Charlotte FC defender opens up
English right back Nathan Byrne is a vocal leader on the field and private off of it. In a wide-ranging Q&A, he shares glimpses into his gamble to come to MLS, plus previewing Saturday vs. NYCFC
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Q&A: The usually private Nathan Byrne dishes on eating gator bites with âWesty,â playing defense under Smith â and adjusting to life in a new country
Charlotte FCâs right back Nathan Byrne fires away. (Photo courtesy of Charlotte FC.)
Unless you sit close to the field at Bank of America Stadium, or watch closely when Apple TV cameras zoom in for tight shots of defender Nathan Byrne, you might not realize how vocal he is. On the pitch, the 31-year-old right back for Charlotte FC is a chatterbox.
Off the field, though, Byrne is different â at least with people on the periphery. Heâs not big on in-depth interviews, doesnât often engage on social media, and he is fiercely private about his family. In fact, he might not even tell you his favorite restaurant in town â and there are a lot of them he likes in Charlotte â because he doesnât want a lot of people to show up. (We get that.)
But he opened up on a sunny afternoon at Atrium Health Performance Park. He was sitting at a patio table Wednesday after practice, still jet-lagged from a nine-hour flight back from London the day before. He had secured a green card to complete a month-long process that started March 23, when he rushed off the field at the end of the Columbus game to make a red-eye flight to London for a medical exam.
Byrne has missed the past three games, including two of Charlotteâs most lopsided losses of the season â in New England and last Saturday against Minnesota. Heâs ready to go Sunday against New York City FC, after using the time away to nurse a hamstring injury back to health.
In a rare sit-down interview, Byrne shared some insights into adapting to life and soccer in America, getting his first taste of gator bites, busting on teammate Ashley Westwood for his âAmericanâ ways, losing luggage â and taking the biggest gamble of his life by coming to play for Charlotte FC.
Here are excerpts from that conversation.
Q. Now that youâve got permanent U.S. residency, do you feel like Charlotte is a second home?
I love it. I love the city. I love the place, and Iâm really enjoying it. When I came here, it felt like the right time to find something new, and I havenât been disappointed.
Q. Why were you so ready for a change? (Byrne spent 15 seasons between the Championship and League One, the second and third tiers in English professional soccer.)
It got to a point the last year or two in the Championship, like âI could be playing for anyone.â It's the same (with) any team in the Championship. ⊠I wanted to do something new â whether itâs the weather, whether itâs the conditions, whether itâs the people â just try something new.
So when it came up, I didnât really know anything about Charlotte. I didnât know what the weather was like. I didnât know where it was in the country, anything. I just took a gamble, and thankfully itâs like it is. ⊠I know now how lucky I got, even visiting other places in America, playing away and looking around on the way to the game, walking around the city. I know how lucky I got that this was the gamble I took.
Q. How did Charlotte FC general manager Zoran Krneta find you?
I think the first conversation they had was through Kamil [Jozwiak, former Charlotte FC winger]. Weâd spent six months together with Derby [County]. A day or two before Charlotte reached out, Kamil messaged me on WhatsApp and said, âWhat do you think about Charlotte?â That was the first time I heard about it.
Q. Did you look at a map or go to Wikipedia? Or did that come closer to when you signed with Charlotte [on Aug. 4, 2022]?
My agent and me were just looking at other clubs around England to see what else was available. It was two days before I came, that we agreed [to a deal]. I had to rush to my flight here. ⊠I just thought, âI'm just going to commit to it and hope for the best,â so no, I still didnât have a clue about the place as a whole.
Q. How did you even know what to pack? Just soccer stuff?
I originally thought I was coming [just] to sign because I got told that I couldnât play straight away because [of a visa]. I packed a small suitcase because I thought I was only going to be here for a few days. That suitcase actually got lost, and I never got it back. I arrived on a Thursday, and they played Saturday morning against DC United at home.
That Saturday morning, Ana [Kneisl], the player liaison, took me to [SouthPark] mall to do some shopping because I didnât have clothes. I went to H&M. I got some white T-shirts. Iâm a simple man, as you can see. [He was wearing a white T-shirt during the interview.]
