The black and blue could only get one goal in.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. β Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, was all or nothing forΒ Charlotte FC.
The week before, the black and blue had to win in penalty kicks against New York City FC to stay in playoff contention after neither team could find the net during the second game of the first round. That forced a third game at Bank of America Stadium in the Queen City.
For much of the first part of the match, there wasn’t anything to speak of in the scoring department, or even elsewhere. But right before the break, New York City defender NicolΓ‘s FernΓ‘ndez found the net, putting the visiting team up 1-0 at halftime.
Almost right after halftime, New York striker Alonso MartΓnez kicked it in too, making it 2-0 for quite a while in favor of the visiting team. Charlotte did have one answer, a late-match goal by striker Idan Toklomati with assistance from forward Archie Goodwin.Β
But that left the score 2-1 for New York as time ticked on past 90 minutes and into 16 minutes of stoppage time. The outlook seemed grim for Charlotte.
And then their fate was sealed. FernΓ‘ndez once again found the net at the tail end of the match to pierce through the black and blue’s defenses, lifting New York up to 3-1. Charlotte had no opportunity for a comeback after that.
With that final goal, Charlotte was officially knocked out of MLS playoff contention, ending a run that saw the team hold an impressive nine-match win streak, a best for the franchise thus far in its early history. But Friday’s loss almost mimics the team’s failure in the first round of the 2024 playoffs, when its opponent, Orlando City SC, forced a third game in the first round.
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