Two Losses and One Win: A Look at Charlotte FC's Leagues Cup Campaign
Win vs Monterrey not enough to clinch a spot in knockouts.
If you took a peek at Charlotte FC’s schedule over the past couple of weeks, one thing stood out. The boys played their last MLS Regular Season match on July 26th when they beat Toronto 2-0. Between the match on the 26th and the showdown with Cincinnati last night, Charlotte hosted three teams from Liga MX as teams from both leagues took part in the Leagues Cup. Now let’s take a look at how Charlotte performed in the three matches with help from Ever Hernandez.
First up, the match against Juarez which took place on July 31st. To kick things off, let's take a look at the eleven men that Charlotte trotted out for their first match during the MLS break.
Two things stood out to me with this lineup, first off, welcome back Nathan Byrne! Second, the omission of Bronico in favor of Diani. I’m not the biggest fan of this particular move but there is no better place to experiment with the lineup than a cup competition. The rest of the lineup remains largely unchanged from what we’ve seen throughout the season. I like it, it keeps things consistent and having your best players out there gives you the best chance to win.
Now let’s get into the match. Oh boy, it started fast and it looked like Charlotte had a chance to keep it competitive but that didn’t last long. Juarez opened the scoring in the seventh minute but Idan Toklomato had other ideas as he beat the keeper in the 18th minute to tie things up. The fun didn’t last long as Juarez took back the lead in the 21st minute and added another at the end of the first half to put it at 3-1. Two major events happened in the second half, Idan Toklomati picked up a red card in the 80th minute and Juarez scored again in the 90th minute. When the whistle blew, Juarez walked away with a 4-1 win.
I don’t know what to say, losing isn’t fun but it also isn’t the end of the world. Conceding early wasn’t ideal but I like that the boys were able to equalize. The wheels just fell off against a good team. Another chance to bounce back in the next match.
Ever - This game, to me, was not very competitive. Giving up 2 goals in the first 20 minutes to me screams heads were not fully in the game. Some poor defending on the goals given up. This was bad.
The boys put the last match behind them and now they have a chance to right the ship against Guadalajara.Â
Getting into the lineup, Bill Tuiloma got the start over Nathan Byrne while Diani once again took over for Westwood in the midfield. Wilfried Zaha got the start on the nine as Toklomati served his suspension for his red card while Kerwin Vargas got the start on the wing. The biggest change was Bingham in goal for Kahlina.
No complaints on the lineup from me, good teams have to be able to adjust. Bill Tuiloma has been very good this season and while losing Toklomati hurts, the front three are more than capable of holding it down.
Getting into the match, this was a fun one. Liel Abada got the scoring started in the 11th minute. However, Guadalajara would equalize in the 24th minute and the score would remain tied going into the half. However, after the halftime break, Guadalajara would take the lead in the 66th minute before Kerwin Vargas found the back of the net in the 90th minute to tie things up. We are headed to penalties! In the penalty shootout, Guadalajara would prevail 4-2 handing Charlotte their second loss in the competition.
Once again, losing isn’t fun but there was improvement shown. Being able to take the lead early and tie it up is what I like to see. Sometimes, the ball doesn’t bounce your way in a penalty shootout.
Ever - Charlotte looked much better in this one than against Juarez FC. They showed fight by equalizing in the late stages of regular time. Much more encouraging performance going into our next match.
After two losses, the boys have one last chance against Monterrey. Let’s take a look at the lineup.
Quite a few changes this time out so let’s get right into it. David Bingham once again got the start between the pipes while Bill Tuiloma took over in place of Tim Ream on the defense. Nikola Petrovic and Eryk Williamson got the nod in the middle alongside Ashley Westwood. The attack saw two changes with Tyger Smalls and Brandon Cambridge got starts on the wings as they joined Idan Toklomati in leading the line.
No complaints from me, squad rotation is very important. I like to see some guys that haven’t featured a lot this year get a start while also resting some starters as the MLS campaign ramps back up after this match.
It isn’t about how you start but how you finish and Charlotte finished their Leagues Cup campaign strong with a 2-0 win.
Let’s get into this match. The first half came and went with neither team finding the back of the net so both teams went to the break tied at zero. However, Bill Tuiloma had other ideas as he put Charlotte up 1-0 in the 56th minute. Tyger Smalls felt the energy as he doubled the lead in the 60th minute. The defense would do their job and when the final whistle blew, Charlotte ended their Leagues Cup journey with a win.
A win is a win. I know this doesn’t impact the MLS standings but finishing strong can permeate through all levels. Confidence can build in guys that had good performances and the boys proved they can hang with teams from other leagues. I would have liked for Charlotte to advance but I'm not upset at the result.
Ever - Winning is always great especially when they act as building blocks for the rest of the season. We needed this one badly and the Crown would not be denied. Charlotte was able to overcome a little bit of sloppy play early and fire 2 goals just after halftime. Despite not advancing, it feels the team performed better each game. Onto MLS regular season.
A big thank you to Ever for joining me for this recap and remember to stay locked in with the Southeast Soccer Report for your Charlotte FC coverage.