# 2023 Charlotte FC season

The 2023 Charlotte FC season was the club's second season in Major League Soccer, the top division of soccer in the United States. The team was coached by Christian Lattanzio, who took over as interim manager during the inaugural season and became permanent head coach in October 2022. Charlotte FC earned their first MLS Cup Playoffs berth in team history, but lost in the wild card round to the New York Red Bulls. Lattanzio was fired at the end of the season.

## Team information
### Squad information

Appearances and goals are career totals from all-competitions as of October 9, 2022.
| Squad No. | Name | Date of birth (Age) | Signed from | Signed in | Contract ends | Games played | Goals scored |
| Goalkeepers |||||||||
| 1 | Kristijan Kahlina | (1992-07-24) July 24, 1992 (age 32) | Ludogorets Razgrad | 2022 | 2024 | 32 | 0 |
| 23 | Pablo Sisniega | (1995-07-07) July 7, 1995 (age 29) | Los Angeles FC | 2022 | Undisclosed | 2 | 0 |
| 31 | George Marks | (1999-11-10) November 10, 1999 (age 25) | Clemson Tigers | 2022 | 2023 | 3 | 0 |
| Defenders |||||||||
| 2 | Jan Sobociński | (1999-03-20) March 20, 1999 (age 25) | ŁKS Łódź | 2021 | Undisclosed | 11 | 0 |
| 3 | Adam Armour | (2002-09-27) September 27, 2002 (age 22) | 1. FC Nürnberg | 2021 | 2023 | 6 | 1 |
| 4 | Guzmán Corujo | (1996-08-02) August 2, 1996 (age 28) | Nacional | 2022 | 2024 | 26 | 1 |
| 6 | Bill Tuiloma | (1995-03-27) March 27, 1995 (age 29) | Portland Timbers | 2023 | 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | Nathan Byrne | (1992-06-05) June 5, 1992 (age 32) | Derby County | 2022 | 2024 | 5 | 0 |
| 24 | Jaylin Lindsey | (2000-03-27) March 27, 2000 (age 24) | Sporting Kansas City | 2021 | 2024 | 27 | 0 |
| 25 | Harrison Afful | (1986-07-24) July 24, 1986 (age 38) | Columbus Crew | 2022 | 2023 | 24 | 1 |
| 28 | Joseph Mora | (1993-01-15) January 15, 1993 (age 32) | D.C. United | 2021 | 2023 | 25 | 0 |
| 29 | Adilson Malanda | (2001-10-29) October 29, 2001 (age 23) | Rodez | 2022 | 2025 | 6 | 0 |
| Midfielders |||||||||
| 7 | Kamil Jóźwiak | (1998-04-22) April 22, 1998 (age 26) | Derby County | 2022 | 2025 | 22 | 0 |
| 8 | Ashley Westwood | (1990-04-01) April 1, 1990 (age 34) | Burnley F.C. | 2023 | 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Brandt Bronico | (1995-06-20) June 20, 1995 (age 29) | Chicago Fire | 2020 | 2025 | 37 | 1 |
| 15 | Ben Bender | (2001-10-03) October 3, 2001 (age 23) | Maryland Terrapins | 2022 | Undisclosed | 31 | 3 |
| 19 | Chris Hegardt | (2002-01-06) January 6, 2002 (age 23) | Georgetown Hoyas | 2022 | 2023 | 3 | 0 |
| 20 | Derrick Jones | (1997-03-03) March 3, 1997 (age 27) | Houston Dynamo | 2022 | 2023 | 19 | 1 |
| 77 | Nuno Santos | (1999-03-02) March 2, 1999 (age 25) | Benfica B | 2022 | 2024 | 4 | 1 |
| Forwards |||||||||
| 9 | Enzo Copetti | (1996-01-16) January 16, 1996 (age 29) | Racing Club | 2023 | 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Karol Świderski | (1997-01-23) January 23, 1997 (age 27) | PAOK | 2022 | 2025 | 30 | 10 |
| 16 | Andre Shinyashiki | (1997-06-11) June 11, 1997 (age 27) | Colorado Rapids | 2022 | 2025 | 23 | 7 |
| 17 | McKinze Gaines | (1998-03-02) March 2, 1998 (age 26) | Austin FC | 2021 | 2023 | 27 | 3 |
| 18 | Kerwin Vargas | (2002-01-02) January 2, 2002 (age 23) | C.D. Feirense | 2022 | 2024 | 14 | 0 |
| 21 | Vinicius Mello | (2002-08-02) August 2, 2002 (age 22) | Internacional | 2022 | 2025 | 0 | 0 |

