Orlando City dreams of MLS postseason as 1st season's fate hangs in balance
Orlando City captain Kaka has always been a dreamer.
Fresh-faced and still growing, 18-year-old Kaka dreamt of World Cup glory as a member of Brazil's 2002 World Cup roster and celebrated in the background as the team's veterans lifted football's most coveted prize.
He was a dreamer with AC Milan when he lifted the Champions League trophy and won FIFA's coveted Ballon d'Or in 2007, too.
Now, Kaka has a new dream: making the MLS postseason with Orlando City. That dream could become a reality if Orlando defeats the Montreal Impact on Saturday. Defeating Montreal would give Orlando a chance to leapfrog them in the weeks to come.
But a loss would all but ensure Orlando will watch the playoffs from the living room couch instead.
"Everybody knows the significance of this game," Kaka told reporters Tuesday. "We have the whole week to prepare and be ready for this. We know (getting into the playoffs) does not just depend on us, but everything we can do, we will do.
"This is a good moment for us. The team is very confident after three wins and we have three games left. If we have 45,000 voices shouting for us on Saturday, it is great motivation and it is going to be a great occasion."
Orlando head coach Adrian Heath stuck to his word as his team issued a call to its fan base to fill the Orange Bowl on Saturday.
"I promised the lads that if they beat the New York Red Bulls, we would get 45,000 people in the Citrus Bowl against Montreal on Saturday," Heath said.
A huge 5-2 win over the Red Bulls and Heath's rallying call set the stage for what should be one of the club's biggest games in its debut season.
"This is a huge game, no question about that," Heath told reporters. "We have an exciting week ahead of us. If we were to win this one and peg the gap back to just a point, Montreal have some tough games to come, and it would put us in with a shout.
"Our supporters have been incredible at home this year, and it has been mentioned by all the teams that have played here. It is just the atmosphere that it generates, and it is something we can feed off."
Heath and Kaka represent the club's experienced leadership but Canadian striker Cyle Larin looks to not only extend his league-leading rookie scoring run but to also play versus his hero, Montreal's Didier Drogba.
"Playing against my favourite player in the world gives me even more incentive," Larin said. "I will probably have some jitters to start with as Drogba is the player I grew up watching most of all. I might just stare at him for a couple of seconds to take it in, but then I will be looking to score.
"It would definitely add something to the feeling if I did."