Copetti to depart as Charlotte FC's rebuilding continues
Struggling striker headed for Argentinian club as team continues overhauling roster under new coach Dean Smith; Vargas contract official, fan fight update, previewing Nashville
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Copetti becomes third marquee player to leave Charlotte FC since January after scoring just one goal in teamâs first 11 games; âEmotionalâ striker had been critiqued by fans
Copetti pleading his case last season against Colorado. (Photo by Kevin Young of The 5 and 2 Project.)
Five days after scoring his first goal of the season for Charlotte FC â one-third of the way into it â embattled star striker Enzo Copetti was preparing to leave the club for a team in his native Argentina.
In a surprising turn of events, Charlotte FC notified the striker Thursday morning at Atrium Health Performance Park that it had reached an agreement on a transfer with Rosario Central, which Copetti then accepted, sources familiar with the negotiations told The Ledger.
News of Copettiâs departure was first reported by Claudio Bonus, a Spanish-speaking reporter covering Charlotte FC. Terms of the transfer were not immediately available. The deal wasnât to be finalized until after Copetti completed his exit medical exam, which was scheduled for today. Argentinaâs window to use new players opens June 1.
Parting ways with its third designated player in a five-month span, Charlotte FC is clearing the decks for a busy summer of roster reconstruction under new coach Dean Smith. Copetti joins the Polish duo Karol Swiderski and Kamil Jozwiak as designated players (signed without regard to the salary cap) to leave the third-year franchise.
âPeople will be labeling me the âEdward Scissorhandsâ of DPs right now,â said Smith, also cutting through the tension of a serious press conference Thursday afternoon. âI just felt that we needed to go in another direction. And thereâs always different stories for each player. Karol, for instance, wanted to play in Europe. I wasnât going to stand in his way [or] want somebody here who wanted to play elsewhere. ⊠I think any new coach coming in is going to have different ideas of players, and youâre always going to be looking to bring improvements in.â
Charlotte FC fielded outside offers for Copetti last August but rejected them during a playoff run under previous coach Christian Lattanzio, who was high on Copetti when Charlotte FC initially pursued him.
Rosario Central first expressed interest in Copetti 10 days ago, sources said, and talks got more serious within the last several days. Copetti, who was held out of practice Thursday, was not immediately available for comment. Smith said the move wouldnât have happened without Copettiâs approval. âThree things have to align for a move to happen,â he said, of the two negotiating clubs and the player.
The transfer puts an end to a short and tumultuous tenure for a 28-year-old striker, who signed with Charlotte FC before the 2023 season on a $6 million transfer fee from Racing Club in Argentina. He has scored just seven goals in 35 MLS appearances, including one through the teamâs first 11 games this season.
Copetti, a physical player Charlotte liked for his ability to finish around the goal, hasnât been finishing. He passed up a penalty chance in the season opener to his friend, winger Kerwin Vargas, which was a likely âgimmeâ for Copetti, and then struggled to get on track from there. Smith has defended Copetti for his work rate and his âhold up playâ occupying defenders. But ultimately, his lack of goal contributions (one assist, one goal) â and the promise of young striker Patrick Agyemang behind him â had Charlotte FC rethinking.
Copetti has been a polarizing figure among fans, many of whom had little tolerance for his propensity to argue with officials and embellish injuries.
Copetti makes his case to a referee last year. (Photo by Kevin Young/The 5 and 2 Project)
While the antics seemed to diminish after multiple conversations with Lattanzio last season, it was evident Saturday night that his reputation might still be costing him calls. Shortly before his goal, Copetti appeared to be kicked in the head by a Portland defender â a red card offense â and the referee didnât even blow the whistle for a foul.
Smith touched on Copettiâs emotions Thursday, when asked what had changed since he told reporters this preseason that Copetti was part of his plans:
I like him as a lad. Is he emotional? Yeah. Quite a lot of players are emotional. Have I been getting the best out of him? Questionable, because heâs only scored one goal in the 11th game. His output for us, he would be the first to say, needs to be better than that. Weâve all been working for the same goal, to try and make him a better player and a better finisher. Sometimes it just doesnât work. Iâm not saying thatâs the end, because [the deal isnât official] but one goal in 10 probably hasn't been enough for us at the moment.
In an interview, Copetti responds to criticism: âI wish sometimes I didnât hear what people were sayingâ; says he was âvery, very, very angryâ about not starting
Copetti flashes a heart toward his family â not, apparently to the fans â after scoring Saturday vs. Portland. (Photo courtesy of Charlotte FC. )
Copetti had to come off the bench to score his first goal Saturday and was none too pleased about it, which Smith readily acknowledged during Saturdayâs postgame press conference. Smith had started Agyemang at striker after Copetti managed just one errant shot in three previous games, including losses to Minnesota and New York City FC. When asked if Copettiâs reaction had any bearing on Thursdayâs revelations about his departure, Smith said no.
But sources familiar with the situation suggest that Copettiâs reactions to adversity, on top of his lack of production on the field, hurt his cause. Fans got another example Saturday night when Copetti âshhhâedâ fans at Bank of America Stadium as part of his post-goal celebration. Charlotte FCâs content team edited out images of Copetti putting his index finger to his lips, as teammates piled on his back, in highlights they posted online. (A photographer for supportersâ group Blue Furia, Jorge Torres, documented Copettiâs goal and full celebration here.)
The Ledger had a chance to ask Copetti about his gesture, while working on an unrelated story about a Charlotte FC staff member on Wednesday â the day before he met with team officials about leaving.
