“Barça needs Real Madrid. Las Palmas needs Tenerife” … And Charlotte FC needs Atlanta?
There is clearly mutual respect between Charlotte FC and Atlanta United. In fact, off the pitch, they might even be friends.
Atlanta’s head coach Gonzalo Pineda paid Charlotte’s head coach Miguel Ángel Ramírez a notable compliment before Sunday’s Major League Soccer match at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, calling Ramírez “well-respected in the coaching world” and predicting that he will “do very well in MLS.”
After the game — a 2-1 loss for Charlotte — those coaches exchanged more compliments and a promise to stay connected.
“I told him about myself, and I said, ‘Let’s keep in touch and (get to) know me and each other and share ideas,’ ” Ramírez said.
But Ramírez knows that relationship is crossing enemy lines, at least in the public’s eye. Charlotte FC team owner David Tepper stoked the rivalry flames with Atlanta from the outset, saying during the 2019 expansion bid announcement, “We’re the hot city. Screw that other city.”
Ramírez said that he hopes that the Southeast soccer rivalry continues and becomes even more impassioned the longer the club plays in the league. Atlanta was able to find the back of the net once more than Charlotte on Sunday, but Charlotte performed like a worthy opponent during the teams’ first faceoff. And that can be considered a small win despite Charlotte’s late-goal heartbreak.
“What is football without this (rivalry), you know?” Ramírez said. “Barça needs Real Madrid. Las Palmas needs Tenerife. Tenerife needs Las Palmas … It’s amazing to have these kinds of games and derbies and classicos, and it’s always for the good of the game.”
It wasn’t until the second half that Charlotte capitalized on scoring opportunities or created many of them. But during what was a disjointed start for its offense, the defense did its job, highlighted by Kristijan Kahlina in the net. By halftime, the Croatian goalkeeper saved five Atlanta scoring attempts.
His best save came later, in the 81st minute, when Atlanta striker Josef Martínez met a well-timed feed from Brooks Lennon and fired the ball toward the upper-right side of the goal off his right foot. Kahlina reacted just as quickly and got his left hand on it to send the ball over the net. After the whistle, Kahlina and Martínez swapped jerseys.
The fans were impassioned, with a contingent of Charlotte FC supporters traveling to take up a rowdy upper-level corner of the stadium. The weekend prior, Charlotte FC hosted the LA Galaxy in front of a crowd of 74,479 fans at Bank of America Stadium to top the single-match league attendance record previously held by Atlanta, one of the league’s most successful franchises. It was a popularity goal that Charlotte was long targeting. Ramírez said that he thinks the inter-conference competition is good for the sport.
“And I hope that now with the times, this game is becoming bigger and bigger and (has) more passion,” he said.
In their next meeting, however, Charlotte will likely face a tougher Atlanta team and needs to be prepared for that. Some of Atlanta’s best players didn’t see as much time due to a combination of injury or other circumstances. Atlanta United and U.S. national team defender Miles Robinson was suspended for the match after he received a red card in Atlanta’s prior game against Colorado.
Atlanta designated player Thiago Almada and game-winning goal-scorer Jake Mulraney played only as second-half substitutes as they work into their team’s lineup. Almada saw his first touches after getting through the visa process and Mulraney is in the early stages of working back from a leg injury.
Charlotte’s defense was able to hold its own and Adam Armour provided a memorable moment, notching Charlotte’s first-ever goal off a header in the 66th minute, while Ben Bender also turned heads. But overall, Atlanta’s possession percentage (61 percent) was significantly higher than Charlotte’s.
Ramírez has continued to preach patience with his squad that so far has played just three losing matches, and focused on the bright spots.
“The other day (Christian) Fuchs compared when he would play against another team in the Premier League: Chelsea, Manchester United,” Ramírez said in Spanish. “There, you suffered the 90 minutes because what you have in front of you is hard. It’s normal, but that is not happening here. We are not suffering for 90 minutes defending. We are dominating in the second half, even with good competition in front of us.”
Charlotte FC will have the home advantage the next time it faces Atlanta on April 10, but it could also use a win, or at least a draw, to keep the rivalry going.
