Atlanta United’s U.S. Open Cup Round of 16 match will be an interesting one: it’s not only a knockout match, but a derby against Charlotte FC. The Crown have a little bit of a chip on their shoulder after a tough stretch of matches in MLS play, dropping three of their last four in league action. Atlanta, of course, is coming off a 2-1 win at Toronto FC and will look to ride that momentum to the final eight.
This will be a high-stakes battle — and it won’t be at Bank of America Stadium. Rather, it will be at the 5,000-capacity Sportsplex, south of the city in the suburb of Matthews. For more on Charlotte FC, I reached out to Jorge Gonzalez from TopBin90 (X).
Charlotte enters the match having lost three of its last four MLS games. What’s the overall mood around the team heading into Tuesday’s match against Atlanta United?
The overall mood has taken a big hit because of both the losses and the nature of them. Charlotte had an opportunity to show they could beat and compete with the best teams in the league, but instead suffered two heavy defeats, leaving many questions about expectations for this team.
This is, of course, a derby just like Charlotte’s Round of 32 match. Only this time it’s against two MLS opponents that will face each other two more times this season in league play. How does that change Charlotte FC’s preparation for this match compared to playing another MLS team, if it changes at all?
I think Dean Smith and Charlotte will want to use this game as a chance to bounce back after those two heavy losses. I would expect a very strong XI from Charlotte.
Who do you think could be an X-factor for Charlotte, specifically a player not many people have heard of but can affect the match?
Rodolfo Aloko could be a game-changer. Charlotte recently signed him to a U22 contract, and he has started the last few games. However, I would imagine he starts on the bench for this one, given the quick turnaround and the number of matches he’s played recently.
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5,000 seat stadium – sounds like it will be a quiet night. Hoping / predicting a victory to allow us to advance.