Charlotte FC vs. New England results: Henry Kessler’s late goal gives Revolution win
Charlotte FC was seven minutes and several chances away from a very different result on Saturday — but no moment of brilliance came for the home side.
Instead, New England defeated Charlotte, 1-0 — thanks to a heads-up play by Henry Kessler to break the match open after 88 minutes of scoreless soccer: The defender collected a loose ball in the box and one-timed a shot past reserve Charlotte goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega to score the game’s only goal.
Charlotte kept the 69,000 fans on hand at Bank of America Stadium holding their breath until the end, though. In the five minutes of stoppage time, Charlotte winger Kerwin Vargas saw a header hit off the post, and forward Enzo Copetti appeared to get knocked to the ground after the team’s final chance — sending the crowd into a disgruntled uproar.
But it was New England who let out triumphant screams on Saturday’s opener when the final whistle blew.
Some end-of-game stats: Charlotte won the possession battle — 54.3% to 45.7% — and also notched more corners and crosses than New England.
But the Revolution notched one more shot on goal than Charlotte (five to four) — and that was the one that counted.
Read the analysis and news Charlotte Observer reporter Alex Zietlow documented during Saturday’s match below.
Charlotte FC vs. New England Revolution score
FINAL: New England Revolution 1 — Charlotte FC 0
Announced attendance: 69,345
Live updates from Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium
Second half
89’: Henry Kessler of New England seizes a loose ball and one-times it past Charlotte goalkpeer Pablo Sisniega to break Saturday’s tie. In extra time, Charlotte FC sees a promising Kerwin Vargas equalizing-chance header hit the post. No avail. New England leads Charlotte late, 1-0, and will hold onto it to secure the win.
74’: Andre Shinyashiki, the microwave goal-scoring striker, has entered the game. He is replacing winger McKinze Gaines.
72’: Charlotte FC defender Joseph Mora down on the field for an extended period of time. Trainers taking a long look at him. Charlotte is already quite thin on its back-line. He eventually re-enters the game.
64’: Charlotte FC’s first substitution of the season: Kerwin Vargas for Kamil Jóźwiak.
62’: Bank of America Stadium has finally come to life... thanks to Charlotte FC’s goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega. A New England Revolution shot hit a post (for a second time tonight), and then a New England header by Henry Kessler sees a diving save by Sisniega. Still scoreless here.
57’: Still scoreless, but Charlotte has come to life a bit, notching two shots in the first 12 minutes of action. Still no shots on goal for the home side. Midfielder Brandt Bronico has put in an impressive performance thus far, creating several opportunities for his forwards.
First half
45’: The first half of Charlotte FC’s season sees scoreless soccer. Some halftime stats: Charlotte leads the time-of-possession battle (54.5%) but is getting outplayed in several other facets — including shots (New England has seven to Charlotte’s two) and shots on goal (New England has two to Charlotte’s zero).
28’: Two yellow cards are given essentially on back-to-back possessions. The first came on a Charlotte FC counter-attack, when New England’s Henry Kessler tripped Karol Świderski around midfield. The second was delivered to Charlotte defender Nathan Byrne for a bad foul on the sideline.
10’: New England Revolution sees a few dangerous chances to begin the contest — including a heading chance that hit the cross bar in the first few minutes. Charlotte has steadied the ship since. Neither team has notched a shot on goal. Charlotte FC has notched 59% of possession thus far.
Kickoff! 7:39 p.m. Let the season begin!
7:37 p.m.: Still going through pregame festivities. Several traditions being revived — including the Pepas jump-around and the crowd-sung national anthem. Goosebumps galore. Also: an Anton Walkes jersey will sit on today’s “throne” in front of the supporters section behind the East endzone of the stadium. Almost kickoff!
7:28 p.m.: We have so much to learn today. Several key players are making their Charlotte debuts. Among those in the starting XI: defender Bill Tuiloma (traded to CLTFC from the Portland Timbers earlier this month), Ashley Westwood (Premier League veteran who’s wearing the armband today... sound familiar?) and Enzo Copetti (offseason acquisition from Argentina). Also of note: Starting goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina is out tonight — still recovering from back surgery — and so are defenders Adam Armour and Guzman Corujo. (It’s also a debut of sorts for Christian Lattanzio. This will be his first match as Charlotte FC’s head coach without the “interim” label.)
7:20 p.m.: Mint Street in uptown is closed off to traffic with food trucks and live music and fun. Charlotte FC fans facilitated some of the best match-day experiences in 2022. Team president Joe LaBue announced earlier on Saturday that the team had sold more than 65,000 tickets for its 2023 season-opener. Kickoff in 10 minutes!
This story was originally published February 25, 2023 at 5:30 AM.
