Looking to extend their winning run to three matches, an in-form Charlotte FC will welcome strugglers Orlando City to the Bank of America Stadium on Wednesday for a MLS clash of massive importance.
The Crown's stellar spell of results recently continued with a narrow success over DC United on the weekend, whilst the Lions were bested by Western Conference challengers Los Angeles FC.
Match preview
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After ending their May schedule with a disappointing 3-1 defeat at the home of New York Red Bulls, Charlotte's mission to compete in the upper echelons of the Eastern Conference are back on track following successive wins in June so far, with the Crown beating Atlanta United in Georgia before defeating DC United on home soil.
For the fifth match in succession at the Bank of America Stadium, the well-drilled hosts managed to keep a clean sheet, meaning that Kerwin Vargas's third of the MLS campaign was enough to secure maximum points for Charlotte, who are now firmly cemented in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Having tasted defeat in just one of their last eight league matches, the Crown are currently occupying fifth position in their section, possessing a nine-point buffer over 10th-placed DC United, although the gap to Lionel Messi's conference-leading Inter Miami stands at 10 points.
With only Columbus Crew (15) conceding fewer goals than Charlotte's 18 so far in the 2024 campaign, it is clear to see the positive effects of Dean Smith's leadership in North Carolina, with the former Aston Villa and Norwich City boss bringing a large dose of English pragmatism to the United States.
The Crown's record at their Bank of America Stadium is nothing short of sensational, with Wednesday's hosts winning six and losing just one of their opening 10 contests in front of their home faithful, collecting more points from home games than any other club in the Eastern Conference.
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Orlando City extended their winless run in MLS to a worrying four matches on Saturday night, when Supporters' Shield contenders Los Angeles FC rocked up at the Inter&Co Stadium and collected maximum points, with the Lions conceding three goals in a match for the first time since the CONCACAF Champions Cup defeat to Mexican giants Tigre in March.
That statistic should act as a compliment to the attacking powers of Steve Cherundolo's troops, who secured three points in Florida thanks to a Denis Bouanga brace and a late strike from Mateusz Bogusz, meaning that Mason Stajduhar was a long way off earning his second clean sheet of the term.
Although a record of just three wins in their last 11 MLS contests will not instil belief into Orlando ahead of a daunting trip to the Bank of America Stadium, the visitors will draw confidence from the fact that all of those victories have arrived on the road, with the Lions particularly poor on home soil.
In fact, Orlando's collection of six points from nine home matches so far in 2024 is the fewest in the entire division, so Oscar Pareja's side will be pretty content with playing away from Florida on Wednesday night, regardless of how formidable Charlotte tend to be at their North Carolina base.
After a move to English Championship side Blackburn Rovers comically collapsed in the final stages of the January transfer window - even after he had undertaken media duties with his prospective new employers - Duncan McGuire has been a brilliant professional back in the United States since, netting five goals in 14 MLS appearances.
Team News
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After keeping another clean sheet on home soil last time out, Charlotte are fully expected to stick with a centre-back pairing of Adilson Malanda and Andrew Privett.
Jere Uronen provided the assist for Vargas's winner against DC United, and the Finnish full-back should retain his spot on the left, with Englishman Nathan Byrne operating at right-back.
Due to the quick turnaround from the weekend, Charlotte boss Smith could opt to rotate some of his attacking options, meaning that Brecht Dejaeghere and Tyger Smalls might be promoted from the bench.
Having cemented himself as a first-team regular in 2023, Michael Halliday has endured a stop-start opening to 2024 due to a troublesome knee injury.
Expect a couple of changes from the Lions following defeat on the weekend, but winger Facundo Torres is set to keep his spot in the XI despite missing a penalty last time out.
Martin Ojeda found the net against LAFC off the bench and should be brought in from the start on Wednesday, meaning that Ivan Angulo could have to settle for a place amongst the substitutes.
Charlotte FC possible starting lineup:
Kahlina; Byrne, Malanda, Privett, Uronen; Bronico, Westwood, Urso; Abada, Vargas, Agyemang
Orlando City possible starting lineup:
Stajduhar; Thorhallsson, Schlegel, Jansson, Santos; Torres, Lodeiro, Araujo, Ojeda; Lynn, Muriel
We say: Charlotte FC 2-1 Orlando City
With a sensational record at the Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte will be overwhelming favourites for Wednesday night's clash, but we feel that Orlando could cause the hosts some issues.
That being said, we do not expect the Crown to suffer only their second MLS defeat in nine matches, with Smith's side having enough quality to secure maximum points.
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