Eastern Conference playoff race in MLS NEXT Pro. We provide the tale of the tape as the Young Lions look to lock down a second consecutive playoff appearance and wonder if Alex Freeman can keep his hot streak going.

Finally, we looked ahead to Saturday's matchup on the road against the Columbus Crew. The Crew will be a tough nut to crack, so the Lions will need to continue their excellent form to get a result against the league's stingiest defense while trying to keep Cucho Hernandez and Diego Rossi quiet. We provide our key matchups and make our score predictions.

Be sure to rate and review our show wherever you get your podcasts. Remember, we'll read any five-star reviews we get on Apple Podcasts on the next show.

Here’s how No. 446 went down:

0:15 – Orlando City made it three straight shutout victories at home with a 2-0 win over Charlotte.

29:47 – Our mailbagbox asks about the MLS schedule.

36:49– OCB will host Chicago in a pivotal game and the Lions head to Columbus.

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