Orlando City players trying to extend bubble to avoid virus
It’s been almost two months since Orlando City left the MLS is Back Tournament at ESPN Wide World of Sports, but the Lions haven’t really left their bubble.
For Orlando City, the key to avoiding coronavirus exposure has been continuing the isolation they practiced while housed at Disney World area hotel.
“To be honest, I don’t really go very many places aside from home,” Lions rookie Daryl Dike said. “I try to kind of avoid going out as much as possible.”
Dike has been using the time to finish his degree at the University of Virginia, taking finance and marketing classes during his downtime. Other teammates spend time off the field playing video games together — particularly Júnior Urso, who logs hours on Call of Duty: Warzone, even finding the energy matches.
While most of his teammates reunited with their families when the tournament ended, midfielder Mauricio Pereyra isn’t sure when he’ll see his wife and sons again.
He decided to send his family to his hometown in Uruguay in July. The country has recorded just 48 deaths and 2,033 coronavirus cases this entire year, and Pereyra felt more secure knowing his wife and children could lean on the support of family.
Pereyra said he’s finding ways to ease the distance — family members video-call each other every day, and his sons adopted a puppy in Uruguay. Although he admitted the time apart has been strenuous, he said it’s added to the “bubble” feeling that allows him to focus solely on football.
“I have a lot of time off for me to recover and be ready for the
to
play
after games,” Pereyra said. “Now I am really focused on the game all the time.”
Orlando City has yet to announce whether or not goalkeeper Pedro Gallese will participate in World Cup qualifiers in October with the Peruvian national team.
MLS joined other leagues around the world in sending letters last Friday to several national teams, including Peru, blocking players from leaving the country for international call-ups.
However, The Athletic since reported the league might leave the decision up to individual clubs. The league also hasn’t announced whether it will enforce the same 10-day quarantine that was required of new acquisitions entering the U.S.
The keeper has held the starting position for his national team
Lions await FIFA decision:
for two years and will be an important piece for Peru as it seeks qualification.
If Gallese reports to his national team, he could miss up to five of the Lions’ nine final matches of the regular season. The matches include a home game against the Columbus Crew, which could decide both the Supporters’ Shield and Eastern Conference winner.
Coach Oscar Pareja said he feels confident in backup Brian Rowe and hopes to make the best decision for the club and for Gallese.
“His level of preparation makes us extremely happy and proud; I believe the Peruvian fans feel the same way,” Pareja said. “We don’t want to rush with our answer and the players know of their duties to the club and at the same time we understand that they have their duties with their national teams. We hope to make the right decision for all of us.”
Bazan gets cooking: Orlando City players enjoyed one of the best perks of playing for Pareja on Wednesday — a team barbecue courtesy of assistant coach Josema Bazan.
A native of Argentina, Bazan is known for asado, a style of South American barbecue that’s cooked over charcoal and paired with chimichurri.
Monthly barbecues are a tradition the coach started when he worked with Pareja at FC Dallas. Bazan became well-known among Dallas fans for cooking the sprawling meals for players, staff and even season-ticket-holder events.
Bazan pulled up an asado grill to the edge of the pitch at the training facility on Wednesday and grilled a full spread of barbecue for the team to enjoy.