CHARLOTTE, NC (July 25, 2026) – The Charlotte Independence returned to winning ways Saturday night with a 3-1 victory over the Richmond Kickers at American Legion Memorial Stadium.
After seeing their eight-match league winning streak snapped with back-to-back defeats, the Independence responded in emphatic fashion. Goals from Prince Saydee, Fabrice Ngah and Souaibou Marou secured all three points, lifting Charlotte back into second place in the USL League One standings after the final match of a demanding three-game week.
Saydee nearly produced a spectacular opener in the 19th minute with a dazzling solo run. After Charlotte cleared a Richmond corner, the Liberian carried the ball nearly 60 yards up the field, nutmegged a defender and forced Yann-Alexandre Fillion into a strong save. Three minutes later, Fillion came up even bigger, stretching to tip Clay Dimick’s header away following a Charlotte corner.
The Independence continued to pile on the pressure and nearly found the breakthrough again in the 27th minute. Marou forced a turnover deep in Richmond territory before Jefferson Amaya slipped Saydee in behind. With only the goalkeeper to beat, Saydee curled his effort just wide of the far post.
Matt Levy was called into action for the first time in the 37th minute. Joshua Kirkland battled between Reudd Manin and Javen Romero before firing from 18 yards, but Levy reacted sharply, diving to his left to push the effort away.
Charlotte’s relentless pressure finally paid off in the 40th minute. Richmond gifted possession away deep in its own half when Fillion slipped while attempting to play out of the back, leaving Jon Bakero with acres of space atop the penalty area. Bakero quickly slid a pass into the path of Saydee, who calmly finished off the inside of the post for his third goal of the season.
Charlotte struck one more time before the break. On virtually the final kick of the first half, Saydee delivered another dangerous cross into the box. Fillion managed to get a hand to it, but only as far as Ngah, who slammed home the rebound to celebrate his 100th Independence appearance with a goal.
Looking for more, the Independence hit woodwork five minutes into the second frame. Just on the pitch as a halftime substitute, Luis Alvarez slipped through Marou, who touched it by Fillion before hitting the post from a sharp angle.
They wouldn’t be denied in the 58th minute. After earning a corner kick, Romero crossed a perfect ball onto Marou’s head, who finished low into the bottom corner to continue his stellar run of form.
Richmond came extremely close in the 66th minute. Alvarez lost the ball in his own box and the ball found Tyler Freeman in prime real estate, but his blast from 8 yards struck the crossbar.
Richmond’s pressure in the second half paid off in their first goal in over 400 minutes. After the Kickers rocketed off the post, Sean Vinberg deposited into the empty net to cut the margin in the 75th minute.
That proved to be all Richmond could muster as the Independence saw out a 3-1 victory, earning their 10th home win in all competitions this season.
POST-GAME SOUND
Head Coach Mike Jeffries on the result:
“Obviously, coming off the travel and the game in Spokane, we were a little tired, and I thought it took us some time to find our legs. Once we got 15 or 20 minutes into the game, though, we started creating chances and feeling better about our play. We did a good job creating opportunities on the counterattack, but we just didn’t finish them as well as we needed to in the first half. It was good to get the first goal off our pressure. I thought we pressed well all night, and the second goal was huge for us going into halftime. It came off a really good cross, and it gave us a great cushion. Quite honestly, we could have made the game a lot easier on ourselves at the end.”
Jeffries on how the team approached the game:
“I think we were excited about the game because we were coming off a disappointing loss in Spokane. As difficult as it was physically and mentally, it was actually good to have another game right away. The guys were ready. They took care of themselves, recovered well and came into the match with the right mentality. From the outside, you might look at this as a game we should win. From our standpoint, though, we know this league is very balanced. Anybody can beat anybody on any given day, so you can’t have a letdown or think it’s going to be an easy game because that’s when you get yourself into trouble.”
Prince Saydee on the victory:
“We came into tonight’s game with the mindset of not losing 3 games in a row, and I’m proud of the performance we showed at home tonight.”
Souaibou Marou on his strong goal-scoring form:
“My recent goal-scoring form is primarily down to the collective hard work of the team, the trust of the coach and my teammates, and my daily discipline. I stay focused on every match to keep this momentum going and help the team reach its goals.”
Fabrice Ngah on reaching 100 appearances and scoring on the night:
“Charlotte Independence is already like family to me because this team allowed me to relaunch my professional career, and I am very grateful for everything this family has given me. Today, I am doubly happy: first, for my first goal of the season, and second, for my 100th match with Charlotte Independence. I take this opportunity to thank the owner and the front office, the coach and all the technical and medical staff, my teammates who have allowed me to be where I am, and of course, the fans who come to the stadium to support us. Today, I say thank you to Charlotte Independence for everything.”