âOutside of the pitch, thereâs a lot of just talk,â said Copetti, with communications senior coordinator Karely Avila translating. âThatâs when you should be calm, trust your team, support the team, not talk any bad words or negativity because how would you feel if someone was doing that to you? Ultimately, youâre there to help cheer on the team, and thatâs what people should be working towards.â
Copetti said he hasnât been reading fan criticism online but heard it on the field.
âI wish sometimes I didnât hear what people were saying,â said Copetti, who was asked for an example. âOne is that I should go back to Argentina because Iâm not a good player.â
When asked about his reaction to not starting, Copetti said, without need of a translator that he was âvery, very, veryâ angry. Then, in a light-hearted exchange, he was asked if that meant he had walked out of his conversation with Smith banging on the walls. âYeah,â Copetti said, smiling, then added. âAnd my locker. Boom.â On a more serious note, he said this about his displeasure with Smithâs lineup decision (through the translator):
Sometimes thereâs a certain level of respect that should come with more experienced players. Although I wasn't getting results in terms of goals, I was getting results in other ways, like creating opportunities for other people.
What now for Charlotte FC: Abada only designated player on Charlotte FC for 13 games until transfer window opens
Copetti becomes Charlotteâs third original designated player to depart, along with Karol Swiderski (left) and Kamil Jozwiak (right). (Photo by Kevin Young of The 5 and 2 Project.)
Copettiâs departure leaves winger Liel Abada, who became the first DP to sign under Smith in early March, as the only one of a possible three designated players on Charlotte FCâs roster. And Abada is out â probably for at least four more games until May 29 against the New York Red Bulls â recovering from a quadriceps strain.
Agyemang, 23, who is playing only his second year in MLS (and tied for the team lead with two goals), is the only other primary striker on Charlotteâs roster. Smith said Thursday wingers Iuri Tavares, Kerwin Vargas and Tyger Smalls can also play striker.
While using any of those three players might leave depth problems at winger, Charlotte FC has two injured players due back before long who should help. Ben Bender, who has been working his way back from knee surgery, is slated to play for Crown Legacy next Wednesday against Chattanooga FC and could be ready for the first team by the end of the month. Brandon Cambridge is about a month away from returning from his ankle injury.
Charlotte FC will have to go 13 games with only one designated player, until the summer transfer window opens on July 18. Charlotte FC can sign players and invite them to practice with the team, but newcomers wonât be eligible to play until Charlotte travels to Austin on July 20. Charlotte will be looking to make a splash at striker and attacking midfielder, as well as hunting for a winger and possible central defender.
In other news: Charlotte announces new long-term contract for Vargas; plus fan involved in altercation faces year-long MLS suspension
Kerwin Vargas scored the game-winning goal in a 1-0 win over Inter Miami that clinched a playoff spot in the final game of last season. (Photo by Kevin Young of The 5 and 2 Project.)
âŒïž Vargas signed through 2027: A little lost in the shuffle of the Copetti news Thursday was Charlotte FCâs announcement that it had signed Kerwin Vargas to a new contract that would keep him on the roster through 2027, with a club option for 2028.
Charlotte first signed Vargas, a native of Colombia, out of Portugal as a U-22 initiative player, which is a way MLS encourages teams to take chances on signing young players. Vargasâ new contract is confirmation Charlotte FC made good on that chance.
Their first U-22 signing, Vini Melo, was injured for most of his stint with Charlotte and is no longer with the club. Attacking midfielder Nikola Petkovic, the other current U-22 player, just had a breakout game Saturday against Portland, scoring his first MLS goal.
âThis new contract is a milestone for the Club as [Vargas] becomes our first U-22 initiative player to re-sign with us and demonstrates our commitment to developing and rewarding young international players through this roster mechanism,â Charlotte FC general manager Zoran Krneta said in a statement.
Vargas is tied for Aygemang for the team lead with two goals. He had been one of Charlotteâs most dynamic offensive players in recent weeks before having to serve a one-game suspension last Saturday for yellow card accumulation. Smith said Thursday that Vargas has been playing well despite the fact that his wife and two children were back in Colombia awaiting green cards. They recently arrived in Charlotte, giving him all the more reason to celebrate.
âI feel very happy about the contract and also with the club,â Vargas said Thursday morning, through a translator.
âŒïž Charlotte FC fan suspended from Bank of America for one year: A member of the fan group Carolina Hooliganz has been banned from attending MLS games for one year, including those at Bank of America Stadium, for her part in an April 14 altercation with Blue Furia president Juliana Gregory, according to sources familiar with the situation.
Gregory was taken to the hospital with a bloody face after a violent altercation outside of a bar near the stadium on Cedar Street after a game. Stadium officials can levy suspensions based on activity within a stadium only, and as The Ledger reported, the argument between two women started in the supportersâ section behind the East Goal at Bank of America Stadium.
A spokesman for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police said Thursday morning that charges were pending in the case and the investigation was ongoing, but no arrests had been made.
Gregory is seeking financial support to help cover her medical and legal costs. As of Thursday night, she had raised more than $6,000 toward her goal of $10,000 on a GoFundMe.com page.
Related article:
âAltercation between Charlotte FC fan groups sends 1 to hospitalâ (April 15)
Up Next: Charlotte FC (4-5-2) vs Nashville (2-3-5)
When/Where: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
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:
Bank of America Stadiumâs upper deck will be open for the second time this year and for the first time since Feb. 25, when 62,291 fans watched Charlotte FC beat New York City FC 2-1.
Charlotte is looking to avenge a 2-1 loss in Nashville in March, when the team got burned on a pair of crosses into the penalty box for easy goals.
Charlotte FC defeated Portland 2-0 last Saturday as it began a stretch of playing four out of five games at Bank of America Stadium.
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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Like so many interesting details!