Charlotte FC Erases Two-Goal Deficit to Draw FC Cincinnati 2-2 Despite Evander Gem

At halftime in Charlotte, FC Cincinnati looked like a team that had finally figured itself out. Evander had just produced a moment of pure artistry, Kévin Denkey had pounced on a rebound, and the Orange and Blue were up two. Then the second half started, and the plot twisted twice in quick succession.

Charlotte FC and FC Cincinnati drew 2-2 on Saturday night at Bank of America Stadium, where 26,252 watched Idan Toklomati and Pep Biel score in the 51st and 52nd minutes to wipe out Cincinnati's halftime lead. Cincinnati extended its unbeaten run to six matches, but in its own words it left two points behind.

Kahlina Saves, Denkey Pounces

Cincinnati controlled long stretches of the first half. Kristijan Kahlina had to save from Evander in the 10th minute and from Kenji Mboma Dem's long-range effort in the 13th. Charlotte's best chances came off corners, with Biel firing high and wide in the 15th and Toklomati missing narrowly from very close range in the 28th.

The breakthrough came in the 36th minute. Evander stood over a free kick just outside the area, according to the club, and Kahlina saved his shot in the top right corner. Cincinnati's own coverage said it first looked as though the ball had crossed the line, but the officials ruled it a save. It did not matter, because Denkey was on hand to finish the rebound from very close range.

Then Evander did something that will live on highlight reels for a while. In the 43rd minute, Pavel Bucha found him at the edge of the box, and Evander lifted a right-footed shot over Kahlina and into the top left corner. The club's own writer was practically breathless about the loft and spin on it. Not a lot of players try that. Fewer make it look this easy.

Two Goals, Barely a Breath

Charlotte came out of the break with intent. Toklomati forced Roman Celentano into a save in the 46th minute, and the corners started to pile up. In the 51st, Tim Ream headed a corner on, and Toklomati nodded it in from very close range. Moments later, Djibril Diani set up Biel in the middle of the box, and Biel's left-footed shot flew into the top right corner. A 2-0 deficit had become 2-2 in the 51st and 52nd minutes.

Pat Noonan acknowledged the damage. "I thought it was a really strong performance that was a little bit overshadowed by a poor 10 minutes to begin the second half," the Cincinnati head coach said, per the club.

From there the match settled into a grind. Cincinnati brought on Miles Robinson for Matt Miazga in the 56th minute and later added Ender Echenique and Obinna Nwobodo. Mboma Dem headed wide off an Evander through ball in the 61st. Charlotte substitute Archie Goodwin had a header blocked in the 83rd, Ashley Westwood missed narrowly from the middle of the box in the 88th, and Evander had a late shot blocked in the 89th. Neither side found a winner in four minutes of stoppage time.

Main Characters

Evander scored the goal of the night, put three of his five shots on target and drew the save that led to the opener. Cincinnati said his 49th goal contribution for the club moved him into third, alone, on the club's all-time goal contributions list, behind Brandon Vazquez and Luciano Acosta. "This is three games running, where we're talking about this (version of) Evander," Noonan said.

Kévin Denkey scored for the third time in his last four matches, per the club, which said he now has seven league goals this season. The club added that Denkey and Evander have combined for 13 of Cincinnati's 24 league goals.

Pep Biel scored the equalizer and kept creating, with four shots and a hand in several late chances. Idan Toklomati scored with one of his two shots on target, and Kristijan Kahlina made three saves to keep Charlotte within reach.

The Two Minutes That Mattered

Cincinnati had been the better team for 45 minutes, and the start of the second half undid all of it. Charlotte won corners in the 48th and 50th minutes, scored off a corner in the 51st, and then struck again a minute later. Evander was blunt about it: "I think we still did well, of course, but we gave away two points because we had the game in our hands." Miazga called it "a learning step for us," adding, "Now we were up, and lost out on three points."

Stats That Mattered

• Shots on target: Cincinnati 5 of 13, Charlotte 3 of 12.
• Possession: Cincinnati 53 percent, Charlotte 47 percent.
• Passing: Cincinnati completed 529 of 581 passes; Charlotte completed 453 of 503.
• Corners: Charlotte 7, Cincinnati 4.
• Discipline: Cincinnati took four yellow cards to Charlotte's one.

Where Things Stand

Charlotte moves to 4-3-5 with 15 points, and the point at least ended a three-match losing run that included defeats at Orlando City SC, Nashville SC and the New England Revolution. Dean Smith's side hosts New York City FC on Wednesday.

FC Cincinnati moves to 4-4-4 with 16 points and, per the club, has scored at least two goals in five straight matches. The unbeaten run is now six, which Miazga summed up neatly: "We have a little bit of an unbeaten run now, which is nice, but we want wins." There were encouraging signs on the injury front, too: the club said Miazga made his first start since April 11 and Robinson played his first MLS minutes in nearly a month. Cincinnati hosts Inter Miami CF on Wednesday before a trip to San Diego FC.

The Closer

Evander's chip deserved to be the headline of a Cincinnati win, the kind of goal that gets a frame-by-frame breakdown on social media by Sunday morning. Instead it is the opening scene of a draw. Charlotte did not play better for 90 minutes. It just played better for the two that mattered most, and in this league that is often enough.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quotes and match notes as reported by FC Cincinnati (fccincinnati.com).