Tag: Charlotte FC

U.S. Open Cup shock as Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Birmingham Legion both stun MLS foes

What’s better than one cupset? Two cupsets!

Wednesday night’s U.S. Open Cup fixtures couldn’t have gone better for the USL Championship, or for upset-loving neutrals.

The last two remaining lower-division teams in the tournament both defeated MLS opposition. First, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds shocked the Columbus Crew 1-0 at Highmark Stadium. Just an hour later, Birmingham Legion matched that scoreline in eliminating 10-man Charlotte FC.

That makes it three Open Cup tournaments in a row where at least two lower-division teams have advanced to the quarterfinal round. St. Louis FC and New Mexico United made that run in 2019, while last year Union Omaha of USL League One went to the quarterfinals. Sacramento Republic FC went even further, going to the final before falling to Orlando City. The Open Cup wasn’t held in 2020 or 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In Pittsburgh, the Riverhounds showed the organization that has long been their hallmark under veteran coach Bob Lilley. The home side held a heavily rotated Crew side to just seven shot attempts in 90 minutes, despite the visitors holding 75% of the possession and completing over 700 passes on the night.

Despite those stats, the Riverhounds had the better chances throughout, and only needed to make one count. USL Championship Golden Boot leader Albert Dikwa was unsurprisingly the man for the job, sprinting in alone to fire past Evan Bush after a midfield turnover from the Crew.

Pittsburgh would see substitute Edward Kizza sent off deep into stoppage time, but still managed to keep Columbus at bay for what is the deepest run in their Open Cup history.

Down in Alabama, the scoreline was the same, but the path to it was a bit different. A Birmingham side starting eight players with MLS experience spent the first half largely pinned back by Charlotte, only for the visitors to lose center back Adilson Malanda to a second yellow card early in the second half.

From there, the Legion sensed their opportunity, changing their posture and making Charlotte work hard to hold them off on a hot night. That helped set up their goal, with Charlotte not recovering quickly enough to prevent Prosper Kasim from isolating Derrick Jones before pinging a low shot into the bottom corner.

The rewards for the the final two non-MLS teams left in the tournament are a bit different. Birmingham will be a popular pick to keep their run going, as they host a quarterfinal match against a stumbling Inter Miami side that managed to beat Nashville SC on Tuesday. Pittsburgh, on the other hand, has a far more daunting pairing, as they will head to Ohio to take on high-flying FC Cincinnati.

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Shinyashiki says he’s clear to play after no charges filed in alleged sexual assault

The forward was linked to a sexual assault case filed in March

Charlotte FC forward Andre Shinyashiki has said he fully cooperated with police and MLS in their investigations into an alleged sexual assault, and that he’s been cleared to play.

The Charlotte Ledger reported on Tuesday that it found a police report by searching with Shinyashiki’s name and date of birth, though the player’s name was not on the report itself due to Charlotte-Mecklenburg police policy.

The report, dated March 8, stated that a 23-year-old woman said she was sexually assaulted in the early hours of February 26.

The Athletic reported that a second Charlotte FC player, Nuno Santos, was also linked to the same police report by searching his name and date of birth.

Neither player has been charged with a crime. The case is listed as open but inactive, meaning police are no longer actively investigating the incident.

Following the report from The Charlotte Ledger, Shinyashiki released a statement on Twitter saying no charges have been filed and added that he would have no further comment.

Shinyashiki, 25, has been left off Charlotte FC’s matchday roster for four straight games since his most recent appearance on April 8.

The Brazilian-born striker was acquired in a midseason trade from the Colorado Rapids last season, and scored six goals in 21 appearances for Charlotte FC in 2022.

Nuno Santos, 24, was signed from Benfica in his native Portugal last year. The midfielder has made nine appearances for Charlotte FC and is currently on loan with Crown Legacy FC of MLS Next Pro.

