Winners revealed in Orlando City UK’s 2021 end-of-season awards

/ Taylor Williams

This past week, we asked the Orlando City SC Twittersphere to select their Orlando City SC Player of the Year, Young Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year for 2021 as part of our annual Orlando City UK end-of-season awards.

A public vote designed to recognise the standout Orlando City SC players in our 2021 MLS campaign, we can now proudly reveal the winners as voted by you!

We had 336 individual votes cast across our three awards categories on Twitter. We want to say thanks to each and every one of you for getting involved.

So without any further ado, here are your Orlando City UK 2021 end-of-season award winners!

2021 Orlando City UK Player of the Year

2018 winner: Yoshimar Yotún

2019 winner: Nani

2020 winner: Pedro Gallese

With 48% of the vote, Pedro Gallese is the winner of Orlando City UK’s ‘Player of the Year’ honour.

The Peruvian number one beat off stiff competition from Daryl Dike with 36% of the vote.

Pedro Gallese wins Orlando City UK’s ‘Player of the Year’ honour for a second successive season. It’s a testament to his super-consistent form since joining Orlando City SC in January 2020.

Affectionately nicknamed “El Pulpo” (The Octopus), Pedro Gallese yet again proved a walking highlight reel in 2021.

Renowned for his point-blank stops and incredibly sharp reactions, “El Pulpo” flexed his tentacles on numerous occasions.

In the end, these efforts helped Orlando City SC reach the post-season.

Despite playing for club and country, Gallese always kept performances high after returning from South America.

In 2021, Gallese captained Peru at the 2021 Copa América and also played in vital 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.

Pedro Gallese‘s best 2021 save simply has to be his incredible 48th minute stop against CF Montréal’s Sunusi Ibrahim on October 20.

After Mathieu Choinière played a perfect cross into Orlando City SC‘s six-yard box, Ibrahim had the goal at his mercy. This was only for Gallese to make a left-footed block he had no right to make!

With Orlando City SC winning 1-0 at the time, Rudy Camacho unfortunately equalised three minutes later in an eventual 1-1 draw.

This save saw Pedro Gallese nominated for Major League Soccer’s 2021 ‘Save of the Year’ honour, an honour since won by Seattle Sounders’ Stefan Frei.

Orlando City SC and its supporters are honoured to have a player of Gallese’s calibre at the club.

Many congratulations on being our 2021 Orlando City UK Player of the Year, Pedro Gallese.

He’s actually the second Peruvian winner of this award following international compatriot Yoshimar Yotún in 2018.

YOU SHALL NOT PASS! Vote for the 2021 Save of the Year! – Skip to 0:29 (Credit: Major League Soccer)

2021 Orlando City UK Young Player of the Year

2018 winner: Chris Mueller

2019 winner: Benji Michel

2020 winner: Daryl Dike

Unsurprisingly, your Orlando City UK ‘Young Player of the Year’ for 2021 is Daryl Dike with a huge 92% of the vote.

Dike wins Orlando City UK’s ‘Young Player of the Year’ honour for a second successive season.

Playing in college as recently as 2019, Daryl Dike is now a household name not only in MLS but throughout Europe as well.

Enjoying a whirlwind 2020/21, Daryl Dike‘s meteoric rise is undoubtedly one of the United States’ most heartwarming soccer stories in recent memory.

After breaking out with eight goals and four assists in 2020, Daryl Dike‘s exploits won him admirers from far and wide.

So impressive was his debut season at Orlando City SC that EFL Championship side Barnsley signed Daryl Dike on a short-term loan back on February 1.

A transfer out of the blue, Daryl Dike proved a huge success in England. Dike left Oakwell with nine goals in 19 EFL Championship appearances for the Tykes.

After returning to Orlando City SC in June 2021, it wasn’t long before the USMNT called Dike up to their 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup squad.

Part of a 24-man squad that won the competition at Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, Daryl Dike was a man living his dreams all at once.

It would’ve been easy for Dike to slow down after effectively playing two straight seasons of soccer.

But Daryl Dike knuckled down and proved huge for the Lions in late 2021. He eventually tallied 10 Orlando City SC goals and three assists for the year.

It was Dike who effectively punched our ticket to the post-season too. His 86th minute goal at CF Montréal on 2021 MLS Decision Day sealed a second successive MLS Cup Playoffs appearance.

Many congratulations on being our 2020 Orlando City UK Young Player of the Year, Daryl Dike!

CF Montréal 0 Orlando City SC 2 – Highlights – November 7, 2021 (Credit: Major League Soccer)

2021 Orlando City UK Newcomer of the Year

2018 winner: Chris Mueller

2019 winner: Nani

2020 winner: Pedro Gallese

With 63% of the vote, Silvester van der Water beat Emmanuel Mas to be your Orlando City UK ‘Newcomer of the Year’ for 2021.

Evolution rather than revolution, there wasn’t too many new faces through the entry doors at Exploria Stadium in 2021.

With Alexandre Pato missing effectively all of 2021 through injury, Silvester van der Water was the new signing who saw the most minutes.

Silvester van der Water made 27 appearances (12 starts), scored three goals, and tallied three assists in 2021.

In truth, Dutchman van der Water enjoyed a stop-start debut MLS season. There were glimpses of genuine talent scattered throughout the season.

With Chris Mueller officially joining Hibernian in January 2021, Silvester van der Water will earmark 2022 as the year he aims to be a starter in Oscar Pareja‘s favoured 4-2-3-1 formation.

Scoring his first City goal in the 2021 Orlando City SC Adidas PRIMEBLUE jersey at New York Red Bulls (2-1) on May 29, Silvester van der Water‘s best outing undoubtedly came on July 30.

Losing 1-2 to rivals Atlanta United at Exploria Stadium, Silvester van der Water replaced Chris Mueller on 74 minutes.

This Oscar Pareja substitution effectively turned the game on its head!

After van der Water equalised on 79 minutes, Nani headed home his perfect 87th minute cross to call game.

Tapping his trusty left leg in celebration, we look forward to more exploits from van der Water in 2022.

Many congratulations on being our 2020 Orlando City UK Newcomer of the Year, Silvester van der Water!

Orlando City SC 3 Atlanta United 2 – July 30, 2021 (Credit: Atlanta United FC)

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