Charlotte FC routs Orlando City SC 4-0 despite playing a man down

Five minutes. That's all it took Henry Kessler to put Charlotte FC ahead, and the club went on to win 4-0 over Orlando City SC at Bank of America Stadium, doing so with a man down late in the match. It was a wild night, featuring a missed penalty, a red card overturned by VAR and another shown to the same player a minute later.

The opening goal came off a free kick into the box: Ashley Westwood delivered the cross and Kessler headed it low to put the home side in front right out of the gate. Orlando City SC had given a warning sign earlier with two attempts from Antoine Griezmann and Marco Pasalic, but Charlotte FC struck first and never let go of the lead for the rest of the match.

In the second half, just minutes after the restart, Allan Saint-Maximin doubled the lead with a right-footed strike from outside the box that found the inside of the left post, assisted by Harry Toffolo. The 2-0 scoreline all but settled the match, though Orlando City SC, who held more possession and completed more passes over the course of the game, kept creating danger: Martin Ojeda and Griezmann had several chances that Kristijan Kahlina handled without any major trouble.

A chaotic final stretch

The closing minutes were a whirlwind of emotions. In the 81st minute, Charlotte FC were awarded a penalty after Ivan Angulo fouled Rodolfo Aloko, with Angulo booked for the challenge. Saint-Maximin stepped up to take it, but his right-footed attempt was saved. It hardly mattered: two minutes later, Abdoulaye Doucouré, who had just come on as a substitute, made it 3-0 with a left-footed shot off another free kick.

That wasn't the end of Saint-Maximin's night. In the 87th minute, VAR reviewed and overturned a red card that had been shown to him, but just a minute later, in the 88th, the Frenchman was sent off again, this time for good. Even with a man down, Charlotte FC still found a fourth goal in stoppage time: Tyger Smalls crossed into the box and Rodolfo Aloko finished through the middle of the goal to make it a final 4-0 in the 93rd minute.

What the numbers say

The scoreline stands in contrast to how the ball was shared: Orlando City SC had more possession and more shots on target, but lacked a cutting edge in the decisive moments.

The xG generated in the match, calculated after the fact based on shot locations, favors Charlotte FC with 2.636 versus 1.157 for Orlando City SC, a gap that backs up the ruthlessness shown by the home side despite seeing less of the ball.

Heading into the match, we had projected a 53% win probability for Charlotte FC, 21% for a draw and 26% for Orlando City SC, with expected total goals of 3.98. The result ended up being even more favorable for the home side than we had forecast, with a rout that exceeded that projection on the final scoreline.

Where things stand in the table

In the MLS Eastern Conference, Charlotte FC sit in fourth place with 53 points from 33 matches played (15 wins, 8 draws, 10 losses), while Orlando City SC sit ninth with 43 points from the same number of appearances (12 wins, 7 draws, 14 losses). The gap between the two sides in the standings is 10 points, a margin this rout only underscores.

For Orlando City SC, the task now is digesting a defeat marked by a lack of cutting edge up front despite dominating possession. For Charlotte FC, the takeaway is a resounding win, though tainted by Saint-Maximin's late red card, which will rule him out of the club's next fixture.