Q. What were your first impressions of Charlotte?
I loved it. I thought it was clean, just the city in general. Coming from London, people understand that. Thereâs no trash or gum all over the floor when youâre walking. My sister actually came out a month ago. It was the first time sheâd come, and weâre walking for food and the first thing she said was, âI can't believe how clean the streets are.â
I was like, âI know! I thought that as well.â ⊠Itâs quite friendly here. Everyone says âHave a good dayâ or âHave a good oneâ when you leave the elevator. Itâs not like that in England. Everyoneâs in their own world. When youâre on the train, [when] youâre in public areas, you don't speak to people. But then people said, âNo, itâs not like that everywhere.â If you go to New York, it could be similar to London.
Q. What about getting to know your teammates? Itâs a mix of international vs. U.S. players compared to England, where itâs more like 85% British?
Itâs only improved as Iâve been here. The dressing roomâs got closer, and everyone's more on the same page, and the mentality is similar. And theyâre all good guys.
Q. Westwood says youâre âthe best human ever.â As two Englishmen, did you two just click?
Very much. Not just because we get on. Itâs more everything we know and what weâve come from. Itâs like a homely feeling. Very similar. Same terrible jokes, same stupid sarcasm.
Q. Who started calling him âCaptain Americaâ? Was that you or [Scottish midfielder] Scott Arfield?
Itâs just grown. This year, weâve come up with quite a few names for people. He is Captain America because I feel like Iâve bought into the culture, same as Scott, but weâre still who we are. We always tell Ashley weâve lost him completely to the American dream.
Q. How so?
Heâs very American in that he loves the camera, social media, wants to be seen, wants the weather, the hockey team top [a Carolina Hurricanes jersey]. He wants to throw the first pitch at baseball. Heâs that guy. I got asked two weeks ago [to throw out the first pitch at a Charlotte Knightsâ game].
Q. And what did you say?
No. Iâm just not that way inclined. I like to be private, and I donât want to be seen.
A 22-year-old Ashley Westwood (yellow) with Crewe Alexandra of League One taking some punishment from his future Charlotte FC teammate Nathan Byrne (red) then a 20-year-old defender for Swindon Town in a preseason matchup. (Photo courtesy of Westwood, who jokes about Byrne âtrying to break my leg,â though in reality the two didnât realize theyâd faced each other back then until Byrne came across this photo.)
Q. Do you feel like Ashleyâs hogged the captainâs armband in Charlotte? Could you be making a case for that? [Three times in England, Byrne was chosen as a player of the year by his teammates.]
He can have it honestly. Iâm a reserve leader, I guess.
Q. Everyone says youâre very vocal on the field.
I am very vocal. Iâm always talking. I just think the voice helps people, even if theyâre not listening, just to be alert and be aware. Having a vocal team (vs.) not is a big difference in a 90-minute game. A lot of the talking does come from me and Westy. Itâs way more important than I think people realize, to have some sort of leadership, even if the person who is hearing it doesnât agree with what youâre saying.
Q. It felt like we didnât really see the real you as a defender until you played your first full season in Charlotte last year. [Byrne signed in August of 2022 and played the first of five games that year on Sept. 3. after securing his visa.]
Yeah, it was quite a tough way to start, if Iâm being honest. Youâre three-quarters of the way through the season. Iâd not been at a club since May. I hadnât really been training with a group for months. ⊠Itâs obviously part of our job to be very adaptable and ready for change. But Iâve never dealt with so many things at a time moving [to a new] country, trying to find a house, trying to find furniture, trying to get in the team, trying to get fit, trying to play in crazy heat, which is probably the biggest difference for me. And playing on turf. There were a lot of variables.
Q. You told Apple TV broadcaster Lloyd Sam in an interview when you first got here that you were good with playing as an inverted fullback under coach Christian Lattanzio, making interior runs up the field. Does overlapping with wingers on the outside under Coach Dean Smith feel more natural?
It definitely feels more natural because this is the way Iâve played 80% of my career. Itâs not really the system; itâs more that footballers just want to be able to feel free to make their own decisions to play the pass that they want to play. If youâve got someone whoâs tense or isnât comfortable, like in anything, youâre not going to get the best out of them. [Smith] has given a lot of the players, especially the younger players, a lot more freedom to express themselves.
Q. I hear Lloyd Sam lives in a flat above you uptown. Is that right? Have you been disturbing him with loud music?
Yeah, I do play loud music. I do play during acceptable hours. Heâs just got to play his louder.
Q. What kind of music do you like?
Country, R&B, garage house, soul music, gospel music, everything.
Q. We hear youâre a foodie. What do you like? Sushi, like a lot of the guys?
I eat everything. Any cuisine. Any country. Iâll try any food.
