Swiderski opens up
Charlotte FC star has been quiet much of the season so we brought along a Polish interpreter and found out he likes sushi out at O-Ku, hoops at Sedgefield Park, "The Good Doctor" on Netflix and more.
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Polish striker has toned down frustration of late, says he always wants to win
Swiderski celebrating his goal against DC United. He leads the team with seven goals.
(Photo courtesy of Charlotte FC.)
For the better part of seven months, what Charlotte fans have known of star Karol Swiderski is what they’ve seen on the field. The standout Polish striker can be found slicing through a maze of defenders or sitting on his rump at midfield, dejected after a loss. They’ve seen him score a flurry of four goals in two games and then go more than two months without one.
They’ve watched Charlotte FC connect on 25 consecutive passes to set up Swiderski’s 11-game drought-breaker — a header for a goal against Nashville. And they couldn’t help but celebrate with him as Swiderski jumped a barrier, climbed steps into the stands, and destroyed the back of the “throne” where players and guests are “coronated.”
“I go crazy,” Swiderski explained afterward with a smile. “I don’t score two months, maybe more. This feeling was fantastic for me to score in our stadium in front of our fans. I’m so happy.”
His comments in that postgame press conference lasted seven minutes and 47 seconds. It was one of maybe two or three sessions he’s done all season. And until this week, Swiderski hadn’t sat down with a local reporter for an extended interview all season.
Why? The theory here was the language barrier. Swiderski seemed to have a decent command of English but maybe didn’t feel comfortable diving into questions deeper than soccer strategy. Or perhaps he was reluctant to spend any more time in the spotlight than what was already required playing on the Polish National Team and for perennial Greek Cup champion PAOK before signing with Charlotte.
So I did what serious journalists do and came up with a strategy to finally get to Swiderski: find a preschool mom who could speak Polish. Right?
It just so happened that during a playdate with our 4-year-old kids, my new mom friend Kasia Bishop happened to tell me she’s fluent in Polish. She told me she’s the youngest of five children in a Polish family. She was the first to be born in the U.S. but still speaks to her family in Polish. I asked if she would like to help me interview Swiderski. She was happy to, and a couple of phone calls to the PR staff with Charlotte FC got us approval and a date on the calendar.
Teaming up to interview Swiderski with preschool mom friend and translator Kasia Bishop (right). (Photo from Carroll Walton.)
In one 40-minute sit-down this week, Swiderski kicked back on a couch in The Vault Lounge at Bank of America Stadum and spoke to Bishop and me. He gave us a glimpse into what life is like for him here in Charlotte, from what he likes to order at Starbucks to the source of his emotions on the field. Here’s a taste of what we learned:
Swiderski, his wife Martyna, and their 2 ½-year-old son, Antoni — or Antos for short — live a two-minute walk from Bank of America Stadium uptown, and he’s not afraid to walk it, at least for practice.
At the beginning of the season, he was rarely recognized around town, which felt a little weird. “I was surprised,” he said. “It’s like nobody knows football. Now after every game it’s more and more people. I think nowadays they know.”
Playing for PAOK in Thessaloniki, Swiderski couldn’t go a block without getting stopped for a chat or a picture. And he rarely paid for his own coffee during morning visits to the beach with his family.
“They say, ‘You don’t need to pay, just score in the next game,’” he said.
Here he’s more apt to order his Starbucks coffee frappuccino with oatmilk through Uber Eats. But he ventures out to Target regularly and likes to buy his groceries at Whole Foods.
Between Whole Foods and one local Polish grocery store, Swiderski said his wife has everything she needs to prepare great Polish meals. She uses a kitchen gadget they learned about in Europe called a Thermomix, which is like a souped-up blender, steamer and mixer.
He and Martyna like to go for sushi at O-Ku in South End on date night. And when they’re relaxing at home lately, they’ve been skipping over Polish TV to binge watch “The Good Doctor” on Netflix.
Speaking good English: It didn’t take but a few minutes of talking to Swiderski on Tuesday to figure out that his English is plenty good. We spoke in English 95 percent of the time, though it was nice to have Kasia to clarify words or thoughts for both of us, and Swiderski enjoyed talking and connecting with her.
Swiderski, who grew up in the small town of Rawicz, Poland, said he took English in school but it was hard to learn much when soccer was the primary focus.
“I was always in sports school, and I had only like 20 minutes in the class,” Swiderski said. “I had class with my teammates from the club. We go all together to one class with 20, 22 people. Everyone was joking. It was so difficult to learn something.”
Now, Swiderski said, he’s learning English from his teammates in Charlotte FC’s locker room.
Most of the time he spends socially with teammates, though, he’s with fellow Polish countrymen Kamil Jozwiak and Jan Sobocinski, eating meals together or playing FIFA video games.
“We think sometimes it’s crazy to be almost 10,000 kilometers from our home and here are three players in the same club,” Swiderski said. “It’s nice. We spend time together every day. This is easier for us to be together.”
Controversies with fanbases: Polish fans and journalists keep close tabs on Swiderski, especially during a World Cup year. Charlotte fans found this out early in the season when Swiderski stayed in town during an international break because of a hamstring injury. Swiderski was back on the field for Charlotte a week later, scoring two goals against FC Cincinnati rather than playing in a “friendly” for Poland — to the dismay of many on Polish social media.
“I was talking with the coach from the national team and also with the doctor from Poland, and they know I had like a four- or five-day injury,” Swiderski said. “But they said it was stupid to travel to Poland and then miss training for four or five days and then have just one or two trainings before the most important game. They said, ‘Stay with the club, make recovery, and if you play in the weekend, OK.’”
