Film from the Fortress: CLTFC vs Nashville FC Match Review

Analyzing how CLTFC's biggest flaw all season cost them a game and asking some questions about changes needed moving forward.

Quick update: Starting next week I will be posting these match reviews first to the Film from the Fortress Substack. They will still be available on SE Soccer Report as well. If you want to receive future FFTF posts right away consider subscribing to that substack and supporting my work. Thank you now let’s get into the game!

Disappointment. As a fan, that was the feeling as the final whistle blew. It was not that we lost, or a feeling of being unlucky, it was a sense that we had moments of great play but could not sustain it. The first 15 minutes of this game (and the first 5 of second half) CLT looked electric. They were fast, free-flowing, creating chances, and looked ready to crush a slightly less talented team. But as the game settled down in each half, CLT became flat; unable to buildup out of the back and lacking urgency and ideas in attack. The disappointment came from a feeling that with the right tactical structure and the right guys on the field we should have won this game.

So let’s jump into this one that while mostly negative I promise will have some positive segments. We’ll start with looking at what went well to start each half. Then we will spend the next 2 topics analyzing how we lost that edge and what defensive issues led to Nashville’s 2 goals. And then we will end a bit more positive talking about some individuals that impressed and final thoughts.

Prelude: Quick off the blocks

Charlotte came out to start each half looking the better side. We thrived with fresh legs, energy, and a quicker pace before each half settled into a more tactical and structural match. Specifically, Charlotte looked faster (both on and off the ball) than Nashville, we were direct and intentional with our attacks, and we were playing with a looseness and freedom that allowed players’ quality and instincts to shine.

Zaha with freedom

There was a lot to like about Zaha’s performance but let’s specifically highlight that with the fast pace his ability to play off instinct with high quality was evident and led to some really clean passages of play early on. Early on we get a great “rondo” style combination by Zaha, Bronico, and Marshall-Rutty. Rutty passes into Zaha who gives it back to Bronico.

Bronico does a first time pass back to Rutty who draws pressure from both Yazbek (#8) and Shaffelburg (#14). But they’re a bit too slow and Rutty gets a pass back into Zaha.

From here its quick simple passes. Zaha does a first touch pass to Bronico which draws pressure from Tagseth (#20) and Zaha’s defender (Najar). Bronico does a first touch pass through and Zaha is free down the line.

It is great to see 3 of our players combining to beat 4 Nashville players in tight spaces. Despite being a more direct and long ball team, when we play with good pace we have the ability to move the ball with tight, intricate passes.

I also need to show Zaha’s unreal skill move. and the freedom he was playing with. He receives a ball from Marshall-Rutty under a ton of pressure and a does a drag-back rabona pass to ease the pressure and get it to Bronico.

With glimpses like this CLT has to find a way to unlock situations for Zaha to shine because the quality is there if we can build the situation.

Agyemang feasting on center backs

Agyemang’s pace, physicality, and dribbling is a problem for most MLS center backs and Walker Zimmerman’s current replacement in Palacios (#4) could not match up against Agyemang. Early in each half, Agyemang’s energy and skill was too much for Palacios to handle in isolation.

After not facing him in the earlier fixture (Agyemang was subbed out for Toklomati at the same time Palacios came in for Zimmerman), Agyemang made quick work in going after Palacios. Ream finds himself in buildup with the ball near the middle third of the field.

And with no pressure Ream picks his head up and sends a through ball over the top for Agyemang to chase. As you can see from this replay angle, Agyemang is a step behind Palacios when this ball gets kicked.

Despite not having positioning, Agyemang beats Palacios for pace and is clean through. He goes down a bit too easily but you can see below he was 1v1 with the goalie.

The value is starting and playing Agyemang is because of moments like above. This is instant offense from basically nothing because he’s just stronger and faster than their center back.

And just a minute into the second half, Agyemang carved out another great chance against Palacios. The ball goes out wide to Abada who dribbles onto his left foot.

Here Abada has pulled the left back forward and there is space behind the midfield line for Biel to run into. Abada finds Biel who turns forward and plays a lofted through ball for Agyemang to chase.

This time Palacios does not get beat for pace and they are shoulder to shoulder. But Agyemang out-strengths Palacios shoving him a few yards back off the ball giving Agyemang a great shot and goal opportunity.

