Charlotte FC starts with hope, ends with one mistake after another in loss to St. Louis
Well, at least it’s over.
That’s about all the solace that Charlotte FC fans who watched their team’s 3-1 loss to Major League Soccer expansion side St. Louis City SC could find on Saturday night.
The win makes St. Louis only the fourth MLS side to start 2-0 in its expansion season. It also thrusts into question the prospects of a season Charlotte FC officials and coaches and players were so loudly optimistic for just two weeks ago — the Christian Lattanzio-led team looking a bit rudderless early.
Here are six takeaways from the Charlotte FC (0-2) loss on the road.
▪ Charlotte’s night began with a jolt of excitement, courtesy of its hyper-talented, newly acquired goal-scorer. Striker Enzo Copetti found the back of the net in the 25th minute. He skied for a screaming cross off the left foot of fellow designated player Karol Świderski and used his head to sneak it past the St. Louis goalkeeper. It was the first goal of the 2023 season for Charlotte FC — which spent its season-opening loss at home last week scoreless — and it delivered a 1-0 lead that lasted 16 minutes.
▪ Disaster struck shortly thereafter and didn’t stop. The first? Defender Bill Tuiloma was trying to head away a St. Louis cross in the 41st minute when he appeared to mistime his attempt and redirected the ball into the net for an own goal. This was Tuiloma’s second unfortunate misstep in as many games: The player traded to Charlotte from the Portland Timbers also punctuated an otherwise admirable performance against New England with a bad touch in the box that resulted in a Revolution game-winning goal in the 89th minute.
▪ Then came a Świderski handball right in the box before the end of the half. St. Louis’s Eduard Lowen finished off the penalty kick in extra time to give St. Louis a 2-1 lead at the break.
▪ And then came one last mistake, this one thanks to Adilson Malanda. The defender was trying to play a ball back to goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega when it was easily intercepted and finished off by Joao Klauss de Mello in the 71st minute. 3-1.
▪ It seems a bit strange to say after a result like Saturday’s — Charlotte FC has yet to collect a point in the MLS Eastern conference table — but the Queen City side has a few positives to take away from its second match. Among the most notable: Charlotte maintained 62% of the game’s possession and appeared dangerous at times, particularly on its counter-attacking opportunities. Andre Shinyashiki earned his first start of the season and facilitated energy, just like he did off the bench in Charlotte’s home-opener. Goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega turned in another solid performance in Kristijan Kahlina’s injured stead. Kamil Jozwiak played quite well, too, a promising sign for Charlotte’s third designated player.
▪ MLS Season Pass put on a quality coverage. This was the first match that Charlotte FC fans who didn’t travel to see the game in person had to put their MLS Season Pass subscription to the test. And it was largely impressive. It’s still a bit too early to tell how accessible the platform is to the casual Charlotte sports fan, but the unhappy blaze Charlotte fans left on social media made it clear: The team’s early struggles aren’t sliding under the radar.
This story was originally published March 4, 2023 at 11:33 PM.
