After a midweek away game, Charlotte travels south for a highly anticipated match against rivals Atlanta United FC. A win on Sunday would be a significant bounce-back for Charlotte after their recent loss to the New York Red Bulls, who ended their five-match unbeaten and clean sheet streak.
Match: Charlotte FC at Atlanta United
When: Sunday, June 2
Where: Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Kickoff: 4:45 p.m. ET
Watch: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV – How to Watch & Listen
Listen: WFNZ 92.7 FM (English) & WOLS 106.1 FM (Spanish)
For all other radio station affiliates in the Carolinas, click here.
Previous Matches:
Charlotte FC 0 – 3 New York Red Bulls (Major League Soccer | May 29)
Atlanta United FC 3 – 1 Inter Miami CF (Major League Soccer | May 29)
Eastern Conference Table: For the full live table, click here.
7. Charlotte FC – 22 points, 16 GP
8. Philadelphia Union – 19 points, 15 GP
9. Nashville SC – 19 points, 16 GP
---------- Playoff Line ----------
10. D.C. United – 18 points, 16 GP
11. Orlando City SC – 17 points, 15 GP
12. Atlanta United FC – 16 points, 15 GP
End of Historic Unbeaten Streak
During the month of May, The Crown had been dominant, going unbeaten in five straight matches in addition to setting another Club record for most consecutive clean sheets with five. This streak established The Crown as one of the top defensive sides in the league, but it unfortunately ended against the New York Red Bulls.
The Red Bulls accomplished what no other opponent had managed against Charlotte all month – they scored. Not only did they get one past CLTFC, but they also netted three goals in total. Despite the 3-1 scoreline in favor of the Red Bulls, the result didn’t fully reflect Charlotte’s performance.
"I think the I look at the game on Wednesday against against Red Bull and the goals were preventable," said Dean Smith at Thursday's press conference. "And because they were preventable, it's not such a hard fix."
Despite the setback, Charlotte was able to gain many positives from this stretch of six matches that they can continue to build on in the second half of the season. The goal now is to regain momentum and put the defeat behind them as they face a crucial match against Atlanta United.
They’ll have approximately 2,000 of their fans in attendance, which just serves as a great source of motivation for an already heavily contested match. This away contingent will be crucial in providing the players with a morale boost as they aim to secure a vital victory on the road.
"Because there's not many fans that have traveled often, it will be great to see them. I mean, to be fair, we've had fans all over," Smith said."But it will be nice to have so many following us. And our job is to make sure we make them proud and put in a performance that gets a result for them."
The Opponent
Atlanta United, renowned for their attacking prowess and passionate fan base, have had a disappointing season thus far given the quality of their roster.
They feature some of the premier attacking talent in the league, including Best XI players like World Cup winner Thiago Almada and 2023 Newcomer of the Year Giorgos Giakoumakis.
While their defense hasn't been terrible, it hasn't been particularly stellar either. Combine that with an underperforming attack, and it is clear why wins have been hard to come by.
However, this week, Atlanta provided a glimpse of their potential when healthy and playing at their best. They shocked everyone by thrashing Inter Miami 3-1 on their opponent’s turf. Miami, the frontrunners for the Supporter’s Shield this year, were made to look like a lower table side by Atlanta United.
The Five Stripes hope to use this victory as a turning point in their season, aiming to follow it up with a much-needed home win against Charlotte.
The Season So Far
CLTFC won their first match of the season over NYCFC with a gritty 1-0 win at home. They then faced three consecutive games on the road, securing a 1-1 draw in Vancouver before tight losses to Toronto (1-0) and Nashville (2-1).
Upon finally returning to Bank of America Stadium, the team impressively downed the defending MLS Cup Champions, the Columbus Crew, by a 2-0 score. Then, they secured another impressive result, drawing the defending Supporter’s Shield Champions, FC Cincinnati, in a 1-1 match.
After a disappointing road loss in New England, CLTFC won a thrilling back-and-forth match against Toronto at home courtesy of a late Patrick Agyemang match-winner but then suffered two disappointing results in a row with losses to Minnesota and NYCFC.
However, following those back-to-back losses, Charlotte responded with a five-match unbeaten streak where they didn’t concede a single goal. That streak came to an end against the New York Red Bulls, but Charlotte now faces three straight opponents that sit below the playoff line starting with Atlanta United.
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