Bronico & Co’s dangerous press and quick transition

Our speed early also helped our press create dangerous turnovers and chances. Specifically, Bronico thrived in the role of applying pressure and winning the ball in the midfield. Here off a goal kick Biel forces the defender wide and they loft a pass toward Muyl (#19) in the center of the press.

Bronico shifts his weight and immediately pressures Muyl causing a deflection and winning possession.

With the ball won we attack with purpose, speed and directness. Bronico’s next touch passes it wide to Biel. Biel does a fist time pass centrally that finds Agyemang in space to turn and drive.

Agyemang makes the right decision and plays through Zaha for a great chance and what should be the opening goal but the goalie makes a big save.

And the energy of the press was renewed to start the second half. Nashville is trying to buildup and their center back plays a pass into Mukhtar (#10) who has dropped into the press to help.

As you can see above, Mukhtar mis-controls and Bronico is right behind him to intercept the pass. Bronico runs onto the ball and takes a dribble towards goal.

From here Bronico is direct and plays it into the path of Abada. We will cover the rest of this highlight later but Abada receives this pass and goes on to score the opening goal of the game.

Overall we started both halves in great form. But about 15 minutes into the first and 5 minutes into the second half, the game settled down and we lost that edge and dynamism to our game. Unfortunately, the main reason CLT dropped off was the main problem they’ve had since the first game of the season.

Topic 1: Needing a second pivot

As the game settled down CLT had to start buildup through their midfield to get into an attack. And after those first 15 minutes we struggled to do so all game and this limited the opportunities our attackers had to make a difference.

The main problem was we played Westwood as the only pivot for almost every buildup passage. The most disappointing thing about this game, is that we know that Westwood as the only pivot does not work. If you’ve been reading my posts for a while this may sound similar to the first topic I covered in my Seattle Match Review (I even named it the same topic). A lot of what is covered sounds very similar to the issues spelled out form our first game. Similar to that game, this setup led to limited attacks which wasted our great start to the first half and stifled any chance of getting an equalizer in the second.

1 pivot leads to predictable presses

Around 15 minutes when our attack started to slow was the same time Nashville started marking Westwood in buildup. With Westwood marked and having no support from Bronico, Nashville was able to be more aggressive on the press and anticipating long passes.

Here from a goal kick, Malanda has the ball and notice how Mukhtar has dropped off the front 2 pressing line to mark Westwood while Sturridge forces Malanda to stay on the near side.

This forces Malanda to go wide to Scardina and as Scardina gets pressured. Nashville expects him to try some long ball towards our attackers. Due to this their defender can aggressively step to Agyemang as he tries to drop in to get this pass.

So not only has Nashville forced us to play wide by marking Westwood, they also can hamper Agyemang’s holdup ability because they know it has to go long eventually.

Westwood needs a 2nd pivot to support

I’ve said this before but Westwood is great in a pivot if he has a 2nd pivot there to help him create space. Without that support to move the defense he cannot support buildup.

Here we started in Nashville’s half but have been forced back and are in buildup now. With Ream on the ball, notice how Westwood is only pivot player inside the 6 man press. Bronico is essentially out of it being marked by Yazbek (#8). Here while Westwood is “unmarked” Mukhtar has angled his pressure on Ream to deny the pass.

Here Biel tries to come in and help Westwood and receives a pass from Malanda. However, the other central midfielder (Tagseth, #20) easily sees Biel drop into the press and provides immediate pressure. Biel has nowhere to go.

Biel gets enough space to make a back pass across to Ream. But this pass allows Shaffelburg their right winger to run forward and pressure Ream as he receives.

Ream tries to play a pass over the pressure to Bronico but this is easily challenged by Yazbek as he shifts. This leads to a turnover in a dangerous position.

And Nashville also was willing to break their midfield line to pressure Westwood. This provided an opportunity for Bronico to drop in as a second pivot and create issues for Nashville’s press, but he failed to do so.

Here we’ve been forced back again and the ball gets to Kahlina. Notice how Tagseth (#20) has moved way up from his midfield partner to mark Westwood in the pivot. His partner is behind the referee need midfield with Bronico, completely out of buildup.

