Forward arrives to make fresh start with Charlotte FC
Plus Westwood on fan chant, Bronico and Copetti set to return, and previewing Saturday's game against Supporters' Shield winner FC Cincinnati
It’s time for Fútbol Friday, The Charlotte Ledger’s weekly newsletter getting you up to speed on Charlotte FC, the city’s new pro soccer team.
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Today’s Fútbol Friday is sponsored by Dress for Success Charlotte’s Your Hour Her Power campaign, celebrating women’s history month throughout March. Help support the mission of Dress for Success Charlotte by giving the equivalent of one hour of your pay, which will provide women access to programs, services and tools to help them achieve economic advancement. Learn more about Dress for Success Charlotte here.
Israeli winger Liel Abada has been in touch with the team’s captain for weeks as the team prepared to make its newest international star feel welcome
The countries represented by players pictured during the national anthem? Belgium (Brecht Dejaegere), Finland (Jere Uronen), Brazil (Junior Urso), Portugal (iuri Tavares) and Colombia (Kerwin Vargas). (Photo courtesy of Charlotte FC)
Do you ever wonder what Charlotte FC players are thinking during the national anthem? We have such a cool tradition at Bank of America Stadium, where the anthem singer stops half a stanza in and the crowd sings the rest of the way in tribute to that spontaneous moment in the inaugural 2022 home opener when the singer’s mic went out.
To me, the tradition puts all the more emphasis on the 11 starting players standing shoulder to shoulder on the field. And it makes you realize just how international Charlotte FC’s roster is and how different soccer is in that regard, from American-made sports like basketball, football and baseball. Lately, with Brandt Bronico out injured, and unless Patrick Agyemang starts at striker, center back Andrew Privett has been the only American-born player in the starting lineup and the lone lips moving during the anthem.
“Give me a few months and I might be singing it with him,” captain and Englishman Ashley Westwood said. “I’m getting a lot of (grief ) off Nathan Byrne, Scotty Arfield, and even the Gaffer (Dean Smith) thinks I’ve turned American.”
That sentiment sounds nice to Americans, though, doesn’t it? And while I wouldn’t expect all foreign-born players to want to sing along, I do hope they feel pride in playing in the United States and in Charlotte. I hope it’s a place they feel welcome, where they can thrive. And I hope it’s the kind of place new Israeli player Liel Abada can feel welcome and free to flourish.
Charlotte FC’s new designated player landed in Charlotte on Thursday afternoon. He was scheduled to practice with the team on Friday and expected to be available for Charlotte FC’s game Saturday night against FC Cincinnati.
Liel Abada flashing a “for the crown” sign after he was greeted at the Charlotte airport Thursday afternoon by Gregg Franco of Mint City Collective, Charlotte FC’s largest supporters group. (Photo courtesy of Mint City Collective on X.)
Abada is here on a Charlotte FC-record $8 million transfer fee — because he found himself in the middle of a political firestorm while playing for Celtic in Scotland, where a collection of Celtic fans protested in support of Palestine after Hamas invaded Israel on Oct. 7. Abada came under pressure from Israel’s national team coach and some of its players urging him to leave Celtic. Eventually it all got to be too much, and Abada wanted out.
So while Charlotte FC might be the last club where you’d expect to find a 22-year-old talent who’d likely have signed in Europe had their transfer windows still been open, Charlotte does seem like a great spot for a player looking for a fresh start in a place where he can focus on soccer.
“I hope it's like that for him because I think he’s had it real tough,” Westwood said. “We’ll make him feel comfortable, and I'm sure that the city will make him feel comfortable, and it's going to be a breath of fresh air for him.”
Westwood said he reached out to Abada through a mutual friend and former teammate in goalkeeper Joe Hart. He and Abada have been texting since Charlotte signed him three weeks ago, while he’s awaited his visa and played in a EURO qualifier with the Israeli national team.
“He’s been asking about the area, looking where to live,” Westwood said. “Anything I can do to help settle him in benefits us as well as him.”
Coach Dean Smith said Thursday he’s been in regular contact with Abada too, that he’s sent Abada the game plans to read over and that Abada has been watching Charlotte FC games on video. Westwood knew he had been watching the games when he got the text from Abada after Sunday’s game against Columbus saying “good goal.”
Westwood said Hart, who played at Burnley FC with Westwood and at Celtic with Abada, gave him rave reviews.
“(He said he’s) extremely quick,” Westwood said. “He’s lightning. Scotty (Arfield) knows him as well. He’s played against him (with the Rangers of Glasgow). He’s got an eye for goal. He knows where the goal is. He brings something a little bit different to what we’ve got. Hopefully he comes here and enjoys it like everyone else has.”
Big week for Westy: Goal of the week, wife Bec shines and “We’ve got Westwood” chants
Not only did Ashley Westwood win MLS goal of the week with 49 percent of the fan votes for his rocket shot last Saturday against the Columbus Crew, but his wife Bec Westwood was featured in Charlotte FC’s Girls and Women in Sports campaign, which brought a tear to his eye as he watched the footage.
“I was proud of her,” he said.
To top it off, he saw a post from the fan group — Westwood Tea Gang — on Instagram Wednesday, of fans doing a “We’ve got Westwood” chant after Saturday’s game. Westwood “liked” the reel and commented “Lads I love it” with a clapping hands and laugh-until-you-cry emoji.
The footage was from Charlotte Fan TV host Lee Hannibal and four cohorts singing:
We’ve got Westwood, Ashley Westwood
I just don’t think you understand
He comes from Burnley
He drinks his f@#$-ing tea
We’ve got Ashley Westwood.
When asked what he thought about it, Westwood said, “It’s incredible. I love it … apart from the swearing.”
Westwood, a father of two, was laughing as he said it.
Messi with an asterisk
When we wrote last week that Charlotte fans could conceivably see Lionel Messi, the U.S. Men’s national team, powerhouses from South America and Mexico, as well as Real Madrid and Chelsea this summer in Charlotte, a reader made a good point in response. The July 3 date when Messi and Inter Miami are scheduled to play in Charlotte is one day shy of the Copa America quarterfinal which would feature Argentina if they advance from Group A. So, if Argentina is still alive in the Copa America, Messi would not be available to play in Charlotte.
Up Next: Charlotte FC (2-2-1) vs. FC Cincinnati (3-0-2)
When/Where: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Bank of America Stadium.
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:
Striker Enzo Copetti is back after missing two games with a hamstring injury. So is midfielder Brandt Bronico, who has been out since the preseason with a quadriceps strain. “He can run all day,” Smith said. “You’ve got Duracell. We’ve got Brandt Broncio.”
Midfielder Scott Arfield is out with a hamstring injury but has returned to light drills in practice and is expected to be back in action next week.
MLS reached an agreement in its labor dispute with officials, so regular referees will be back on the field Saturday night. It’s not a moment too soon for Charlotte FC, which has had big calls go against them the past few weeks and played a 62-minute first half against Columbus, something Coach Dean Smith said he hadn’t seen in some 1,000 games in soccer.
One week after defeating defending MLS Cup winner Columbus 2-0, Charlotte welcomes FC Cincinnati, which won the Supporters’ Shield last year for having the best regular season record in MLS. Cincinnati is at the top of the standings again this year with 11 points.
Luciano Acosta, reigning MLS MVP, is leading Cincinnati with two goals.
Charlotte is unbeaten in 11 straight MLS games at Bank of America Stadium, including wins in its first two games there this season — 1-0 in the opener against NYCFC and 2-0 Saturday against Columbus.
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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Such exciting time for Charlotte FC and its fans!