Charlotte FC beats Greenville Triumph to advance in US Open Cup, learns next opponent
Charlotte FC got a goal from Harrison Afful in extra time and held on to beat the Greenville Triumph 2-1 in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday night.
Afful’s goal came with Charlotte playing on tired legs, using three of its substitutions early in the second half to insert usual starters Ben Bender and Christian Fuchs, as well as designated player Kamil Jóźwiak, who was making his first appearance for the MLS expansion side. Jóźwiak, a Polish national team player from Derby County in the EFL Championship, assisted on the extra time goal.
Afful dribbled up the pitch, dumped the ball off to Jóźwiak, who bounced it right back to Afful as he ran toward the net to take a right-footed shot to the bottom right corner and give Charlotte the edge just before heading into the final 15-minute period.
“I played 1-2 with Kamil and then I was all by myself in the box. I just stayed calm, head up and placed the ball,” Afful said. “... It feels great. I’m happy to be on the score sheet, but the most important thing for us is getting the (win).”
Afful, a defender from Ghana who’s played more than 180 MLS games, scored his first goal since 2020.
Charlotte FC’s other goal came from midfielder Titi Ortíz in the 39th minute and put the MLS club ahead 1-0. Ortíz knocked in a shot that bounced off the hands of Greenville goalkeeper Paul Christensen. Ortíz slid on the turf at the South Carolina venue, meeting the ball and sending it at a sharp angle from the right side of the goal.
It was a highlight of what was a wobbly start for Charlotte, which was relying on the depth of its roster amid a stretch of matches on the road.
George Marks, a rookie from Clemson, played in goal for Charlotte FC. Kristijan Kahlina has been Charlotte’s first goalie and has played every match for the team until Wednesday. Marks allowed one goal, but recorded multiple saves, and coach Miguel Ángel Ramírez was complimentary of his performance after the match, calling Marks a “professional” and a “young talent.”
“He’s always the first at training on the pitch, at the (team) breakfast,” Ramírez said. “He’s this kind of American boy. He’s disciplined. He wants to be his best version every day.”
Marks called it a “full-circle” moment to play in front of many of his former national championship-winning Tiger teammates from Clemson.
“I was just telling some of the guys out there that it feels like I was just around here back at Clemson a few months ago, so a lot’s changed,” Marks said after the match, shortly after he was swarmed by fans and friends. Greenville hosted its biggest-ever crowd of 4,064 fans, many of whom were Charlotte FC supporters who made the two-hour trek.
“I try to take it all in stride, learn, get better and especially in these first few weeks where I wasn’t playing any games, really grind it out in training and get every percent better that I can.”
The Open Cup win didn’t count among Charlotte’s league record, but the U.S. Soccer-organized domestic competition, which pits lower-division teams against higher-division teams, offers the chance for the tournament winner to earn a bid into the 2023 Concacaf Champions League. The win was Charlotte’s first not at its home “fortress,” as players have referred to it, at Bank of America Stadium.
Charlotte travels next to play the Colorado Rapids on Saturday evening in Colorado, where it will aim to win its first MLS match on the road.
“It will be difficult. It will be tight to prepare. We didn’t want to give minutes to Brandt (Bronico) or Ben (Bender) or (Christian) Fuchs, but I had to,” Ramírez said.
Ramírez was blunt in his assessment of his team’s tournament start.
“This is the Cup. It’s fun for the fans and heart attacks for the coaches,” he said. “But talking about the game, if we forget the first 15, 20, 25 minutes of the second half that I needed to react and I needed to change some elements to rise up and go again, we were showing who was the MLS team on the pitch.”
Charlotte FC will travel to Richmond, Va., for its next U.S. Open Cup match in the Round of 32 on May 10 or 11 to play USL League One side, the Richmond Kickers. Charlotte submitted a bid to host that match, but was selected as the traveling team via a random draw on Thursday.
This story was originally published April 20, 2022 at 6:40 PM.