Kahlina plays it into Westwood who due to the pressure immediately plays it back. As he does, Tagseth jumps the pass moving past Westwood to pressure Kahlina while cutting off the passing lane into Westwood.

This is where Bronico needs to have dropped into the second pivot. If Bronico is on the same line as Westwood and in between Tagseth and Mukhtar on the far side Kahlina has a forward pass out of pressure. Instead Kahlina has to go wide out to Malanda near the end line and even as Malanda pushes up there is no passing lanes.

Malanda tries a long pass across to Bronico. But because Bronico never dropped Shaffelburg was able to easily mark him and force a dangerous turnover that eventually leads to a corner.

You may have noticed the past 2 examples Biel has tried to drop into the press to help with buildup. The issue is with Bronico higher up the pitch, he is occupying space and bringing a defender into areas that Biel (and Zaha) want to move into.

Here in the second half as we buildup, Nashville has left Bronico alone not believing we will play through him at all. Tagseth is near Westwood and offscreen Yazbek is marking Biel.

Malanda swings the ball to Kahlina and for a moment Kahlina has a clear passing lane right up the middle but nobody is there. In fact the only player dropping into that space is Biel who is marked.

If Bronico is in that open central space he receives this pass turns and dribbles forward and we can start to attack. Instead Kahlina plays it horizontally to Ream which allows Mukhtar (#10) to go pressure him and Shaffelburg to pressure Marshall-Rutty (#2) knowing that’s the next pass.

And from here Rutty plays a dangerous lofted pass for a 50/50 ball.

Bronico is good enough to be the 2nd pivot

The issue is not Bronico himself, I believe it is his instructions and expected positioning. Despite ball possession, control and passing being weaker elements of Bronico’s game, he is good enough to be the 2nd pivot and support Westwood. He just needs to make simple passes and be in the right position to affect the defense’s shape.

The rare times Bronico dropped in we had success getting into our attack. Here we get play back to Malanda and Bronico has dropped into the pivot roll inside the press and is unmarked.

Malanda plays it into Bronico and due to Mukhtar wanting to stay on Westwood, Bronico receives limited pressure. He takes one touch backwards then plays it across to Ream.

It is an easy pass but it helps our buildup. By receiving this ball, Bronico brought the attention of Sturridge because Mukhtar was staying on Westwood. That pulled Sturridge off of Ream who now has more time on the ball, preventing Nashville from springing an aggressive press. Marshall-Rutty moves higher up the line and Ream finds him to get into the attacking half.

As Marshall-Rutty stops his run as he meets a defender, Bronico is now open and trailing behind to receive this pass and we can start a set attack. Because Bronico had dropped into the pivot, Yazbek (#8) was never marking him which allowed Bronico to be open here as a passing option.

This did not directly create an attack but Bronico in the pivot allowed us to get out of buildup without a turnover and give our attackers a chance to create something. And Bronico in that position, even if he barely gets a touch helps us get into attacks.

Here in the second half we start in 1 pivot and Ream gets into pressure as he tries to dribble forward to advance the ball.

As he pulls it back Bronico drops into the pivot and receives a pass from Ream.

Notice how Bronico draws pressure from Yazbek (#8) pulling him forward from their midfield line. As the ball goes back to Malanda now Yagseth has a difficult decision to make. Does he step forward and mark Wetwood and Mukhtar steps to pressure Malanda or does he shift to the far side to mark Williamson who now has some space? As Yagseth shifts to deal with Williamson, Malanda gets a passing lane to find Toklomati who drops off the back line into space vacated by both central midfielders.

It is such a small change but it makes such a huge difference. We do not even need to change our personnel just our tactical approach and understand that Westwood needs Bronico (or any 2nd pivot) so that we can buildup and properly get into attacks.

Despite these in-possession struggles we did take the lead this game. However, there was one big issue in our defensive shape this match and it defined the final scoreline.

Topic 2: A new weak spot in the defensive armor

For most of this game our defense looked elite. We were winning tackles, handled multiple crosses and corners well, and generally protected Kahlina from dangerous chances. Honestly the worst chances we conceded (outside the goals) mainly came from turnovers which I attribute mostly to buildup issues and not our defense.

However, there was one issue with our defense this game. The spacing between our left back, Marshall-Rutty, and our left center back, Tim Ream, was too far when play went out wide. After noticing it in the first half, I believe Nashville specifically targeted that space in the second and got immediate returns.

