Striking out in goal production

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Your center forward is usually where the bulk of the goals come from, and in the case of Major League Soccer, it’s often where your designated players are, too. For Charlotte FC, neither has been the case this season. Between 21-year-olds Idan Toklomati and Archie Goodwin, neither of whom falls under the higher-paid status of a designated player, Charlotte has six goals of its 18 goals so far this season, three from each. (Midfielder Pep Biel is the leading scorer with five.)

Charlotte’s six goals from its strikers is tied for ninth out of 15 teams the Eastern Conference, according to the American Soccer Analysis. Put another way, only five teams in the Eastern Conference have fewer goals from their strikers.

For some context, Charlotte is also the only team in the Eastern Conference without a striker over the age of 22, and one of only three teams in the Eastern Conference without a designated player at the position. The other two teams without one are New England, which Charlotte travels to play on Saturday, and Montreal.

Last season, Charlotte FC strikers piled up goals. Patrick Aygemang and Toklomati combined to score 17 of them in 34 games. That’s a goal from a striker every other game. Once Agyemang left for the U.S. Men’s National team camp and ultimately England’s Derby County, Toklomati started scoring and couldn’t stop. He converted 11 goals in 14 starts, including a hat trick against Inter Miami.

His production has dipped so far this season. Toklomati was limited to three goals in the first nine MLS games before Smith decided to sit him last Saturday in Nashville. He gave Australian Archie Goodwin his first MLS start. (Goodwin has scored his three goals in 638 fewer minutes played than Toklomati.)

“I've spoken to [Toklomati] about, ‘Don't worry about [it], just play your game,’” Charlotte FC coach Dean Smith said of his goal production. “That's what he did last season. And we work with him, we coach him, we talk about different runs he can make, areas of the pitch where he's going to be more fruitful to score goals.”

Smith has said he’s encouraged Toklomati to play more centrally, that at times defenders drag him out of the penalty box. When he’s in the box, he’s either making runs to be in good positions to score or occupying center backs and leaving space behind him for teammates like Biel, who showed what he could do with it in Nashville.

It’s also incumbent, Smith said, that the rest of the team deliver Toklomati the ball.

“The job of the team is to get the ball in and around him in the penalty box so he can score goals,” Smith said.

Not yet one-third of the way through the MLS season (10 of 34 games), Charlotte is still on pace to get more than 18 goals from the position. Ideally, Smith said, in his system, he likes to get 20 goals from his strikers.

On Thursday, Smith sounded like a coach who prefers to bring Goodwin as a “pest” off the bench, creating havoc for center backs who have tired legs by then, and getting Toklomati back into the starting 11. Smith said Toklomati had bright moments off the bench in Tuesday’s U.S. Open Cup loss to Atlanta United.

“He’s got a high ceiling,” Smith said. “He's got things that you want in a center forward. He's good in the air. He can make the ball stick when it comes into his feet. He's tidy with the ball. He's got a trick [an array of moves], but he can finish with both feet. He's got all kinds of finishes at the moment.”

Smith took a wave of criticism for using a rotated lineup Tuesday in Charlotte FC’s Round of 16 U.S. Open Cup match against Atlanta United, a 2-0 loss at the Matthews Sportsplex. There was a segment of the fanbase taking issue with Smith emptying out the bench in a game that could have put Charlotte FC into the quarterfinals for the first time and still in contention for its first trophy of any kind.

Smith stood by his decision Tuesday night and again in his press conference Thursday, which he said was based on needing rest for veteran players after three consecutive road games in eight days, in New York, Orlando and Nashville. By Thursday, it was clear how hobbled the club is defensively.

Center back Tim Ream came out of the New York City FC game with an adductor strain, left back Harry Toffolo came out of the Nashville game with a thigh injury, and center back Henry Kessler attempted to return from knee tendinitis and never did. None of the three are available for Saturday’s game in New England. Smith said he was hopeful Ream might return next week, but Toffolo might not be back before the World Cup break starts in three weeks. Kessler has yet to play in a league game for Charlotte, having been hampered by injuries since his preseason arrival.

(The bright spot of news was that winger Wilfried Zaha, who did not travel to Nashville after hurting his heel in practice Friday, has been back in action and is expected to play at New England.)

Charlotte FC knew it would have a big hole to plug this season — its biggest offseason question, in fact, after center back Adilson Malanda left for the English Championship. Kessler has not proved to be the answer, at least not yet. The quick development of Morrison Agyemang has been a bright spot, but he’s endured some growing pains of late. And with the center back pairing of Agyemang and Andrew Privett, Charlotte FC has given up four goals in each of its past two MLS games.

“Morrison's come in, and he's done really well,” Smith said. “He's made a couple of mistakes in the last few games, but that's going to happen when you've not played at that level before in your career. We're working with Privs. He's just come back into the team having gone out. [Rotation due to injury] is not helpful, but that's part and parcel of professional sports.”

◼️ Debuts: Aron John and Jack Neeley, both of whom grew up in Charlotte and signed homegrown contracts, made their first team starting debuts for Charlotte FC on Tuesday night against Atlanta United in the Round of 16 in the U.S. Open Cup. John played at central attacking midfield and Neeley at right back, thought his more natural position is center back.

“This [was] a great opportunity in the cup competition,” John said. “I was going into it, thinking, ‘If we win this game, we get another chance to play again, so it’s disappointing that we couldn't keep going, but we'll fight again on the weekend.”

◼️ Leagues Cup matchups announced: Charlotte FC will host three games against teams from the Mexican League (Liga MX) in Phase One of the Leagues Cup in early August following the World Cup break. Charlotte will host Pumas UNAM Tuesday, Aug. 4; Atlas FC on Friday, Aug. 7; and CF Pachuca on Tuesday, Aug. 11. For more information, including ticket info, click here.

◼️ Banner’s last game: Taylor Banner, who has been Charlotte FC’s lead photographer and creative director since its inaugural season, is departing to begin a freelance opportunity. Saturday in New England is her last game working full-time for Charlotte FC. Banner has been an integral part of telling Charlotte FC’s story these past five years. She’s taken us inside the pre-game huddle, the post-game locker room and all the big moments on and off the field in between. Ledger readers have regularly benefited from her work in Fútbol Friday, which we appreciate. This is a feature I wrote for Charlotte Magazine about the all-female group of photographers Banner assembled for Charlotte FC’s inaugural game in 2022. Thank you, Taylor!

Dean Smith on a video posted to social media by TopBin90 this week saying he’d gotten into an “altercation” with a fan behind the bench at the Matthews Sportsplex over his starting lineup:

When/Where: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Mass.

How to watch: 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.

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Carroll Walton is a longtime baseball writer with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution now in her fifth season covering Charlotte FC. She would love to hear from you. E-mail her with questions, suggestions, story ideas and comments!