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Christian Benteke, bicycle fan, delivers unreal goal for D.C. United

Benteke’s bicycle kick stunner has to be seen to be believed

Bicycles are popular in the District of Columbia, and Christian Benteke just wanted to do his part.

The D.C. United striker scored what is surely an MLS goal of the season contender, producing a bicycle kick against Charlotte FC in United’s 3-0 win Saturday night.

In a tense game of relatively few genuine chances, United’s biggest name — who in 2023 has looked more accustomed to life in MLS than in 2022 — made sure the Black-and-Red picked up a fourth straight win in all competitions.

United held a 1-0 lead and hadn’t given Charlotte much of anything after a loose opening 25 minutes or so, but some wasted chances (none more glaring than Taxi Fountas sending a sitter wide in the 70th minute) left the game up for grabs.

However, on a recycled set piece, the longtime Belgium target man produced one of the best goals in Audi Field’s short history. It started with Andy Najar swinging the ball back into the box, picking out Derrick Williams.

The Irish center back’s attempt to float a header towards Benteke didn’t quite work out, as Harrison Afful got to the ball first, but the veteran’s header away ended up being an unintentionally perfect set for Benteke to spike the ball past Charlotte goalkeeper George Marks.

Speaking to reporters at Audi Field, Wayne Rooney immediately pointed out that he’s been on the wrong side of a Benteke bicycle kick, when he was playing for Manchester United back in 2015.

“It was a pretty cool goal,” Benteke told reporters with incredible understatement after the match. “I was just hoping to have a good contact with the ball and hit the target.”

Benteke kept the jokes rolling when asked if he gave any thought to letting the ball fall for Donovan Pines or Ted Ku-DiPietro, who were both lurking.

“There was no way! There was no way I was going to let them shoot,” laughed Benteke. “I knew I wanted to do, and thank God it went through somehow.”

Watch Benteke’s incredible bicycle kick goal

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Federico Bernardeschi doesn’t need any help on corner kicks, thanks

Olimpico alert!

What does a traditional corner kick goal look like? Some absolute unit holding off their marker, getting an edge at the near post and powering a header home, right?

There’s just one problem: What if your big hulking center back gets marked or blocked off by their big hulking center back?

You’ve tried short corners. You’ve set picks. You’ve even pulled up those Japanese high school team clips for inspiration. Nothing works!

Federico Bernardeschi is here to tell you that there’s a new way to score on corner kicks where you don’t need any extra equipment to score on corners! You just need a ball, some audacity, and extravagant levels of talent, and you too can score an olimpico.

Just six minutes into Toronto FC’s Saturday night contest against Charlotte FC, Bernardeschi looked at a sea of blue-clad visitors and teammates in gray and red, and decided none of them needed to matter. Instead, the Italy winger just wrapped his left foot around the ball from the corner, bending the ball directly into the upper corner at the back post.

Charlotte goalkeeper George Marks seemed to read a possible chance to punch, but with the winds swirling on the banks of Lake Ontario and Bernardeschi’s ability, the ball swerved around him before dropping gently into the net.

TFC would pick up another goal from a corner — Brandon Servania’s service to Michael Bradley was far more old-school, with the ex-U.S. men’s national team captain heading home in the 44th minute — but would still end up letting a win slip away. An early finish from Ben Bender got Charlotte back into the match, and struggling Designated Player Kamil Józwiak would stab home a second as the Carolinians fought back for a road draw.

Next week, for Toronto to snag a win rather than continuing on as MLS’s draw kings (they have four from six games already) Bernardeschi will just have to figure out how to get more corner kick chances from the right wing.

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St. Louis City SC keeps getting welcome gifts from kindly MLS foes

It’s a friendly league, everyone is so nice

Everyone in MLS is so happy to have St. Louis City SC that they’re lining up to give the expansion side a gift.

That generosity may be the only explanation for the bizarre nature of the goals teams have handed St. Louis in their first two weeks of MLS play.