First signs of spacing problems

There were two passages where this spacing issue happened in the first half. In the 14th minute, Nashville’s right back (Andy Najar) comes down the line and is met by Zaha. Marshall-Rutty moves out to help while Ream drops centrally creating space between the two of them in the far side of the penalty box.

Najar plays it to the feet of Shaffelburg outside the box who turns onto his left foot.

Now above we have it covered pretty well with Marshall-Rutty and Bronico both in that space. But with how deep Ream is there is still space in behind that Mukhtar is moving into. Here Rutty blocks a cross by Shaffelburg but as the ball recycles back out wide and we reset our defense that space is there again.

Here there is no threatening chance but it the first sign of this open space and if Nashville can pull Bronico or Rutty out of that area they can attack into it.

That threat became more evident in the 26th minute. Here Mukhtar has drifted wide to the sideline and Marshall-Rutty goes out to pressure him. Note how central and deep Ream is creating a lot of space that is currently filled by Bronico and somewhat Zaha.

As the arrows show Shaffelburg runs into the space behind near the end line. His run drags Bronico deeper who stays on him. That allow Najar to run into the box occupying the space Bronico vacated.

As the ball comes in Najar is free running into the box. Shaffelburg does a first time backheel flick into that space and Najar takes a touch and looks to shoot. Fortunately Zaha makes a great recovery run to block the shot/cross.

I’m not certain but I bet Nashville’s film team saw this and their second half adjustment included attacking the left side in this space specifically.

Nashville’s adjustment, immediate results

Nashville’s first two attacks to start the second half both went down this side and targeted that space, leading to two goals.

Just after conceding Nashville gets into an attack and swings it wide to Mukhtar. Despite Rutty making the tackle here you can already see the space between Rutty and Ream.

The ball goes out for a throw as Zaha applied pressure on Yazbek as the ball was going out. Rutty moves wide to mark Shaffelburg and Bronico steps up to mark Najar.

With the near side defenders marking players and Ream way too central Nashville has their chance. Muyl sees the space and makes a run across Westwood.

As the throw goes in Mukhtar drifts into the box unmarked. Muyl does a backheel flick just like before and Mukhtar receives in space. Westwood is pulled too far wide, Bronico is too far forward, and Ream is too far away and does not close down quick enough. Mukhtar chests it down and volleys in the equalizer.

The fact that CLT has 4 defenders on the left side and none of them are our left sided center back is concerning. And the worse part was lightning did strike twice.

Just a few minutes later, Nashville builds up through their right side and gets the ball from Najar into Shaffelburg out wide. Again, this play has just started and look at the space between Rutty and Ream.

Shaffelburg dribbles inside then lays it back to Yazbek but stays in that half-space. As Yazbek receives Bronico steps forward to pressure him.

Above we see Shaffelburg is unmarked in the space between Rutty and Ream. Yazbek plays into Najar who plays a one touch pass across to Shaffelburg. Shaffelburg lets it run across to his left foot and takes a dribble into the box. Rutty tries to close down but he’s a step too late and Ream is too slow in closing down himself. Shaffelburg rifles this one near post.

And in the span of 5 minutes Nashville has found the advantage they need.

Who is to blame?

I want to give some benefit of the doubt, this is the first game that Marshall-Rutty and Ream have played together on that left side. Maybe some of this is just unfamiliarity. Also, some of it may be coaching. I have noticed Malanda drop deep in similar situations in previous games. So some of it may be a weak spot we need to fix in our defensive system. Of note immediately after this second goal Ream was positioned much wide when Nashville attacked that way. Look at his spacing here in the 58th minute.

Part of this might be on Rutty being a bit too wide. Especially the second goal Ream was marking Sturridge with Malanda near Mukhtar so maybe Shaffelburg is supposed to be Rutty’s man (… maybe).

But for the most part these goals rest on Tim Ream. Firstly he cannot sit that deep and his positioning leaves him unable to affect the play. By sitting that deep he’s covering for a cross that he needs to trust that Malanda can handle. And secondly, when Nashville got through that side and was about to shoot Ream was not good enough. His close outs were slow and unconvincing and he did little to affect or potentially block the shots. As a defender you cannot be out of position, slow to react, and lacking urgency in making a recovery. It was a poor look for him in what was a great defensive showing for our entire defense for most of the game (minus this 5 minute window).

