SANFORD, Fla. — If there’s anything Orlando City players on the backline have learned this season, it’s to listen to Lamine Sané.
With a rotating cast of outside backs who have constantly shifted due to injuries, stability in the Orlando City defense has come from the center — Sané and Robin Jansson. While both cement the centerback position, Sané is the vocal leader of the backline, shouting out instructions from the first to the last whistle. Sometimes, he’ll yell out a direction for an outside back that goes against their instincts, tugging them in the opposite direction.
For Kyle Smith and Shane O’Neill, who are still adjusting to the position, the key this season has come in trusting Sané knows what’s best.