CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Karol Swiderski led Charlotte FC into a matchup with the Philadelphia Union on Saturday after a two-goal outing against the Chicago Fire. But the star of the match would end up being Daniel Ríos as the black and blue blanked Philly, earning double the points in this win than when Union first bested Charlotte.
Long story short: Ríos fired on all cylinders.
The striker successfully found the net four times across the home match. His first goal was found at 24 minutes in, while the next one would be just after halftime at 45 minutes. A penalty kick at the 72-minute mark would complete a hat trick for the striker.
But Ríos wasn't done just yet. He sealed the win with a fourth and final goal one minute into stoppage time. Ríos led Charlotte FC to completely shut Philadelphia Union out 4-0.
Charlotte stood at 9-13-1 in Eastern Conference play and 6-10 record in one-goal matches prior to Saturday. Andre Shinyashiki has scored four goals for Charlotte. McKinze Gaines has one goal and three assists over the past 10 games.
On the other side, the Union were 14-3-7 in Eastern Conference games. The Union had a 6-3 record in matches decided by one goal.
The teams squared off Saturday for the second time this season. The Union won the last match 2-0.
Charlotte FC are set to remove the interim tag from manager Christian Lattanzio, a source confirmed to WCNC Charlotte Sports Director Nick Carboni earlier this week.
Lattanzio has guided the club since original manager Miguel Angel Ramirez was fired after 14 matches.
The team is 9-11-1 under Lattanzio but remains four points out of playoff position with three matches remaining.
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