Martín Ojeda, MLS MVP? 3 takeaways from Orlando City's win vs. Charlotte FC | OneFootball

Wednesday night's 3-1 win over a freefalling Charlotte FC made it 11 games unbeaten across all competitions for Óscar Pareja's Orlando City. Eleven is also the number of goals his side tallied within the space of eight days, following on from last week's 5-0 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup demolition of I-4 Derby rivals Tampa Bay Rowdies and Saturday's frustrating 3-3 tie at home to New England Revolution.

Martín Ojeda is a serious MVP candidate

Who'd have thought upon the departure of club all-time record goalscorer Facundo Torres that not only would his replacement Marco Pašalić put up Torres-level numbers, but that Martín Ojeda would surpass them at the same time?

It has been a prolific start to 2025 for the Argentine, and one a long time in the making. In his first two campaigns in Florida, Ojeda struggled to make a name for himself in an attack spearheaded by Torres, their talismanic Uruguayan. However, since Torres' departure, Tincho has very much established himself as Orlando's main man -- and one of the league's hottest talents.

His outrageous first-half strike to put Orlando 2-0 up on the night was his eighth of the current MLS campaign, following Saturday's hat trick. Adding his three assists to that figure (in only 981 minutes played) is an astonishing return in a side where the goals have been shared generously among the likes of Pašalić and Luis Muriel. This leaves him only one goal contribution behind San Jose's Cristian Espinoza and San Diego's Anders Dreyer at the top of the charts, both of whom having played significantly more minutes.

In the East, even, Ojeda is outperforming 2022 Landon Donovan MVP winner Hany Mukhtar, who himself has racked up six goals and four assists for a Nashville side currently sitting pretty in 4th. If he keeps up such form, the Argentine is certainly within a shout of bagging the Landon Donovan MVP award at the end of the season.

David Brekalo is emerging as an elite performer at left back

David Brekalo has made the left-back position his own of late. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

In his debut season in purple, Slovenian international defender David Brekalo struggled to live up to the hype following his much-anticipated, $2.5 million move from Norwegian side Viking FK.

A combination of fitness issues and Pareja favoring long-serving center back Rodrigo Schlegel limited Brekalo to just twelve league starts last term.

This time around, fitness has not been an issue, but Schlegel has refused to give up his starting spot, meaning Brekalo has had to rework himself as a left-back.

Since Rafael Santos' dismissal in Montréal in April, Brekalo has started the last four league games on the left. Shutouts at home to Atlanta United and in Chicago proved an encouraging start, but the Slovenian really came into his own on Wednesday.

Dean Smith's side looked the more likely to score at 2-1, but Brekalo took matters into his own hands by surging past three Charlotte players to thread a delightful ball through to substitute Ramiro Enrique. The Argentine forward breezed past Tim Ream before lifting over Kristijan Kahlina to seal the game, but it was Brekalo's initiative that created the goal.

Angulo remains a liability in the XI

Iván Angulo hasn't scored so far this season. | Mike Watters-Imagn Images

This may all seem rather academic given the eventual 3-1 scoreline, but once again Orlando struggled when they found themselves in a position almost certain to win a game at home.

Recent ties against a poor CF Montréal and a ten-man Chicago Fire were disappointing enough, but surrendering a two-goal advantage at home to the Revolution was unforgivable. And then it seemed Orlando was going to do the same again.

Charlotte had lost three on the bounce in league play, and they looked it early on. Yet, as soon as Wilfried Zaha's clever finish halved the deficit, it was the visitors who looked brighter. Liel Abada and Pep Biel both squandered golden opportunities from yards out, with Orlando insistent on giving the ball away repeatedly.

Zaha gave young full-back Alex Freeman a torrid time in the first half, but it was on the other flank that Orlando struggled most. Winger Iván Angulo just can't catch a break this season and fell flat again on Wednesday. Every single one of his crosses found the gloves of Kahlina, while on multiple occasions his first touch surrendered possession.

Yet, he still played 73 minutes. This is a worrying indictment on two accounts. First, Orlando has little depth on the left. The January capture of Nicolás Rodríguez looked sure to fix this hole, but his own injury issues have limited him to just 25 league minutes. Second, the Angulo debate highlights Pareja's stubborn nature. The legendary coach is very set in his ways -- for better many times, but in this case for worse.

Of course, Pareja will highlight Angulo's capabilties off the ball. He is a selfless, tireless runner. But when you're struggling to break poor teams down or to kill off games (despite scoring 24 league goals this term!), you have to adapt. When you have Enrique who can play on the left, he has got to be worth a shot from the off.