Topic 3: Players with positive performances

Despite the loss there were some positive performances by some players this game. Specifically, I think Abada, Scardina and Marshall-Rutty showed some positive trends that I want to highlight and hope they can build on.

Abada being direct and decisive

Talent-wise Abada has some elite qualities (for the MLS) and CLT needs him to be a chance creator on the wing and a goal-scorer. Ever since being benched for the previous Nashville game his performances have continued to improve. In this game he was very direct and decisive. When he got the ball he immediately tried to pose an attacking threat. And as he attacked he quickly made a decision and believed his skill with that decision could make a difference. While it did not always work out, seeing him trust his instincts and believe he can create on his own are great signs and I think are positives for this team.

Just to start with the confidence Abada was playing with look at this skill and turn to dust his defender as he receives a pass from Scardina.

Similar to the Zaha video earlier, it is great to see our designated players (DP) pulling off skills like this confidently and with ease.

But more importantly, in this game when Abada had a chance on goal he immediately looked to create. Here Biel plays a through ball and Abada is running onto it.

Abada immediately cuts onto his left foot and with no obvious passes looks for a shot. He dribbles across and rips a shot that gets blocked. While the shot wasn’t the best one, Abada gets a great through ball and sees a window of opportunity to make a chance. I like how he’s hunting a shot and attacks quickly with intent.

Later in the match Abada finds himself 1v1 after a corner on the wing. Immediately Abada moves forward cuts toward the sideline and tries to get a cross in. It is blocked for a corner but again the speed and decisiveness with which he looks to take on the player is good. We’re chasing a goal and I like Abada taking that responsibility and belief that he can make something happen for the team.

With the two examples above Abada showed a willingness to shoot off his left foot and take on players. That was evident in his best 2 chances of the game as well.

Here from a Nashville corner as its cleared Najar slips and Zaha gets the ball to start a break. Abada is the only other player forward and he makes a run for Zaha’s pass.

Abada finds himself 1v1 with their central midfielder, Tagseth, and he tries to beat him off the dribble. He takes a poor touch and Tagseth makes a tackle, but because of the speed of that attack Tageseth’s tackle just knocks the ball farther forward.

Abada wins the foot race and his eyes are on goal. He takes a few dribbles and then shoots off his left foot taking the shot he is given.

Now Abada should put this on target and ideally this is a goal. Also he got lucky that Tagseth’s tackle allowed him to continue his run. While I want more from Abada I love the speed, the directness, and his belief that he can beat his man and score this. I want him to continue to take these chances and push the pace like this.

And finally let’s talk about his goal. To start the second half, Bronico makes a nice interception from the press and plays it into the path of Abada.

I talked in my New England Match Review that even when we do not have the numbers we should always look to attack quickly in transition and Abada does this. He faces goal and starts to dribble straight forward. As he does so their left back (Lovitz) slips giving Abada some space.

Abada takes this fortunate slip and drives right past him and hunts for a shot. As he passes Lovitz he looks up and rifles a shot across goal just before the next defender can close him down.

This attack happens within 4 second of Abada receiving the ball. Its fast, direct, intentional, and exactly what CLT needs from its pacey DP on the wing.

Scardina adding to the offense

I have not discussed him much, but Scardina has been very solid filling in for Byrne. In past games he’s been good defensively and has been able to help a bit in buildup and getting Westwood some support. This game he started to contribute to the attack with overlaps as the next step in his development.

Here Scardina is in the attacking third at a standstill in his rest defense position. As the ball swings wide from Westwood to Abada, Scardina immediately sprints over to give an overlapping run.

Scardina makes a run on time and Abada plays it down the line to him. The initial pass and cross are not great but getting into a cutback position inside the penalty box is great work.

Scardina also contributed to our transition attacks. CLT has won the ball back and after a couple of quick passes Westwood completes a switch of the field and finds Scardina running forward.

Scardina carries quickly and then plays out wide to Biel. As Biel receives Scardina continues his run and turns it into a “seam-run” between their left back and center back. Biel plays him through.

