In what could be Wilfried Zaha’s last game with Charlotte FC, the club will aim to win at home against the New England Revolution on Saturday evening.
Charlotte (5-6-3, 18 points) has struggled throughout the first half of the season. They have won only one league game in their last six attempts (1-4-1), including a loss at New England (8-4-1, 25 points) on May 2.
Unlocking Zaha will be key to getting points against the Revolution’s tight defense. However, his future in Charlotte after the World Cup break is unclear. His contract expires June 30, during the break.
“I don’t know where it is with Wilfried,” Charlotte manager Dean Smith said, referring to Zaha’s stalled contract negotiations. “I believe there’s been discussions going on. But we know we’re coming to a point where discussions are going one way or another. And, a decision will be made one way or another. But it won’t be made before Saturday.
“One thing I can say throughout all of this is his reaction to it all; he’s just kept playing. He loves playing football, and he loves being at Charlotte. Those are two things that I do know, and I don’t think we’ll see anything different from him.”
Zaha, who has three goals and four assists in 12 league appearances, broke a five-game goal drought last Saturday in Charlotte’s 3-1 win against Toronto FC. He also entered the weekend leading the league in yellow cards with seven.
New England ended last week with a win over Minnesota United, its third in four games. Traveling to play a struggling Charlotte club presents a golden opportunity to continue its good form.
“It wasn’t easy because they are a very good team,” defender Mamadou Fofana said, discussing New England’s 1-0 win over Charlotte. “They play together, and they are compact. It’s always difficult to play against them. We know we’ll go to Charlotte with fans and everything, but the most important thing is trusting ourselves and continuing to do what we are doing now. I think we will take what we need.”
–Field Level Media
