Charlotte FC’s home struggles continue in 2-0 loss to Toronto. Here’s what we learned
If your question is whether or not Charlotte FC is growing and improving as a team, the answer is yes. If you are asking whether this is a team that understands and can act on what it takes to win, the answer would be no. At least, not yet.
Charlotte outplayed, outshot, and, for the most part, controlled the game but still could not carve out a win against Toronto FC. The 2-0 loss at Bank of America Stadium was the third straight game dropped at building that had been a fortress. The club falls to 10-16-2 for the season.
“I feel like I’m always commenting on the same game,” said Charlotte coach Christian Lattanzio after the match. “It’s like Groundhog Day.”
He was referring to the last two home games against Chicago and Orlando where Charlotte played well enough to get a result – a win or draw – but came away with nothing.
With the victory, Toronto moves ahead of Charlotte in the standings into 10th place with 33 points. The Crown falls to 11th with 32 points. In the muddle that is from fifth to 13th in the MLS East, that still puts the club within four points of the seventh and final playoff spot. How tight is it? Atlanta, currently in 13th, just one above the bottom in the East, is only six points out at 30 points.
The Blues had been on the front foot most of the night, ending the match with advantages in possession (59 percent), shots 19-11, and shots-on-goal (4-3).
At the end though, the only stat that matters is shots-in-goal and Toronto took that one. And, once again, it was Toronto’s Italian connection that did the damage. Lorenzo Insigne scored in the 49th minute off a corner kick by Frederico Bernardeschi. Bernardeschi doubled down with a precision strike from the right corner of the penalty area in the 66th.
On almost every count except for the result, this was a different game than the first meeting in Toronto on July 23. That was the first time on the pitch for the two players who helped Italy to the 2020 (played in 2021) Euro championship and they made an immediate impact. Bernardeschi had a goal and an assist while Insigne registered an assist, both playing only the first half in a 4-0 win.
This time Charlotte was prepared. As they had throughout the match, the Crown pressed and continued to create chances but lapsed in getting the final ball on target. When they did, Toronto goalkeeper Alex Bono was always in the way. He was credited with four saves on the night.
“The team creates and was in control of most situations and then, unfortunately, we concede as soon as we make a mistake because the opposition has a lot of quality. I have nothing to say critical of our boys.”
Our defensive shape, how we pressed, it made it tough for them to play out,” said Charlotte midfielder Brandt Bronico. “I thought we dominated most of the game.”
Lattanzio lauded how his team forced Insigne away from his preferred position higher on pitch as he was forced to drop further to receive the ball.
If he couldn’t do it in the run of play, Insigne drew first blood on a set play and was both brilliant and fortunate in doing so. Standing alongside Charlotte goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina, as Bernardeschi prepared to take a corner kick, he waited for the defense to focus on the ball before he backpedaled to the far post where he met the cross, his side-volley driving it into the ground. That’s where good fortune came into play. The ball bounced high and just between Kahlina’s hands and the crossbar to give Toronto the lead.
That was a dagger as it came just a minute or two after Charlotte fans roared to celebrate what they thought was the first goal of the match. Charlotte had come out of gate fast in the second half, with many not returned to their seats when Karol Swiderski slipped the ball through to Kamil Jozwiak down the left side, and in on goal. Alas, the winger’s angled shot from the left looked good but had only rippled the outside of the net to the chagrin of the vast and anxious supporter section behind the goal and all throughout the stadium.
Lattanzio was quicker to go to the bench in this game, bringing Andre Shinyashiki on for Vargas in the 57th minute. The Brazilian, who is the club’s second leading scorer with five goals, picked up where Vargas had left off with two solid chances in the 64th and 65th minutes with Bono coming up with big saves both times.
Just when it felt certain that Charlotte would eventually find the inside of the net, another Italian job doused the fire.
Insigne played the ball from left to right where Bernardeschi took it cleanly off his chest, dribbled into the right corner of the penalty area and showed his quality with a left-footed strike curling just inside the far post to give the visitors a 2-0 advantage in the 66th minute.
“We want to keep playing and try to score goals and sometimes we get stretched,” said Lattanzio of the space Bernardeschi found. “All in all, considering the quality they had, I don’t think we conceded that much. We certainly could have scored a few goals tonight.”