## Roster transactions
### In

| # | Pos. | Player | Signed from | Details | Date |
| 36 | MF | Brandon Cambridge | University of Portland | Free agent | December 21, 2022 |
| 8 | MF | Ashley Westwood | Burnley | Free transfer | January 27, 2023 |
| 9 | FW | Enzo Copetti | Racing Club | Undisclosed fee | January 11, 2023 |
| 6 | DF | Bill Tuiloma | Portland Timbers | $800,000 GAM | February 16, 2023 |
| 22 | FW | Justin Meram | Real Salt Lake | $200,000 GAM | April 27, 2023 |

### Out

| # | Pos. | Player | To | Details | Date |
| 22 | DF | Christian Fuchs | Retirement | Option declined | October 17, 2022 |
| 35 | MF | Quinn McNeill | Free agent | Option declined | November 14, 2022 |
| 36 | DF | Koa Santos | Loudoun United | Option declined | November 14, 2022 |
| 8 | MF | Jordy Alcívar | Independiente del Valle | Undisclosed Fee | November 24, 2022 |
| 12 | FW | Daniel Ríos | C.D. Guadalajara | Undisclosed Fee | December 25, 2022 |
| 30 | GK | Adrian Zendejas | Miami FC | Loan out | January 17, 2023 |
| 5 | DF | Anton Walkes | None | Deceased | January 19, 2023 |
| 26 | FW | Yordy Reyna | Torpedo Moscow | Contract buyout | February 17, 2023 |
| 3 | DF | Adam Armour | FC Tulsa | Waived | April 26, 2023 |

### SuperDraft picks

| Round | Selection | Position | Player | College | Notes |
| 1 | 1 | DF | Hamady Diop | Clemson | Generation Adidas |
| 1 | 12 | FW | Patrick Agyemang | Rhode Island | |
| 2 | 11 | FW | Nick Scardina | Washington | |
| 3 | 11 | MF | Andrew Privett | Penn State | |

## Competitions
### Exhibitions

Charlotte has been announced to be participating in the 2023 edition of the Coachella Valley Invitational.

### Major League Soccer season
#### Eastern Conference

MLS Eastern Conference table (2023) :
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 7 | Nashville SC | 34 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 39 | 32 | +7 | 49 | Qualification for round one |
| 8 | New York Red Bulls | 34 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 36 | 39 | −3 | 43 | Qualification for the wild-card round |
| 9 | Charlotte FC | 34 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 45 | 52 | −7 | 43 | Qualification for the wild-card round |
| 10 | CF Montréal | 34 | 12 | 17 | 5 | 36 | 52 | −16 | 41 | |
| 11 | New York City FC | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 35 | 39 | −4 | 41 | |

#### Overall

Overall MLS standings table :
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 17 | New York Red Bulls | 34 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 36 | 39 | −3 | 43 |
| 18 | Portland Timbers | 34 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 46 | 58 | −12 | 43 |
| 19 | Charlotte FC | 34 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 45 | 52 | −7 | 43 |
| 20 | CF Montréal | 34 | 12 | 17 | 5 | 36 | 52 | −16 | 41 |
| 21 | Minnesota United FC | 34 | 10 | 13 | 11 | 46 | 51 | −5 | 41 |

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Updated to match(es) played on October 25, 2023.

#### Matches
### U.S. Open Cup

Charlotte FC will enter the 2023 edition of the U.S. Open Cup in the third round.

### Leagues Cup

Charlotte FC will make their debut in the Leagues Cup. On January 20, the groups for the tournament were determined with Charlotte drawn into Group South 4. This group also contains FC Dallas and Necaxa.

