While Orlando City have been preparing for their move to MLS by pursuing global stars such as recently acquired Brazilian legend Kaká and potential transfer Robinho, the club’s first MLS signee is having a breakout season in USL PRO.
Orlando City midfielder Kevin Molino hasn’t had a lot of time to ponder what the 2015 roster might look like while helping the Lions (14-0-4, 46 points) remain unbeaten by way of an offensive explosion unlike any in his career.
“As a player that’s already signed for MLS, you always wonder who will come in and who you’ll be playing with next year,” Molino told MLSsoccer.com last week. “It’s great to see that a couple big names want to come here. It shows we’ve been doing some good over the past couple years.”
Entering Sunday’s match at Rochester, Molino leads the league in points (29) and assists (7) and ranks third in goals with 11 in 17 appearances. He was the first of five players to sign an MLS deal with the club for 2015 after he was originally discovered in his native Trinidad by head coach Adrian Heath.
“There was this little skinny kid on the right wing who kept catching my eye every time the ball went to him,” Heath said of the 5-foot-11, 145-pound Molino. “We were fortunate that he was out of a contract and so we brought him in here, and he’s gradually gotten better by the week. Now I think he’s close to being nearly complete. He’s starting to put goals and more assists to his game.”
Said Molino of Heath: “He’s someone that’s helped me a lot on and off the field. He’s someone I have full respect for, and I’m just delightful to work with coaches like Adrian and [assistant coach] Ian Fuller. I’m just happy to be here and looking forward to going to Major League Soccer next year.”