Three Points North of the Border: Charlotte defeats Toronto 2-0
Charlotte FC bounced back Saturday night with a 2-0 shutout in Toronto after a 4-2 defeat at the hands of Red Bull New York earlier last week. With the three points the Crown picked up in the Six, they sit in eighth in the east with 25 points through 17 games. Charlotte also improves their road record to 2-6-1 while their home record remains strong at 6-2-0. On the flip side, Toronto finds themselves near the bottom of the east in 14th place with 13 points. Their Home record now sits at 1-7-2 while they fare better on the road with a record of 2-3-2. If Charlotte wants to contend in the east this year, these are the games you have to win, and the boys delivered.
Getting into the starting XI, there were a couple changes with a couple key players getting rest and a return to the lineup. Starting at the top, Zaha and Abada manned the wings while Patrick Agyemang got the start up front. The midfield three consisted of Pep Biel, Ashley Westwood, and Brandt Bronico. The defensive side is where we saw the changes. Malanda and Privett were the center back pairing while Marshall-Rutty and Souleyman Doumbia guarded the flanks and the man between the pipes was David Bingham.
Overall, I like the lineup. It’s nice to see Doumbia back on the pitch as having another player available opens up the opportunity for squad rotation and rest days. The shock to me was the keeper. Kristijan Kahlina has been a regular face this season but everyone needs a rest day. I think Bingham has proven himself as a capable backup and I’m happy to be able to turn to him if needed.
Film: Honestly this might be the strongest lineup (minus the goalie) that Charlotte can field. It was great to see Doumbia get the start after returning from injury as a sub on Wednesday. It is great to see Marshall-Rutty continue to get starts as he has looked impressive since coming in on loan from Montreal. It is also nice to see our designated player, Liel Abada, get back into the starting 11. Abada provides more attacking ability which Dean Smith probably preferring him over Vargas against a weaker team where we expect to have more attacking chances.
The biggest headline of the lineup was David Bingham getting an MLS start and Kahlina seeing the bench. With Kahlina struggling for form this past month it is nice to see him get a game off to reset. I would have personally liked it to be the midweek game against NYRB or way earlier in the Orlando game after Kahlina took a shot to the face in the first Columbus match. Regardless, Kahlina is still the #1 on this team and I look forward to seeing him start against Philadelphia. Back to you Alex.
The first half started 0-0 and that’s how it ended. A Toronto yellow card created some excitement before the break but when the halftime whistle blew, both teams had some game planning to do. The away side must have taken that halftime speech to heart as Wilfried Zaha found Liel Abada who was able to lay a ball off to Pep Biel who thundered one home in the 56th minute. Just when it looked like 1-0 would be the final score, Patrick Agyemang had other ideas, keeping control of the ball and maneuvering past the defense to put one past the keeper. A few moments later, the final whistle blew and Charlotte picked up three points.
I’m happy with the game. A win is a win and a shutout is great, especially from someone who isn’t your number one. I also liked Zaha starting the build up that led to a goal and the fact that Patrick was able to put the nail in the coffin in the dying embers. Hopefully the boys come back refreshed are ready to lock in for the rest of the season.
Film: It was great to see Charlotte dominate this game from start to finish. Toronto struggled in this game on both sides of the ball. Offensively, Toronto failed to get a shot until the second half. Defensively Charlotte was given way too much space. For the first time this season, Westwood and Bronico received the ball in buildup without pressure and could easily progress forward into the attack. Whether Toronto played a back 4 in the first half or a back 5 in the second, Charlotte was able to create a ton of chances and their inability to finish chances was the only thing that kept this game close.
With Toronto playing so poor, it was easy for the whole Charlotte team to look good. But Wilfred Zaha had a standout game for Charlotte. With Doumbia providing width and the midfield able to progress the ball into the attack, Zaha was able to float into the center of the attack and let the ball come to him in dangerous positions. From there Zaha was able to provide that key move to unlock the attack. He was 4 for 4 on successful dribble take-ons including 2 from the edge of the box that led to shots on target. And Zaha started the first goal, he floated centrally and received the ball then played a great through ball into Abada which led to the cutback that Biel could easily score.
It is hard to evaluate how well Charlotte played because of how poor Toronto was in the match. But after a busy May with a lot of losses, it is good to end the run with a dominating performance against a team we should comfortably beat. Thanks for letting me jump in again on this Alex, I’ll pass it back to you.
Looking at the stats, Toronto controlled possession, ending the game with 53% to only 46% for Charlotte. However, the Crown’s offense was more lively, totaling 18 shots, nine of which ended up on target compared to seven and two for the home side. Toronto led the way in fouls and cards, committing 13 fouls which resulted in four yellow cards compared to nine and one for Charlotte.
The boys get a much needed break as their next match is June 14th when they travel to the City of Brotherly Love for a 7:30 pm date with The Union.
I hope the boys enjoy the break and wanted to say a huge thank you to Film From the Fortress for working with me on this recap.