#### South 4

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | PW | PL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | CLT | DAL | NEC |
| 1 | Charlotte FC | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 5 | Advance to knockout stage | — | — | — |
| 2 | FC Dallas | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 4 | Advance to knockout stage | 2–2 | — | 3–0 |
| 3 | Necaxa | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 7 | −6 | 0 | | 1–4 | — | — |

#### Knockout
## Statistics
### Appearances and goals

Numbers after plus-sign(+) denote appearances as a substitute.
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | MLS | MLS | MLS Cup | MLS Cup | U.S. Open Cup | U.S. Open Cup | Leagues Cup | Leagues Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||||||
| 1 | GK | CRO | Kristijan Kahlina | 33 | 0 | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 23 | GK | MEX | Pablo Sisniega | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | GK | USA | George Marks | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Defenders ||||||||||||||
| 2 | DF | POL | Jan Sobociński | 17 | 0 | 6+7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | FIN | Jere Uronen | 10 | 0 | 7+2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | URU | Guzmán Corujo | 6 | 0 | 5+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | NZL | Bill Tuiloma | 19 | 0 | 15+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | DF | ENG | Nathan Byrne | 39 | 0 | 29+2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+3 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 24 | DF | USA | Jaylin Lindsey | 29 | 1 | 15+6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 25 | DF | GHA | Harrison Afful | 18 | 0 | 11+4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 28 | DF | CRC | Joseph Mora | 5 | 0 | 2+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | DF | FRA | Adilson Malanda | 36 | 0 | 29 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 32 | DF | SEN | Hamady Diop | 4 | 0 | 0+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||||||
| 7 | MF | POL | Kamil Jóźwiak | 33 | 4 | 15+10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1+1 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | ENG | Ashley Westwood | 37 | 3 | 29 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | BEL | Brecht Dejaegere | 12 | 1 | 7+2 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 |
| 13 | MF | USA | Brandt Bronico | 41 | 2 | 30+2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| 15 | MF | USA | Ben Bender | 23 | 4 | 11+6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1+4 | 1 |
| 19 | MF | USA | Chris Hegardt | 7 | 0 | 0+4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | USA | Derrick Jones | 34 | 1 | 20+8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0+3 | 0 |
| 34 | MF | USA | Andrew Privett | 19 | 0 | 11+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 36 | MF | USA | Brandon Cambridge | 13 | 2 | 0+9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 |
| 37 | MF | CAN | Scott Arfield | 19 | 3 | 2+11 | 2 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| 77 | MF | POR | Nuno Santos | 5 | 0 | 2+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Forwards ||||||||||||||
| 9 | FW | ARG | Enzo Copetti | 29 | 7 | 23+3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | POL | Karol Świderski | 40 | 15 | 29+2 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1+2 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
| 16 | FW | BRA | Andre Shinyashiki | 5 | 0 | 2+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | FW | USA | McKinze Gaines | 21 | 1 | 8+10 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | FW | COL | Kerwin Vargas | 36 | 5 | 18+11 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1+4 | 0 |
| 21 | FW | BRA | Vinicius Mello | 3 | 0 | 0+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | FW | IRQ | Justin Meram | 32 | 4 | 13+12 | 4 | 0+1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 |
| 33 | FW | USA | Patrick Agyemang | 18 | 4 | 1+11 | 1 | 0+1 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 | 0+4 | 2 |
* Last updated: October 25, 2023
* Source: Team Stats

### Goalscorers

| Rank | No. | Pos. | Nat. | Name | MLS | MLS Cup | U.S. Open Cup | Leagues Cup | Total |
| 1 | 11 | FW | | Karol Świderski | 12 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 15 |
| 2 | 9 | FW | | Enzo Copetti | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 |
| 3 | 18 | FW | | Kerwin Vargas | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 4 | 22 | FW | | Justin Meram | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | 15 | MF | | Ben Bender | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| 4 | 7 | MF | | Kamil Jóźwiak | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | 33 | FW | | Patrick Agyemang | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 8 | 8 | MF | | Ashley Westwood | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 8 | 37 | MF | | Scott Arfield | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 10 | 36 | MF | | Brandon Cambridge | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | 13 | MF | | Brandt Bronico | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 12 | 10 | MF | | Brecht Dejaegere | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | 17 | FW | | McKinze Gaines | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | 24 | DF | | Jaylin Lindsey | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | 20 | MF | | Derrick Jones | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Own Goals | Own Goals | Own Goals | Own Goals | Own Goals | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | 45 | 2 | 4 | 9 | 60 |
* Last updated: October 25, 2023
* Source: Competitive matches

