Charlotte FC Stock Up, Stock Down: Westwood's support in the attack is needed, how far would Charlotte fall without Biel, and Zaha stokes the publicity fire
- Brian Maurer
- 2 minutes ago
- 4 min read
By Brian Maurer
Charlotte FC came out of the gates firing but couldn’t find a goal, even though they had several good looks in and around the box. As the game wore on, the Crown struggled to find that first goal, leaving the opportunity there for the New England Revolution to pull the smash-and-grab on the road. Which is exactly what happened with a late goal from Carles Gil.
Here’s the stock up and stock down for Charlotte this week:
Stock Up
Ashley Westwood
Westwood was active, especially early on, as he got forward several times to help with attacking sequences in the final third and found himself in and around the box to take shots as well. The first 20-25 minutes are when Charlotte looked the most threatening, and a big part of that is what their captain can add as a visionary in support of the front four. When he gets forward as the fourth or fifth attacking option, the Crown can become more dangerous. This is what helped Charlotte get big-time results last season on the road against FC Cincinnati and the Columbus Crew.
If Westwood can do more of that while also continuing to be the willing runner defensively, Charlotte should be able to get some of the road results they need moving forward. In the post match presser the Charlotte Captain said that they have a special group up front and “we need to protect them and start feeding them,” with this sort of sentiment I expect even more from Westwood in the coming road stretch as these are the moments that the veteran leadership is going to be needed.
Pep Biel
Biel’s vision and ability to be the architect for this team were on display early again this past week when he set up Wilfried Zaha for a great chance early on, unfortunately, Zaha couldn’t find the finish. This wasn’t one of Biel’s better performances, but his importance to this team was magnified when he went down in the second half and was subbed off. Dean Smith has been protecting him by subbing him off a bit early on occasion when he can, and this was a good indication as to why. The season’s ambitions flashed briefly before everyone’s eyes in that moment when he went down as there have been no other consistent goal contributors in the squad.
Smith said in the post-match presser that it was hamstring tightness, so they dodged a bullet it seems but that moment highlights both the importance of Biel and the team’s need for more consistency from this attacking group as a whole.
Kerwin Vargas
Vargas came on in the second half and looked sharp, creating multiple dangerous chances for fellow sub Idan Toklomati. The Colombian winger looks to have taken to his 30-minute sub role bringing energy and life late in games, and with his willingness to work defensively he could challenge Liel Abada for another spot start soon if the Israeli Designated Player continues to struggle to find goals.
Smith’s method of instilling competition within looks to be working on Vargas early on. He lost his starting spot last year, but looks to have an eye for trying to win some minutes back by improving his game and showing that he can add a bit more creativity. Vargas has more expected assists, passes into the final third, and passes into the penalty area than Abada this season from the bench. The Colombian’s case for more minutes is mounting.
Stock Down
Wilfried Zaha
Zaha had more combined shots and chances created on Saturday (six total, three each) than in any other game so far this year. He was more involved in dangerous moments for the Crown than in any other game since arriving in the Carolinas. However, he didn’t find the goal, and this was one of those games where his "magic" was needed. And he didn’t have it.
To make matters worse, he went public about the hate and pressure he has been getting and attempted to justify the situation. This only put more gasoline on the fire. But this looks to be who Zaha is, love him or hate him. The only concern long-term with Zaha’s antics is if the performances don’t end with goals. Then the fire grows and the DP wingers Snapchat posts likely continue bringing even more gasoline.
Dean Smith
Great teams don’t blame the refs. They just don’t have to. They are too busy winning. And all the other teams and their fans spend time building conspiracies and complaining about the refs because they have the time to do so, because they are not great. It’s one of the key differences of greatness. The great ones stay champions, while everyone else blames fortune because they are not willing to accept the gap between themselves and the level that greatness requires. This is true in sports, business, family, and every aspect of life.
Regardless of the refereeing, the true incompetence Saturday was the end product at home. The key players didn’t finish. They didn’t pull this team across the line. The fans want greatness. The goals for this season are set at greatness. Players on great teams don’t need protecting, they are too busy working towards being dominant.
The focus of tonight should have been on what was missing from the group that led to them not getting the job done. Why did the energy drop at times? Why did they lose momentum? There were clear indicators as to why Charlotte couldn’t pull off the home result. Smith decided to shift the focus away from what matters to the refereeing. Again. For the umpteenth time since he’s been in Charlotte. The same as he used to when he was in England. It’s a “boy who cried wolf” scenario at this point, and it’s not what greatness emulates. Self-reflection and learning from the losses will result in the necessary long-term gains to attain the goal of greatness.
The coach should be able to highlight that focus, not only in private with the players, but in public so that the culture at every level, even in the fanbase and media, can see and believe that the true project of greatness is the focus. Blaming others for one’s own faults is not the message that anyone needs to hear and its a message Smith has pushed at this club for far too long. It does no one any good.