During the next international break in June, after Swiderski traveled back to Poland, he found himself mired in a controversy with Charlotte fans.
While he was away, Charlotte FC fired head coach Miguel Angel Ramirez despite a decent start in this inaugural year. A national report in The Athletic suggested that the main reason for the firing was because Swiderski, as a “designated player” and Charlotte’s highest paid player (his multi-year deal is worth about $5 million), wanted Ramirez out.
Charlotte FC captain Christian Fuchs refuted the report in a press conference while Swiderski was still in Poland, but Swiderski didn’t mind addressing it this week.
“It was difficult for me because I think nobody wants this (reaction) from the fans,” Swiderski said. “But I think smart people know I cannot do anything. OK, I’m DP but I cannot put a coach out or (sporting director) Zoran Krneta or players. I’m not for this. I come here to play, not to be a coach or director of this club.”
While Charlotte FC was regrouping during the change-over, Swiderski came off the bench to score a game-winning goal for Poland against Wales. He returned to Charlotte after surviving eight or nine hours on flights back, with his son Antoni wanting to play the entire time.
“When we travel from Charlotte to Poland, it’s good because we fly in the night,” Swiderski said. “He can sleep.”
Coaching change: Christian Lattanzio was three games into his tenure as interim head coach when Swiderski rejoined Charlotte FC’s lineup in Montreal. Three games later, he broke his scoring drought against Nashville. Swiderski has scored goals in each of the past two games and leads the team with seven. He feels more confident now in Lattanzio’s system.
“I think he changed our style in front to create much more opportunity,” Swiderski said. “And I think he’s an amazing coach and also an amazing person. I’m so happy to be part of his team because I think he has good experience and he helps every player.”
Swiderski’s body language at times throughout the season has read frustration — at the referee, at himself, at missed opportunities from teammates. But that has toned down in recent weeks as both Swiderski and the team have played better.
“Maybe sometimes (showing frustration) is too much,” Swiderski said. “I know I need to work also with this, too — don’t be frustrated — but I want always to win.”
Swiderski holding his son Antoni, 2. Antoni’s favorite sport right now? Basketball. (Photo by Kevin Young of The 5 and 2 Project.)
Road trip: Charlotte FC is in serious need of wins from here on out to have any chance of making the MLS playoffs. Those have been hard to come by on the road for this team, and with tough opponents upcoming in Los Angeles and New York, that only gets tougher.
For Swiderski, these next two represent big soccer games. They’re also a chance to visit the two largest and most dynamic cities in the U.S.
And when he comes back to Charlotte, perhaps he’ll feel that much more at home. You know one way to tell he’s fitting in around here? Guess what his son’s favorite sport to play is?
“He likes to play basketball,” said Swiderski, who has discovered the little-known gem of Sedgefield Park, where his son loves to play. “He can shoot all day. At home we have a small basket, he plays all the time. And when we go outside, also, all the time he wants to play basketball.”
Corujo out for the season with torn knee ligament
Center back Guzman Corujo is headed for ACL surgery. (Photo courtesy of Charlotte FC.)
As many ups and downs as Charlotte FC has endured this season — from a coaching change to a COVID outbreak — until this past week the team hadn’t suffered a significant injury to one of its primary players. That changed when center back Guzman Corujo, arguably Charlotte FC’s most valuable player this season, went down awkwardly last Saturday as he chased down Chicago Fire forward Kacper Przybyłko in front of Charlotte’s goal.
The initial fears were confirmed this week that Guzman suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and will miss the rest of the season. Corujo is set to undergo surgery, which typically takes six months recovery.
Charlotte FC looks a lot thinner at center back now, at least until newcomer Adilson Malanda, the 20-year-old from France, acquires his visa. Coach Christian Lattanzio can move Christian Fuchs from left back to center back, which he did when Corujo left the game against Chicago. He’s also shown confidence in young Polish defender Jan Sobocinski at center back.
“The loss is important for us,” Lattanzio said. “It’s going to be felt. But sometimes in life when you are in difficulties, other people step up. And it’s up to them to maximize those opportunities.”
So long, Sergio: First signee says farewell
For all the departures during the recent transfer window, the most poignant for Charlotte FC fans had to be losing Sergio Ruiz, the first player to ever sign with this expansion franchise. Ruiz just accepted a permanent transfer to return to his native Spain, with his wife and new baby, where he will play for Granada. He made this video to share with Charlotte FC fans.
Up Next: Los Angeles FC (16-4-3) vs Charlotte FC (9-13-2)
When/Where: 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Banc of California Stadium, Los Angeles
How to watch: WAXN (Channel 64), Telemundo, or live stream at www.charlottefootballclub/live or on the Charlotte FC app. Local restrictions apply.
Notable:
Los Angeles FC leads MLS with 16 wins and has won five straight games, which matches its longest winning streak in club history.
LAFC signed Welsh winger and former Real Madrid star Gareth Bale to a one-year contract in June. He came off the bench against Real Salt Lake last week to score what was voted MLS goal of the week.
A loss to Chicago last week dropped Charlotte FC to 11th place in the Eastern Conference. Only the top seven teams qualify for the playoffs.
Charlotte FC is just 1-9-2 on the road this season and has lost its past two road games in Miami and Toronto by an aggregate score of 7-2.
Carroll Walton is a longtime baseball writer with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution now cutting her teeth on soccer and the Charlotte FC just as fans in Charlotte do. She would love to hear from you. E-mail her with questions, suggestions, story ideas and comments!
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