Late Pachuca goal spoils Maxi’s Charlotte FC debut 

MATT LACZKO | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Allan Saint-Maxim showed flashes of quality that resulted in drawing a penalty kick for Charlotte FC in their 1-0 loss to FC Pachuca in the Leagues Cup group stage finale Aug. 11, 2026.

The long-awaited debut of Allan Saint-Maximin was spoiled late.

Nearly a month after Charlotte FC’s acquisition of the French forward, he checked in for the Crown in the 72nd minute of a 0-0 stalemate with FC Pachuca in Leagues Cup play. Saint-Maximin, or Maxi, made an immediate impact by drawing a penalty in the 83rd minute that Archie Goodwin missed. 

Charlotte manager Dean Smith was confident in his decision of picking Goodwin to take the kick. 

“He won’t be the best player to miss a penalty, and he won’t be the worst player to miss a penalty,” Smith said. 

Seven minutes later, Pachuca midfielder Alan Bautista found the back of the net all but dashing Charlotte’s hopes of advancing beyond the group stage. With the top four MLS teams advancing to the knockout rounds, Charlotte is tied for fourth with Chicago Fire with Chicago playing its group finale on Aug. 13 against Cruz Azul. A win or draw would put the fire ahead of Charlotte. 

Charlotte finished the group stage 2-0-1.

Pep Biel absence felt

In Charlotte’s previous group stage game against Atlas FC, midfielder Pep Biel received a red card for something he said to a referee after the final whistle. His absence could be seen in how Charlotte was not able to move the ball as well through the middle and at times passes went astray and turned into runouts by Pachuca. 

A lot of Charlotte’s attack started from centerbacks bringing the ball further up the pitch to force it to a wing on the near side in hopes of crossing back to the far side. Getting Biel back will help the attack, but this is also where Maxi factors in. 

How will Maxi’s presence boost Charlotte?

In just 22 minutes of play including stoppage, Maxi’s impact was felt. His speed with and without the ball is an asset. His touch inside the box while shielding the ball from defenders looking to strike was impressive and ultimately resulted in a penalty. 

Maxi had 16 touches, four duels won, two shots and the penalty drawn in his short stint. 

With Wilfred Zaha gone, an explosive wing like Maximin will boost the Crown’s attack moving forward. While a Leagues Cup knockout stage berth is a longshot, the glimpses Maxi showed in his debut will certainly give Charlotte hope as they prepare to get back to MLS play. 

There were times when it appeared obvious Maxi was out of game shape with poor touch on passes or misjudged timing, but once the rust is gone, he could round into Charlotte’s most explosive attacker. 

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