### Assists

| Rank | No. | Pos. | Nat. | Name | MLS | MLS Cup | U.S. Open Cup | Leagues Cup | Total |
| 1 | 7 | MF | | Kamil Jóźwiak | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 |
| 2 | 11 | FW | | Karol Świderski | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| 3 | 24 | DF | | Jaylin Lindsey | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 |
| 3 | 13 | MF | | Brandt Bronico | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 |
| 5 | 18 | FW | | Kerwin Vargas | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 5 | 8 | MF | | Ashley Westwood | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| 5 | 22 | FW | | Justin Meram | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| 8 | 15 | MF | | Ben Bender | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 9 | 9 | FW | | Enzo Copetti | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 9 | 25 | DF | | Harrison Afful | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 11 | 6 | DF | | Bill Tuiloma | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 10 | MF | | Brecht Dejaegere | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 14 | DF | | Nathan Byrne | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 17 | FW | | McKinze Gaines | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 21 | DF | | Adilson Malanda | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 1 | GK | | Kristijan Kahlina | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 19 | MF | | Chris Hegardt | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | 36 | MF | | Brandon Cambridge | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | 45 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 61 |
* Last updated: October 25, 2023
* Source: Competitive matches

### Disciplinary record

| N | P | Name | MLS | MLS Cup | U.S. Open Cup | U.S. Open Cup | Leagues Cup | Total | Total |
| 20 | MF | Derrick Jones | 11 | | | | | 11 | |
| 14 | DF | Nathan Byrne | 7 | | | | 3 | 10 | |
| 8 | MF | Ashley Westwood | 6 | | 1 | | 3 | 10 | |
| 9 | FW | Enzo Copetti | 7 | 1 | | | | 8 | |
| 29 | DF | Adilson Malanda | 5 | 1 | | 1 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
| 13 | MF | Brandt Bronico | 5 | | 2 | | | 7 | |
| 11 | FW | Karol Świderski | 6 | | | | | 6 | |
| 7 | MF | Kamil Jóźwiak | 5 | | | | | 5 | |
| 2 | DF | Jan Sobociński | 4 | | | | | 4 | |
| 18 | FW | Kerwin Vargas | 4 | | | | | 4 | |
| 22 | FW | Justin Meram | 3 | | | | 1 | 4 | |
| 17 | FW | McKinze Gaines | 3 | | | | | 3 | |
| 24 | DF | Jaylin Lindsey | 3 | | | | | 3 | |
| 25 | DF | Harrison Afful | 3 | | | | | 3 | |
| 33 | FW | Patrick Agyemang | 3 | | | | | 3 | |
| 1 | GK | Kristijan Kahlina | 2 | | | | | 2 | |
| 4 | DF | Guzmán Corujo | 2 | | | | | 2 | |
| 6 | DF | Bill Tuiloma | 2 | | | | | 2 | |
| 15 | MF | Ben Bender | 1 | | 1 | | | 2 | |
| 37 | MF | Scott Arfield | 1 | | | | 1 | 2 | |
| 16 | FW | Andre Shinyashiki | 1 | | | | | 1 | |
| 19 | MF | Chris Hegardt | 1 | | | | | 1 | |
| 31 | GK | George Marks | 1 | | | | | 1 | |
| 77 | MF | Nuno Santos | 1 | | | | | 1 | |
| 10 | MF | Brecht Dejaegere | | | | | 1 | 1 | |
| 34 | MF | Andrew Privett | | | | | 1 | 1 | |
| 36 | MF | Brandon Cambridge | | | | 1 | | | 1 |
Last updated: October 15, 2023 Source: Competitive matches Only competitive matches = Number of bookings; = Number of sending offs after a second yellow card; = Number of sending offs by a direct red card.