(Pic credit: @RoyalFamilyCLT)
Before we get into the footy part of the article I would just like to acknowledge the amazing tifo that the supporters groups worked on to honor Anton Walkes. He was a member of Atlanta United before Charlotte FC and it was a nice way for both sides to honor him.
Atlanta United recap:
Lattanzio went into this match with the same lineup as he did against St Louis.
It's understandable why Lattanzio wanted to go with the same lineup. That game was lost mostly due to poor decision making so it could be assumed he wanted to see if it could work with a clean slate. It did not. Charlotte lost 3-0 to Atlanta and it was pretty much over by halftime. 2 goals came from 18 year old Caleb Wiley who scored in the 5th minute and in the 2nd minute of stoppage time in the first half. The other goal came from Luis Araujo in the 12th minute.
You have to wonder what exactly is causing Charlotte to struggle these first few weeks. Is it the lineup and starting some players out of their natural positions? Is it the system Lattanzio is trying to implement? Perhaps it's a bit of both. When I had a chance to speak to Bill Tuiloma after the match I asked him if the team's chemistry was part of problem with some of the costly mistakes we've seen, this is what he said:
His answer is also very interesting when talking about what will happen when the team finally starts to click together. As we're now only arriving at 4 weeks into the new season, Lattanzio still has time to figure it out and get the team firing on all cylinders. Right now things arent exactly looking the brightest though. Along with costly mistakes, the play in the final third isn't exactly where it needs to be either. Will we see Lattanzio go with a more simple formation and tactics? Will he change up the lineup? Or will he continue to try to push the same thing he's been doing? If Tuiloma is right, hopefully the proper changes are made soon so we can see what he's seeing in this squad.
Orlando Preview
Orlando's Record: 1-2-0
Charlotte's Record: 0-0-3
Orlando have had a good start to their season but they haven't exactly been on fire. They won their first match of the season against Red Bulls 1-0. They drew 0-0 with Cincinnati in their 2nd match and drew 1-1 with DC in their last match. This looks to be a great opportunity for Charlotte to go on the road and get a positive result. Orlando's player to watch is their goalkeeper Pedro Gallese. So far this season he's kept 2 clean sheets, made 12 saves and has only allowed one goal. My prediction for this match is a 0-0 draw. That would be a great result for Charlotte to get on the road and build some momentum on going forward.