Match Recap: A tale of two halves as Charlotte FC come back to beat Nashville SC 2-1
On a warm Saturday afternoon in North Carolina, two clubs either side of the Appalachian Mountains renewed acquaintances in what turned out to be quite the topsy turvy affair.
I’m of course speaking about the 2-1 home victory for Charlotte FC over Nashville SC on Saturday, and it’s Ronan Briscoe and Alex McCaskey back again to give you our takes on the game that was. Let’s dive in.
Charlotte Lineup
Djbril Diane got the start in the midfield which pushed Pep Biel to the right wing and left Liel Abada on the Bench. The other change to the starting lineup was the addition of Souleyman Doumbia at the left back position. This change moved Tim Ream to the center back position and Andrew Privett to the bench.
Substitutions: Abada, Bingham, Privett, Scardina, Tavares, Toklomati, Tuiloma, Vargas, Williamson
Nashville Lineup
Not to pat myself (Ronan) on the back, but I got it spot on in the preview. The front four of Surridge, Mukhtar, Muyl and Qasem was unchanged, with the two changes made being further back.
In midfield, Gastón Brugman paired with Eddi Tagseth, while at the back, Andy Najar reclaimed his right back spot next to Walker Zimmerman, Jack Maher and Dan Lovitz, all of whom sat in front of Joe Willis in goal.
As for subs, there were five. After Walker Zimmerman’s scary injury we’ll get to in a moment, Jeisson Palacios made his MLS debut, with Josh Bauer, Patrick Yazbek, Jacob Shaffelburg and Teal Bunbury joining him off the bench.
Between The Whistles
The opening half an hour of this game was a bit testy, but with Nashville seemingly in firm control despite a lack of clear chances. However, just as the clock ticked over past the half hour mark, Nashville began a 20 pass, minute and a half long attacking sequence that ended with a chipped cross from an overlapping Dan Lovitz finding Hany Mukhtar to put the visitors in front in the 32nd minute.
Nashville backed off a bit after that, and going into the break, it was 1-0 Nashville. Coming out of the intermission, it was Charlotte that started fast. In the 50th minute the Crown thought they’d drawn level, but Kerwin Vargas was called for what was frankly a pretty harsh offside.
Things calmed back down until in the 72nd minute, Vargas attempted a bicycle kick in the Nashville box just as Walker Zimmerman lunged to head the ball clear. Vargas’ boot made heavy contact with Zimmerman’s face, and not to speculate, but the Nashville defender appeared to be knocked temporarily unconscious. After being stretchered off bloodied and in a neck brace, Jeisson Palacios took his spot in the backline.
For better or worse, this would be the turning point of the game. Five minutes after the game restarted, Wilfried Zaha got the wrong side of Nashville’s Andy Najar into the box.
Najar, potentially not feeling the chemistry with the recently introduced Palacios, tracked Zaha into the box, and fouled him, giving the hosts, and Zaha a penalty he would convert in the 85th minute.
However, the Crown were not satisfied with a lone point. A ball clipped over the top by Charlotte’s Pep Biel caused Palacios to take a step forward that released Idan Toklomani to get on the end of the pass, round the keeper, and score his first MLS goal.
Nashville threw desperate attempts forward, to no avail. Charlotte wins 2-1, and collects their seventh consecutive home victory.
The Numbers
Nashville SC
Shots- 14
Shots on target- 7
Possession- 47.8%
Corners- 8
xG- 1.6
Yellow Cards- 2 (Eddi Tagseth, Andy Najar)
Charlotte FC
Shots- 5
Shots on target- 4
Possession- 52.2%
Corners- 3
xG- 1.8
Yellow Cards- 2 (Kerwin Vargas, Ashley Westwood)
Analysis
Alex McCaskey:
Charlotte FC keeps their undefeated streak at home alive after beating Nashville SC 2-1. This was the perfect response after the performance displayed last week in Colorado. I’ve said it before and I'll say it again, the goal is to capture three points.
Nashville opened the scoring in the first half as Hany Mukhtar put one past Kristijan Kahlina in the 32nd minute to put Nashville up 1-0. Charlotte would be unable to tie things up before the half. When the teams headed to the break, the score read 1-0 in favor of Nashville.
 Coach Smith decided to make a change at the half, Kerwin Vargas came on to replace Diani, a move which moved Biel back to his usual position in the midfield. The Crown made three substitutions in the 76th minute. Andrew Privett replaced Doumbia in a move to reinforce the backline while Eryk Williamson came in for Brand Bronico. Finally, Idan Toklomato came on for Pat Agyemang, a move that would change the outcome of the game.
  Charlotte evened the score in the 84th minute after Wilfried Zaha converted a penalty. 1-1 late in the match. Pep Biel added to his assist total as he found Idan Toklomati in the dying embers of regular time to put Charlotte up 2-1. The goal was the deciding one and Toklomati’s first MLS goal. After the goal, Liel Abada came on for Pep Biel, the final substitution for the Crown and as the final whistle blew, the scoreboard read 2-1 in favor of Charlotte. With the win, Charlotte moves to 2nd in the east while Nashville sits in 7th (other results pending).
With three points in the bag, the boys get their passports ready as they prepare for a trip north of the border for a date with Montreal on the 12th. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 pm.
Ronan Briscoe:
This is a completely different game before and after Walker Zimmerman’s injury, there’s no other way to put it. Charlotte clearly grew into the game between the halftime interval and Zimmerman’s injury in the 72nd minute, evidenced by Kerwin Vargas’ disallowed goal, but the Nashville backline still looked resolute.
Once Zimmerman left, their anchor, their captain, their communicator was gone. Palacios just does not have the same level of chemistry with the other members of the backline, and Nashville suffered for it.
It could absolutely be argued, and in fact I’ll say it clearly. Neither of the goals Charlotte scored happen if Walker Zimmerman is still on the field. Kerwin Vargas did absolutely nothing wrong, there’s no possible way he could’ve intended what happened, but sometimes unlucky, unfortunate moments decide games, and for the second game in a row its happened to Nashville’s captain.
In the first half, the Boys in Gold were really special. However, this is the second week in a row we’re talking about truly brilliant patterns of play not being followed by results. Nashville, from the eye test, look like one of the upper tier of teams in the Eastern Conference, as does Charlotte, at least at home.
We’re also not talking about this if Nashville was perhaps a bit more clinical in that first half in which they were so dominant. If they find one more goal, it’s a point and it’s probably a deserved result again. But they didn’t and it wasn’t.
Once again, lots, lots to like, just not the result you wanted.
Next up for the Boys in Gold is a home game against Real Salt Lake, who will be making just their second trip to the Music City, and their first since 2022.