Charlotte FC looks for a Canadian sweep on Saturday

TROY HULL | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Nathan Byrne (from left), Idan Toklomati and Kerwin Vargas celebrate Vargas' goal against New York Red Bulls Aug. 24, 2025. Charlotte, fourth in the MLS Eastern Conference, plays CF Montreal Saturday with a chance to hold on to home pitch advantage for the postseason, which goes to the top four teams.

The winning streak is dead. Long live the streak. 

Unbeaten in 10 games with a record-equaling nine straight victories, the winning run of Charlotte FC over the past two months, took 28 points out of a possible 33 in 11 matches since Aug. 3. The spate did just what it was supposed to do: put the Crown into better position for postseason success, elevating the club from 10th to third in the MLS East standings. 

With three regular season matches remaining, beginning with Saturday’s game against CF Montreal at Bank of America Stadium, the focus now is to secure home advantage. The value of that was a lesson learned hard last season with two trips to Orlando after Charlotte finished just behind them by one point. 

Currently, the difference between fourth and eighth is just three points, and the potential season-end rankings couldn’t be muddier as there are a several games left between teams in the top nine that will move on to the playoffs. Charlotte FC coach Dean Smith has devised a clever plan to navigate the labyrinth of these last three matches.

“One game at a time,” he said. “That's always been my mantra. The players just concentrate on this next game and see where we are after that. And then if you win the next game, see where you are after that.”

Smith refuses to get baited into overthinking the possibilities, focusing instead on what they can control. When he mentions the opportunity of winning the Supporters Shield, which took a big hit with the loss in New York last weekend, he does so because it’s still mathematically possible. 

“It’s probably not so much a reset, because we still feel that we're in a good place,” he said. “Unfortunately, things didn't go our way last week, and (the winning streak record) was always going to be a tough ask. Nobody in the history of the MLS has done it before. So that shows you, straight away, that it was going to be tough to win 10 games on the spin.

“My focus has been on finishing in the top four to give ourselves a better chance than last season in the playoffs. We’ve still got some work to do now to get there; we’ve got to win games. We know that. We’re playing against opposition now that probably haven’t got so much to play for, but there’s new head coaches in both Montreal and DC the following week who will be looking at players to show them what they’re about for the beginning of next season. We know what our job is and what we've got to do. We’ve got to be at the top of our game.”

Oh, Canada

For Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty, who will likely start as an outside back on Saturday, this will be his first match against Montreal, the team that loaned him to Charlotte in May. He was not on the game day roster for Montreal when the teams met in April, but did play against Charlotte in both 2024 games.

Charlotte has already taken Toronto down twice and won in Montreal for the first time, outscoring the Canadian sides 5-0. They do not play Vancouver this season unless both teams make the MLS Cup, so the odds are good for a sweep.

Marshall-Rutty originally came up through the Toronto FC system after joining their academy in 2018. After 83 first-team appearances for TFC from 2020, he was shipped to Montreal during last season and hit the pitch 16 times for CFM before heading south. 

Smith likes the young Canadian, who was recently called back to the national team based on his play for Charlotte. 

“I've really enjoyed working with him so far. He's coachable. He wants to get better,” Smith said. “Physically, he’s really, really good, but he’ll be the first to admit that he needs some work still, certainly on the defensive side of his game. He's been brought up as a wingback, and so your defensive responsibilities are a little bit different. We’ve got certain principles that we play with defensively. And he's took them on board.”

The feeling is mutual. 

“I'm so grateful for Charlotte taking me in,” said Marshall-Rutty, 21. “I would have never thought, come September, I would have gotten called into the national team. If you asked me earlier in the year, would we be sitting in third place or something, and I would have started as much as I did.” 

“I'm super grateful, and I think all the experiences I've taken this year with the players I've played with, and the experiences we've had, ups and downs, have made me a better player. But it's also made me like a better person, and I'm maturing.” 

Asked why he thinks the team is ready for this final stretch and a good playoff run, Marshall-Rutty cites the squad’s unity. 

“I just think, the way we're playing right now, the way we're defending, the way we're attacking. We're good in both boxes, and to win a football match, you have to be good in both boxes. We have the players to score, and we have the players to defend, and I just think overall, on and off the pitch, we're a unit.

“I just think it's the best time for us. I think a lot of the guys are saying it's a good time to be on this team, for me personally, and it’s also just a good time to win. So I think we're all excited, we're all motivated, and we all have the same goal to win.”

Kickoff is 7:30 p.m. at Bank of America Stadium. The match will be televised on Apple TV’s MLS Season Pass, with radio coverage available on WFNZ (English, 92.7 FM) and WOLS (Spanish, 106.1 FM).

Comments