Last week, it was Austin FC’s Kipp Keller sizing up and delivering a perfect pass to St. Louis midfielder Jared Stroud, who showed his appreciation to his old club by spinning and firing home a fairly late equalizer in a game MLS’s newest team would go on to win 3-2.

This week it was Charlotte FC’s turn, and they made sure that St. Louis would have a happy debut at the newly-opened CityPark.

While Enzo Copetti would score the first-ever goal at the stadium for the visitors, Charlotte quickly made sure to make up for the faux pas by handing out three goals as St. Louis started life in MLS on a winning streak.

First, Jake Nerwinski’s floated cross towards João Klauss ended up looking like easy work for Bill Tuiloma, who won the header…only to bloop the ball backwards, up and over Pablo Sisniega for a 41st minute own goal.

With seconds left in the half, another gift: John Nelson’s cross ended up being swatted by Karol Świderski’s right hand, sending Eduard Löwen to the spot. The German Designated Player took advantage, converting the last kick of the half to give St. Louis a lead.

You’d think two gifts were enough, but Charlotte really wanted to make sure the newbies were comfortable in MLS. As such, they saved the biggest gift for last.

In the 71st minute, with St. Louis up 2-1, Charlotte should have had an easy time progressing the ball. Sisniega waited for Klauss to step to him before passing calmly to Adilson Malanda. It’s a sequence soccer fans are extremely familiar with: a possession-oriented team tries to shuffle up their opponent’s shape enough to move the ball forward.

However, Malanda decided to show some kindness for the expansion team instead, sending the ball directly to Klauss. The Brazilian striker, fresh off of scoring an 86th minute winner last week, got a foot on the ball before turning to chip Sisniega and put a second straight win on ice for St. Louis.

Charlotte’s warmth and affection for their opponents was clear enough at this point that the gift-giving could come to an end, allowing St. Louis fans to celebrate a famous first win.

Following the match, St. Louis boss Bradley Carnell joked that his players were doing a great job of “standing in the right place,” but only before noting that there is something to his forwards lingering up in seemingly offside positions while the opponent tries to set their preferred passing shape up.

The pressure is now on the Portland Timbers to conjure up even more lavish gifts for St. Louis, since that appears to be the hot new trend in MLS.

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The 10 MLS newcomers you need to know for 2023

These aren’t big names today, but they will be soon

MLS kicks off its 28th season on Saturday, and as befits a league that wants to be seen as growing, there’s a long list of fascinating new additions to the player pool.

There’s an element of the unknown with this year’s crop of newcomers. MLS’s winter additions don’t include any big-name European stars. Cristiano Ronaldo heard Sporting Kansas City out but still chose Al Nassr, while Inter Miami’s pursuit of Leo Messi remains a situation where Miami is interested, rather than the other way around. There’s not even a Gareth Bale equivalent at this point, though the summer window tends to be when those players arrive.

However, that’s not to say that MLS had a bad time in the transfer market. Teams are able to sign younger players from leagues that used to be fairly inaccessible. They may not have the global cache of a big name in their mid-30s, but we’re talking about the current Europa League assist leader, a top-tier European prospect under the age of 21, and strikers with very promising track records. Casuals may not know their names today, but they’re going to be a big deal in the coming months.

These are the 10 MLS newcomers to pay closest attention to:

Panthers postpone Sean Payton interview after death of Charlotte FC’s Anton Walkes

The Panthers have postponed their meeting with Sean Payton and other coach candidates after the tragic death of Charlotte FC’s Anton Walkes:

The Carolina Panthers have halted their search for a new head coach after 25-year old Charlotte FC player Anton Walkes was killed in a boating accident in South Florida on Wednesday, as first reported by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. This means former New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton’s scheduled meeting with Panthers owner David Tepper in New York City on Friday has been postponed to a later date, which will extend his process in interviewing for head coach jobs around the league.