The cross is not great but I like the positions he’s getting into. If he can add overlaps into his game and contribute to the offense Scardina will have a stronger argument to stay in the starting lineup.

Marshall-Rutty adding dynamism to the left side

In his first league start for CLT, Marshall-Rutty really impressed and showed how valuable it is to have a fast and dynamic left back to support Zaha. Minus the spacing issue I thought he was good defensively and great in possession.

Marshall-Rutty can really contribute to the attack with his speed and crossing. Here Bronico plays a long ball out wide to Zaha who to finds himself 1v1 against Najar. As the long ball was kicked, Rutty moves forward and makes a seam-run into the box.

Rutty goes unmarked and Zaha plays him through finding Rutty in a great crossing position.

From here Rutty makes a great left footed cross and I think if Agyemang crashes toward goal with more intention he gets a goal here.

Rutty was also about to beat players off the dribble which is a huge add in both buildup and in our attack on the left. Here Rutty receives a pass from Ream and is immediately pressured by Shaffelburg.

Rutty cuts upfield past his defender and then beats the next defender, Najar, on pace alone. He draws 3 defenders to the wing and then tries a pass into Agyemang. The pass is a little too strong but it is a great run and he creates an opportunity with his dribbling and pace.

And finally, Rutty can help in buildup which is definitely needed. This play below looks exactly like Doumbia from the San Jose game. Rutty gets a pass from Ream and then plays it to Zaha who has dropped by the sideline.

As Zaha receives Rutty sees space to run forward into and burns past his defender. Zaha passes it horizontally into his path.

From here Rutty can uses his pace and control to carry forward and avoid his trailing defender. He makes a pass out wide to Bronico that somehow Bronico does not get too (I think it was fatigue).

While I still think Ream can work at left back, Rutty showed how valuable a pacey and dynamic full back is for our buildup and our attack in support Zaha on this left side. I know its early but whether it is on the right or left, Rutty looks like a starter for this team and I think it is going to be hard to leave him out of the starting 11.

Quick Topic: Issue with our substitutions

Before this point I want to say I think Dean Smith is a great coach, he’s way better of a coach than I could ever be, and I understand he has more information and limitations for his players than I am aware of. But with all that, I was disappointed with our substitutions this game, specifically Williamson for Biel.

I understand that Biel was likely on a minute’s limit and it is understandable for him coming out around the 60th minute. But when we are chasing a goal, Williamson is not the answer in the attacking midfielder position. I wrote about this last week but when we are chasing a goal I think either Toklomati has to come in for Biel and play with 2 strikers or Vargas comes in for Biel and you move Zaha or Abada central to play as the #10. By the 75th minute our front 4 is Zaha, Toklomati, Vargas, and Williamson. With that front and chasing a goal our attack is going to be get it to Zaha and hope he creates or whip in deep crosses for Toklomati to try to win. I don’t think either is a good option and it felt by the 75th minute we were not going to pose a dangerous scoring chance.

Conclusion

Listen this is still a great team and I believe we can compete for a top 4 spot in the East. But we need to take some lessons from this losing streak and there are probably changes that need to happen to address some legitimate concerns on this squad.

Tactically, we need to play two pivots and get Westwood the support he needs to facilitate buildup. I think Bronico can do this (as well as Williamson) he just needs to be positioned better and be trusted in that role. Also, while not discussed from this game, we also need to address patterns to attack and ways to create against a set defense other than just give it to Zaha.

Aside from tactics I do think some personnel changes need to be considered. On defense, Tim Ream is probably not a starting defender for this team. I’m not saying he’s bad, but he’s the 3rd best center back and having a true full back like Rutty or Doumbia on the left side is needed right now. In the midfield, someone is going to need to fill in some minutes for Biel as I do not think he’ll be able consistently play 90 minutes until the playoffs. When we are winning Williamson can play that role. But when we need a goal we may need to play 2 strikers, shift Zaha central, or see if Petkovich can play in that attacking midfield role.

Even through this losing streak, I have not doubted the quality in this team. There are glimpses of great individual and team moments. A few personnel and tactical issues have prevented us for putting it all together for a full 90. If we stick to a similar plan and lineup, it may be a rough game away at Orlando. But if we make the right adjustments and put the pieces together, we may find a way out of this losing streak.