Q. Whatâs the most random thing youâve tried here?
Gator bites. ⊠We had the afternoon off in the preseason [in Miami], and I went with Westy and Scott. It was on the menu and weâre like, âCâmon, we got to try them.â No, itâs not very good. Itâs like tough chicken.
Q. Whatâs been better about how Charlotte FC has played defense this year?
I think the biggest difference from last year is that weâre working more as a unit. We donât have to be in a lot of 1-vs.-1 duels or battles, unless something goes wrong. Last year, the emphasis was having one more forward attacking wise, but it put a lot of pressure on the two or three left at the back, because you canât make a mistake for 90 minutes. No one wants to make a mistake, but itâs football, it happens. Now, itâs the goalkeeper, four of us [fullbacks], one of the midfielders, and weâre all a unit. Thatâs helped us a lot.
Q. When it comes to protecting your privacy, is that something thatâs grown the longer youâve been a pro?
No, Iâve always been like that. Iâve never been one to post to Instagram and Tweet a load of stuff. Twitter â I don't like it, because I feel like a lot of people Tweet stuff when itâs been a good game or theyâve played well or the teamâs won. And then you go on the losing streak for two or three games and nothing. I think the same thing of Instagram. Itâs not real. Itâs not someoneâs life. Itâs only the best bits. I use it to stay in touch with my friends and family members, but if someone wants to know about my life, they can just follow Charlotte.
Q. I saw a news story where when you were with Wigan Athletic, you had an opposing fan say something racist on Twitter. Is that what turned you off social media?
No, no. I just reposted it and let [other followers handle] it. Social media doesnât really bother me or interest me. I do like TikTok, though. When youâve got a spare 20 minutes, itâs a good time-filler. It follows stuff you like. Mine is all sorts of football, people racing motorbikes, animals doing funny things.
Q. What would you like to see happen here in Charlotte? Would you like to stay here for a while, or are you taking it as it comes? [Byrne is signed through 2024 and has an option for 2025.]
I would. Iâm happy. Iâm settled. I like the place. I guess itâs up to me and them. Iâve got to keep trying to perform, and theyâve got to do something about it.
Q. Just out of curiosity, does Dean Smith, as a Brit, favor the English guys? Do you do less running?
No, no, no. Donât be silly. You can ask anyone. Heâs onto me more than anyone in this team. I get the most banter aimed my way.
Q. What does he say?
I cannot repeat that in an interview. ⊠I was in England, getting my green card, and he was still saying stuff about me in the meeting room when I wasnât even there. ⊠Our relationship is great, though, really good. Heâs brought a lot of energy to the club, and I think most people will say the same thing.
Editorâs note: Dean Smith corroborated what Byrne said about the meeting room banter while he was in the U.K., saying: âWe put pictures of him on a tour bus in London and Big Ben and a queue for the London Eye: âIf anybody needs a tour guide in London, heâs the man there.ââ
Up Next: Charlotte FC (3-4-2) at New York City FC (3-4-2)
Bill Tuilomaâs header misses wide during Charlotteâs 3-0 loss to Minnesota. (Photo by Robert Taylor of The 5 and 2 Project.)
When/Where: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Yankee Stadium, Bronx, N.Y.
How to watch: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. Find information about how to subscribe for the season here.
How to listen: WFNZ 92.7 in English, WOLS 106.1 in Spanish.
Notable:
While country star Kenny Chesney plays Bank of America Stadium on Saturday night, Charlotte FC travels to play NYCFC at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, N.Y. Charlotte is still âsmarting,â as Smith says, from a 3-0 loss to Minnesota last Saturday which ended a 14-game unbeaten streak at Bank of America.
Charlotte FC is undefeated in five matches (four wins, one draw) against NYCFC, including a 1-0 win in the season opener at Bank of America Feb. 24.
Midfielder Scott Arfield is still out with a hamstring injury, which forced him to be scratched from Charlotteâs lineups after pre-game warmups last Saturday.
Fullbacks Adilson Malanda and Nathan Byrne are both expected back, giving Charlotte its starting backline together for the first time since playing Cincinnati March 30.
Winger Kerwin Vargas practiced on the side this week while nursing a tight hamstring but is expected to be available Saturday. Vargas is close to signing a contract extension with Charlotte FC, which was first reported by TopBin90.com.
Carroll Walton is a longtime baseball writer with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution now in her third season covering Charlotte FC. She would love to hear from you. E-mail her with questions, suggestions, story ideas and comments!
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Nice to get to know Byrne âŠ..think he was very relaxed chatting with you, Carroll!