By Billy McGee
April 17, 2025
Photo: Charlotte FC
Charlotte FC spoiled CF Montréal’s home opener with their first road win of the season, moving into second place in the MLS Eastern Conference with 16 points. The team was without Wilfried Zaha, who is recovering from hand surgery, so Liel Abada and Kerwin Vargas started as the wing duo in his place. Andrew Privett also returned to the starting lineup, with Tim Ream at left back and Souleyman Doumbia on the bench.
Montréal had an early chance in the ninth minute when George Campbell’s header from a corner hit the left post and was cleared by Tim Ream. Charlotte capitalized on a Montréal miscue in the 16th minute after defender Fernando Álvarez mistimed his touch, allowing the ball to roll past him to a streaking Patrick Agyemang, sparking a counterattack. Agyemang took on two defenders before passing to Liel Abada, who cut inside and crossed the ball to Pep Biel, unmarked on the right side of the box. Biel’s first touch deflected off a defender and bounced back to him for a second shot, which he slotted past goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois to give Charlotte a 1-0 lead. The goal was Biel’s third of the season, bringing his total to eight goal contributions in as many games.
Charlotte had another counterattacking opportunity in the 32nd minute when Abada carried the ball into the box and passed to Biel, who created just enough space to get a shot off, but it missed the goal to the right. They had another chance in the 33rd minute, with Abada playing a pass to Patrick Agyemang behind the defense for a shot that goalkeeper Sirois managed to get a hand on to make the save. Charlotte continued to create counterattacking opportunities. Abada found Agyemang again in the 42nd minute, setting him up for a shot, but he missed at the near post. In added time, Charlotte had one final goalscoring opportunity when Abada took a shot from the left side, forcing a save that rebounded to Brandt Bronico, who then passed to Agyemang, but he missed wide to the right.
Charlotte had limited opportunities in the second half, spending much of the time on defense. Their best attacking moments included a 73rd-minute shot by Liel Abada, saved by Montréal goalkeeper Sirois after a poor pass, and a header by Kerwin Vargas that struck the post following the ensuing corner kick.
The Crown managed only eight shots in the match, but half of those were on target, and they were able to create chances in transition, something they’ve struggled with on the road. They didn’t have much possession, holding just 34.5 percent compared to Montréal’s 65.5 percent. After the match, head coach Dean Smith addressed Montréal’s dominance in possession.
“We felt that they’re a team that would have a lot of possession in the game. If you remember we beat them 2-0 at our place last year and you know, I think I said their three center backs had 300 passes between them,” said Smith. “I’m okay if a team does that, you know, I don’t want to just have possession for possession sake.”
Montréal’s attacking pressure caused some trouble for Charlotte, as the defense faced 19 total shots, 15 of which came in the second half. However, they defended well, allowing only two shots on target. Additionally, Montréal was caught offside five times during the match.
Charlotte FC returns home this weekend to face expansion side San Diego FC, who have had a successful inaugural season. San Diego sits in third place in the Western Conference with 14 points through eight games.
San Diego suffered a 3-2 defeat to the Colorado Rapids in a thrilling match. Djordje Mihailovic opened the scoring for Colorado with a penalty in the 37th minute. Luca de la Torre equalized for San Diego early in the second half, but Colorado quickly regained the lead through goals by Darren Yapi and Rafael Navarro. Tomás Ángel pulled one back for San Diego in the 89th minute, but the team couldn’t find an equalizer before the final whistle.
San Diego controlled nearly 60% of possession but struggled offensively, managing just nine shots — four of which were on target. Anders Dreyer accounted for three attempts, including one on target and another over the bar. Defensively, they conceded 21 shots, nine of which were on target, resulting in an expected goals against of 4.5.
With San Diego making their first East Coast trip and coming off back-to-back games, Charlotte’s defense should be able to limit the number of quality scoring opportunities that San Diego gets and strike quickly on counters — something they’ve had considerable success with at home this season. With Zaha likely returning, Charlotte’s attack will have everyone available, providing a boost to help come away with the win.
The match is scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 19, and will be available to stream on Apple TV’s MLS Season Pass and Apple TV+. You can also purchase tickets through Ticketmaster here and Gametime.
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