Rodrigo Adrián Schlegel (born 3 April 1997) is an Argentine professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

for

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

club Orlando City.

Club career

Racing Club

Schlegel came through the youth system at Racing Club, transitioning from the U-20 side to Racing Club II in 2017 before making his senior debut on 2 December 2017, starting in a 2–2 draw against

Newell's Old Boys Club Atlético Newell's Old Boys () is an Argentine sports club based in Rosario, Santa Fe. The club was founded on 3 November 1903, and is named after Isaac Newell of the English county of Kent, one of the pioneers of Argentine football. A ...

Orlando City

On 23 December 2019, Schlegel signed a one-year loan deal with

MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanctioned by the United ...

side Orlando City ahead of the 2020 season. He made his debut on March 7, starting in a 2–1 defeat away to

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Founded in ...

. It was his only appearance before the season was disrupted by the

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. Instead MLS held a World Cup-style tournament by way of the

MLS is Back Tournament The MLS is Back Tournament took place during the 2020 Major League Soccer season to mark the league's return to action after being suspended as a result of the Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports, COVID-19 pandemic. Of the 26 Major League ...

. Schlegel made three appearances during the competition, all as a substitute within the final 10 minutes of games in which Orlando were winning by a one-goal margin, entering as a third

to help see out games. They won all three games in which he appeared. An unused substitute in four of the first five games upon the return to regular season play, Schlegel was handed only his third start of the season against Florida rivals Inter Miami on September 12 and was caught up in controversy when he was temporarily sent off for a second yellow card and conceded a penalty. Initially not called, the disciplinary action came from VAR before a second consultation spotted an offside which negated the play. Despite the drama, Schlegel was not only noted for his strong defensive display but also his battling and passionate demeanor. As a result, he was trusted to start in four of the next five games with Orlando in the midst of a club record unbeaten streak before seeing out the season as a substitute. On 21 November 2020, Orlando played their first MLS playoff game in history against

New York City FC New York City Football Club (often referred to as NYCFC) is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in New York City. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern C ...

. With the score tied 1–1 in extra-time and Orlando playing down a man, Schlegel again substituted into a back three in the 101st minute to help see out the draw. The game went to a

penalty shootout The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...

in which Schlegel served as an emergency

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

after Pedro Gallese received a second yellow card for leaving his goal line early. Orlando initially attempted to make a substitution to bring in backup keeper Brian Rowe into the game with Schlegel coming off, however this substitution was eventually disallowed following a long delay. Schlegel allowed two successful penalties before making the decisive save against Guðmundur Þórarinsson, helping lift Orlando to a 6–5 win and a place in the conference semi-finals. Schlegel had his loan move made permanent as part of the club's end of season roster moves on 2 December 2020. On 27 May 2022, Schlegel was fined by the MLS Disciplinary Committee for failing to leave the field in a timely manner after receiving a red card during a match against

Austin FC Austin FC is an American professional soccer club based in Austin, Texas. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 2018, the club began play in the 2021 season. Their home stadium is Q ...

five days earlier. On 25 November 2023, during a match against

Columbus Crew The Columbus Crew are an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. The team began play in 1996 as one of the 10 cha ...

, Schlegel received a second yellow card for a foul committed on Diego Rossi. Schlegel initially refused to leave the field and five days later he was fined by the MLS Disciplinary Committee for the disruption.

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Racing Club * Superliga Argentina: 2018–19 * Trofeo de Campeones de la Superliga Argentina:

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Orlando City * U.S. Open Cup:

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schlegel, Rodrigo 1997 births Living people Argentine men's footballers Argentine Primera División players Argentine people of German descent Racing Club de Avellaneda footballers Orlando City SC players Orlando City B players Major League Soccer players MLS Next Pro players Men's association football central defenders Argentine expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Argentine expatriate sportspeople in the United States Footballers from Buenos Aires Province 21st-century Argentine sportsmen