Tepper owns both the Panthers and Charlotte FC pro soccer club, and he’s taking this time to grieve with his players, employees, and family. Walkes, born in London, played in 23 games for Charlotte FC during their 2022 season. Tepper released a statement from the team website on Thursday:

“Everyone at Tepper Sports & Entertainment is devastated by the tragic passing of Anton Walkes. He was a tremendous son, father, partner and teammate whose joyous approach to life touched everyone he met. Anton made those around him better people in all areas of life and represented Charlotte FC to the highest standard both on and off the pitch. He will be greatly missed by many and our thoughts and prayers are with Anton’s family during this heartbreaking time. The Club offers its full support to all those impacted during this period of mourning.”

We’d like to extend our condolences to Walkes’ family, friends, and teammates during this difficult time. May his memory be a blessing.

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MLS Madness spreads nationwide as league breaks goalscoring record

MLS was, even by MLS standards, completely bonkers Saturday night

Summer in MLS can be a rough time. You’re too far away from the real pressure of making or missing the playoffs, it’s hot and humid everywhere, teams are figuring it out after transfer window moves. It can feel very much like everyone’s biding their time for September and October.

Not August 6. MLS Madness™ took hold in nearly every corner of the country, with goals galore, teams scoring and conceding in the deepest depths of stoppage time, big-name stars scoring bangers, and everyone basically went bananas. It was a perfect advertisement for the league: fun, flawed, weird, and inexplicable.

For one thing, MLS broke a league record for goals scored in one night. Across 13 games Saturday night, teams combined for 57 goals, an average of well over four per game. The old record of 46 was left in the dust.

As the league itself once said, This Stuff Kicks!

In chronological order, let’s go through one of the wildest nights in MLS history:

Panthers QB Baker Mayfield attends Charlotte FC vs. Chelsea match

The fans attending Wednesday’s Charlotte FC vs. Chelsea friendly were treated to a memorable night, one that included Baker Mayfield’s first home appearance at Bank of America Stadium.

On Wednesday night, the Carolina Panthers’ home turf grass at Bank of America Stadium played host to the Charlotte FC vs. Chelsea friendly. And what a friendly it was—as the Queen City was lucky enough to see a Christian Pulisic goal, a match-tying score during the 92nd minute and a huge upset victory in penalty kicks.

They even got to see Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield!

So for those of you who prefer your football to your fútbol, here’s the best of Baker making his first public appearance in his new house.

Former Clemson National Champion makes first MLS start

Congrats to this former Clemson Tiger on his first MLS start.

A former Tiger and National Champion is getting his shot at the next level.

Clemson midfielder Quinn McNeill, who signed with the Charlotte Independence on loan from Charlotte FC back in April, made his debut in Charlotte’s starting eleven on Sunday night in their match versus the Houston Dynamo at PNC Stadium. In the first start of his MLS career, McNeill played 61 minutes in the club’s first-ever 3-2 road win over Houston.

“There was a lot of resilience from the boys tonight,” McNeill said following the win. “It’s very hot out here and for us to get our first road win out here, it took a lot and a strong mentality to get that done, so credit to everyone that came on and the guys that started the game and finished it. A huge three points for us and we look to go again.”

The midfielder previously made his professional debut on the pitch for Charlotte just a little over a week ago, the same night former Clemson teammate and current Charlotte FC goalkeeper George Marks made his MLS debut.

“George is a great guy and you can tell the character that he has,” McNeill said. “He’s been there with me every step of the way. He’s always welcomed me with open arms and really helped me along the way with every little detail… the things that I might not know just coming into training with FC from Independence. He’s really kind of helped me through that process and made it a seamless transition, so I give a lot of credit to him.”

In his time at Clemson under head coach Mike Noonan, McNeill recorded nine goals and five assists in his 52 starts and five years as a Tiger. The Greenville native capped off his fifth and final season being named Third-team All-ACC and was a member of the 2021 NCAA National Championship team.

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