Two teams separated by just two points in the middle of the Major League Soccer Eastern Conference will square off on Saturday, as Charlotte FC entertain CF Montreal.
Thanks to back-to-back victories, the visitors now sit eighth in the division, while their hosts have dropped to 10th spot in the midst of a winless run.
Match preview
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After initially enduring a tough start to the Major League Soccer season, in which they lost their opening three games, Charlotte FC quickly improved their fortunes to strengthen their position in the Eastern Conference, amassing 21 points from the next 12 outings.
In that span between mid-March and the end of May, Christian Lattanzio's side managed six victories, including three in a row over New York City FC, Atlanta United and Chicago Fire in May, before the run culminated in a 1-0 victory away at Los Angeles Galaxy thanks to Karol Swiderski's goal.
The Crown have been unable to add another notch to their wins column in four further attempts since, though, having firstly lost 1-0 away at Philadelphia Union before suffering a 4-2 beating at the hands of Columbus Crew with goals from Swiderski and Justin Meram not enough to trigger a turnaround.
Lattanzio's side now head into the weekend on the back of consecutive draws, firstly splitting the points in a meeting with Seattle Sounders which ended three goals apiece, thanks to Patrick Agyemang's 89th-minute leveller, before they were most recently held to a 2-2 draw away at New York Red Bulls on Thursday, despite going 2-0 up through an early Ben Bender brace, as Dante Vanzeir and Cameron Harper levelled the scores for the hosts in the second half.
As a result of their disappointing run this month, Charlotte FC have quickly dropped to 10th place in the Eastern Conference, but with the middle of the division still very tight at this stage and with the visitors just two points better off, they will aim to reverse their fortunes and begin climbing again with a much-needed return to winning ways on Saturday.
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They meet a CF Montreal side on a different trajectory, with the visitors having improved in recent months after a difficult start to the league campaign.
After seven games of the MLS season, CF Montreal sat in a particularly concerning position with just three points on the board having suffered six defeats and conceded 17 goals while only scoring three, all of which came in their solitary 3-2 triumph over Philadelphia Union.
Dejected from that poor start, Hernan Losada's men were able to turn their fortunes round in style as they then put four straight wins on the board across late April and early May, and after amassing four points from the following five outings, they sat on 19 from their 16 games.
L'Impact now head into the weekend having again put consecutive wins together to take that tally to 25, though, firstly thrashing Minnesota United 4-0 earlier in June as Mason Toye hit a brace alongside goals from Zachary Brault-Guillard and Rudy Camacho, before they most recently hosted Nashville SC and came out on top with Bryce Duke netting the only goal of the game around the half-hour mark.
Now with renewed confidence in the camp once again, CF Montreal find themselves in eighth spot in the Eastern Conference, and with just a two-point gap to seventh-placed Orlando City and a three-point gap to sixth-placed Columbus Crew, Losada's men will seek to continue their climb into the top seven with a third straight victory at the weekend.
Team News
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Charlotte FC were without key forward and top scorer Karol Swiderski for their recent meeting with New York Red Bulls, as he was away on international duty with Poland, and after coming off the bench in their eventual defeat to Moldova, it is yet to be seen whether he will return in time to feature from the start for the Crown on Saturday.
We will also not yet see new arrival Scott Arfield, who will be able to kick off his career in the Queen City in early July after joining following spells at Rangers and Burnley, while his former Clarets teammate Ashley Westwood will continue to don the captain's armband and play a key role in the midfield in the meantime.
Should Swiderski not return to contention in time to come back in and lead the line for Lattanzio's side, Enzo Copetti should start up front with Kerwin Vargas, Kamil Jozwiak and Justin Meram fighting for spots on the wings in a 4-3-3 setup, while Ben Bender will again get forward from the midfield after his brace inside the first 20 minutes against New York Red Bulls.
CF Montreal are also dealing with an attacking absence, as Romell Quioto remains sidelined with a muscle injury after hitting a team joint-high tally of three goals in his first seven MLS appearances of the season.
Without him, Mason Toye and Sunusi Ibrahim partnered up up front last time out, although Chinonso Offor has also managed three league goals this term and will be keen to break into the attack from the start, while Bryce Duke will again offer support from an advanced midfield role.
Following their recent victories, Losada is unlikely to make many changes to his starting XI, with former Tottenham Hotspur man Victor Wanyama bound to again play a key role in midfield, while Joel Waterman, Rudy Camacho and Gabriele Corbo should all keep their places in a back three.
Charlotte FC possible starting lineup:
Kahlina; Lindsey, Corujo, Malanda, Byrne; Westwood, Bronico, Bender; Jozwiak, Copetti, Meram
CF Montreal possible starting lineup:
Sirois; Waterman, Camacho, Corbo; Brault-Guillard, Wanyama, Choiniere, Lassiter; Duke; Toye, Ibrahim
We say: Charlotte FC 0-1 CF Montreal
With a Charlotte FC team lacking confidence, and possibly their key forward, meeting a resurgent CF Montreal outfit on the back of consecutive clean sheets and wins, we can only envisage the visitors continuing their streak and coming out on top on Saturday.
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