Analysis: Charlotte FC has long-term goals, but to reach them needs more on the field
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Charlotte FC’s MLS debut
Expanded coverage of Charlotte FC’s first match at D.C. United
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Analysis: Charlotte FC has long-term goals, but to reach them needs more on the field
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Charlotte FC has big goals for its inaugural season, but the only way to achieve them is with … more goals.
Not the “see it, dream it, be it” type of goals — there are already plenty of those: The Major League Soccer expansion team is gunning to set the league attendance record next weekend and remains adamant in its quest to host a playoff match in Year 1.
“It’s a goal for everyone,” Charlotte FC president Joe LaBue told The Observer. “We’re in the sports and entertainment business. We want to be competitive. We understand it takes time.”
What Charlotte FC needs as much as time, however, are goals — the ball-in-the-back-of-the-net kind — and those are only likely to come with more attacking players. Charlotte’s starting lineup against D.C. United for its first-ever Major League Soccer match on Saturday included attacking midfielder Titi Ortíz playing as a striker. The team’s starting striker, Karol Świderski, was unavailable due to international paperwork issues he was resolving in Poland. The major problem wasn’t that Świderski was out, either, it was that Świderski being out highlighted the lack of depth in Charlotte’s attacking line.
Head coach Miguel Ángel Ramírez acknowledged the situation after the match, which resulted in a 3-0 loss in Washington, D.C.
“Titi’s not a striker, and he did his best to help us,” Ramírez said. “(Attacking midfielder) Ben Bender in the last minutes (was playing as) a striker. He’s not a striker.”
“They will do it, and if they need to do it as a goalkeeper, they will do it, and this is the power of this roster we have,” Ramírez continued. “But of course, (it’s) better to have a striker to finish these actions.”
The front office is well aware of the team’s need, especially after a string of deals didn’t pan out for Charlotte, including with Venezuelan winger Darwin Machís (legal issue), Polish winger Kamil Jóźwiak (injury) and former D.C. United winger Paul Arriola (trade to FC Dallas). The team put forth a significant amount of allocation money to add former Nashville SC striker Daniel Ríos just before the season-opener, and Ríos saw match minutes, though he had never played with the team before.
“Obviously we already have some gaps up front,” Tepper Sports & Entertainment chief executive officer Nick Kelly said. “We’re already having conversations with potential strikers and wingers to bring in during the summer transfer window, so with them wrapping up their seasons in May, we need to have contracts in place by the time they wrap up.”
Kelly didn’t provide names but said that he expected those signings by the end of May or early June. He noted that, at least for now, expectations are more subdued.
“We want to hit our stride in the summertime so we can compete,” Kelly said. “But for now, we just need to look like we’re communicating. We need to look like everybody’s actually learning the system.”
The good news is that Charlotte FC showed promise in its playmaking ability despite the final score of the first match. Charlotte had a higher possession percentage, more shots on goal, more passes, a higher passing accuracy percentage, more corners, crosses and tackles won than D.C.
The finishes just never came, and D.C. made out, first after a penalty was awarded for a handball by Charlotte midfielder Brandt Bronico, who turned his body reacting to a close kick when the ball unintentionally hit his upper arm. Michael Estrada scored on the penalty, then later tallied a second goal with a long shot that deflected off Charlotte defender Christian Fuchs before the half. Bronico still saw the promise.
“I think the biggest thing that we can take away is that we can be a very good team,” Bronico said. “We can impose ourselves on the other team. We can control the game even if we’re away from home.”
That’s a positive sign, and both Ramírez and captain Christian Fuchs reflected an equally forward-looking attitude in their postgame comments, even after the loss.
But, the team remains optimistic with respect to its long-term goals, and hopeful those in-the-net goals start coming more frequently, too.
This story was originally published February 27, 2022 at 7:30 AM.