Therein lies the difference. Save for the result, it was an entertaining end-to-end match where Charlotte may have been the better team but not the victor.
“I enjoyed watching us play,’ said Lattanzio. “I didn’t enjoy the scoreboard at all.”
What else did we learn?
Help is coming
Adilson Malanda, the 20-year-old French defender signed during the transfer window from second division side Rodez AF in early August, started his first match for Charlotte alongside Anton Walkes as a centerback. He replaced Jan Sobocinski who picked up an injury in training. Lattanzio indicated that it was a hamstring issue.
Also out due to injury was McKinze Gaines, the speedy winger who scored his first goal for Charlotte to equalize against Orlando last Sunday, and who was becoming more dangerous in the attack, was ruled out with a high ankle sprain.
Malanda is one of three players added to the roster. Still working through visa channels are Portuguese midfielder Nuno Santos and English defender Nathan Byrne.
Vargas continues to impact
Also starting in the 4-3-3 formation was Kerwin Vargas for the third consecutive match.
He was on the end of most Charlotte attempts, demonstrating his creativity in the 17th minute, taking a long cross from Bender near the penalty spot and redirecting a push shot with the outside of his right boot that Toronto keeper Alex Bono had to tip over the crossbar for a corner kick. He shot over the bar in the 24th minute, and headed a Karol Swiderski cross from the right that was saved by Bono in the 26th.
Playoffs still possible
As noted above, the MLS East is a quagmire from 5th to 13th place. As of Saturday night, only six points separate Orlando in 5th from Atlanta in 13th. Though Charlotte dropped a spot with the loss, other results helped keep it all close. Miami (6th) lost to the Red Bulls. Chicago (12th) fell to Montreal. Columbus (7th) and Cincinnati (8th) drew. Not all teams have played the same amount of matches with several having one or two games in hand over Charlotte.
Fortress needs support
Charlotte had been as good as any team at home with 8 of their 10 wins coming at Bank of America Stadium but were coming off two straight losses against Chicago and Orlando, two teams the Crown were fully capable of beating and both games that should have been draws at worst. Sandwiched between those losses was one of the Crown’s best performances to date and their second win on the road, a 3-1 victory over defending MLS champions NYCFC. Charlotte is now 8-6-0 at home and every bit of the support that made this a hard visit for opposing teams will continue to be instrumental for the team. Lattanzio and every player interviewed post-match continue to comment on how much it means to them and the team.
Consistency a work in progress
Matches for the Crown have been a tale of two halves and varying levels of play between them. After an impressive first 45 minutes holding this season’s best team in LAFC to 0-0 at the break, Charlotte broke, giving up five goals in the second half. A few days later, against last season’s champions, NYCFC on the road, Charlotte won decisively 3-1 with a comprehensive second half performance. Last Sunday at home against Orlando, the visitors had the best of a rather tepid first half, leading 1-0. Charlotte ramped it up in the second half, drawing even and continuing to threaten the Orlando goal, only to give up a late score as they pressed for the win.
In spite of the result, this match was a big push towards finding a consistent level throughout the game though defensive slips and moments of quality by Toronto proved the difference.
The stadium grounds crew is a SWAT team
The Carolina Panthers played their only preseason home game Friday night, necessitating a quick turnover from NFL to MLS lines on the playing field.
The football to soccer conversion began at 11 p.m. after the game ended and continued through 7 a.m., with some 20 people working together to make it happen. An eight-person crew took approximately six hours to remove the NFL lines with the FieldTurf version of a Zamboni. Quickening the task was the fact that the end zones were not painted as would be the case for a regular season game as well as the broader sideline paint scheme. The large Panthers logo at midfield, a staple of the Dave Tepper era, was there.
The crew also had to remove the benches and barriers separating the Vault premium seating on the north sideline. The field also had to be “dragged” to level out the infill of the artificial grass and remove any matting patterns left behind.
This process will work in reverse on the weekends of Sept. 10 and Oct. 1, when the Panthers play on Sunday after Saturday matches for Charlotte FC.
This story was originally published August 27, 2022 at 11:20 PM.