Charlotte FC’s Leagues Cup story isn’t over just yet.
Dean Smith’s side ensured that Wednesday evening against Cruz Azul, holding the LIGA MX Apertura leaders to a 0-0 draw before winning 4-2 on penalty kicks at Bank of America Stadium.
Their tournament dreams hinge on the last East 4 match, when the Philadelphia Union host Cruz Azul on Sunday (8 pm ET | Apple TV - Free, UniMás, FS1). The top two teams per group reach the knockout stage.
“It was a big challenge for what's a young club for us,” Smith said post-game. “But I thought the lads really competed well, it was a really good tactical competition between both teams. Both teams play a little bit differently.
“We could never throw caution to the wind because I think they've got too many players who can punish you. But they are a very good team and I thought we frustrated them at times and certainly defended our box very well."
Charlotte’s waiting game follows a poor opener last weekend at Philadelphia, when they lost 1-0 and failed to register a shot on target.
Smith said he “expected a response” vs. Cruz Azul, and got that against "probably the best team we've played against all season." And while attacking struggles persisted, they looked far more like the Eastern Conference dark-horse contender they’ve been in 2024.
“We created some big chances,” Smith said. “But as you know, the story of our season has been not converting them. We're still working. If you're getting good chances, you'll soon start converting them.
“And I said it last week, the game on Saturday against Philly is the reason probably why we haven't gone through. We were poor in that game, it was a poor game of football. But those games can happen sometimes. I certainly wouldn't judge us on that performance.”
With Leagues Cup draws going straight to PKs, Charlotte called on goalkeeper David Bingham. He started in place of usual starter Kristijan Kahlina and made two spot-kick saves.
Nonetheless, Charlotte could face early elimination from Leagues Cup. If that’s the case, Smith rests assured with reinforcements on the way.
“We're looking to bring in some strength,” Smith said. “Liel Abada comes back now [from the Olympics] as well. For the rest of the season, I can see us having a strong hand going forward.”
