Wilfried Zaha, Pep Biel Lead Charlotte FC Past Toronto FC 3-1, Snapping Charlotte's Five-Match Winless Run

Charlotte FC needed a win the way a phone at 2 percent needs a charger. Five straight matches without one had piled up, and then, in the 19th minute, Charlotte broke quickly, Kerwin Vargas crossed into the middle, and Wilfried Zaha guided a right-footed finish into the bottom left corner.

The rest of the night had more twists than anyone at the stadium ordered, but Charlotte held on for a 3-1 win over Toronto FC on Saturday. Zaha scored, Vargas assisted twice, David Schnegg hit a beauty from distance and Pep Biel buried a late penalty. Toronto got a stunner from Derrick Etienne Jr., a disallowed goal and not nearly enough else.

Answer, Rebuttal, Review

Toronto barely let Charlotte enjoy the lead. Three minutes after Zaha's opener, Jonathan Osorio found Etienne outside the box, and Etienne cut onto his right foot and smashed a shot off the underside of the bar and in. MLSsoccer.com counted it as his second MLS goal of the season, and it came, per the league site, a day after confirmation that he will join Haiti at the World Cup.

"It was a fantastic goal. He comes inside, hits a fantastic shot," Toronto head coach Robin Fraser said.

Toronto had already threatened before that. Walker Zimmerman headed a corner wide in the 16th minute, and Kristijan Kahlina saved a Jackson Gilman header moments later. Then, in the 27th minute, Gilman put the ball in the net for what looked like a 2-1 Toronto lead. VAR took a look, and the goal was ruled out.

That reprieve mattered. In the 35th minute, Vargas teed up Schnegg, and the left back hammered a left-footed shot from outside the box into the bottom right corner. Charlotte's own recap singled out Vargas for setting up both first-half goals, and it is hard to argue with that.

Charlotte should have been further ahead at the break. Luka Gavran saved a Zaha effort from inside the six-yard box in the 38th minute and denied Vargas in stoppage time, and on the ensuing corner Morrison Agyemang headed off the right post from an Ashley Westwood delivery. It stayed 2-1.

Toronto Pushes, Charlotte Bends

Toronto had more of the ball over the full 90 minutes, finishing with 53.9 percent possession, and it came out of halftime looking for an equalizer. Dániel Sallói had two efforts blocked inside the first three minutes of the half, and Kahlina saved Emilio Aristizábal's shot from the right side of the box in the 50th minute. Malik Henry missed twice, the second a near miss on a break in the 71st minute.

At the other end, Zaha kept shooting. He missed from the center of the box in the 73rd minute and then had two looks in the space of a minute around the 80th, both set up by substitute Djibril Diani, and both went begging. Gavran also stopped Schnegg from a tight angle in the 56th. Charlotte kept handing Toronto chances to stay alive.

Turning Point: Osorio's Foul

The game was settled in the 83rd minute. Agyemang drew a foul from Osorio in the penalty area, Osorio was booked, and Biel stepped up a minute later and sent a left-footed penalty down the middle. That made it 3-1, and Toronto never seriously threatened again, with a blocked header in the 88th minute about the extent of its late push.

Agyemang's night, which included the header off the post and the penalty he drew, deserves a mention. So does the debut of Will Cleary, who came on in the 75th minute and, according to the club, made his MLS debut as the latest product of Crown Legacy FC to step up.

Star Watch: Zaha and the Supporting Cast

Zaha led all players with six shots, put two on target and scored once. He was not always efficient, but he never stopped asking questions of the Toronto defense. Vargas finished with two assists and three shots before coming off in the 66th minute. Schnegg scored with one of his two shots, both on target, and Biel finished with a goal and three attempts in 87 minutes.

On the losing side, Etienne was the bright spot. Fraser was full of praise for his effort.

"And I thought Derrick played a really, really spirited game and gave us an important goal," Fraser said.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Charlotte 18, Toronto 13.
• Shots on target: Charlotte 6, Toronto 4. Both goalkeepers made three saves.
• Possession: Toronto 53.9 percent, Charlotte 46.1 percent. Charlotte did more with less.
• Corners: Charlotte won seven corners to Toronto's three.
• Clearances: Charlotte made 26 clearances to Toronto's 12.

What It Means

Charlotte improves to 5-3-6 with 18 points and finally ends a five-match winless run: losses to Orlando City, Nashville, New England and New York City FC, plus a draw with FC Cincinnati, since a 2-1 win at NYCFC on April 18. The Crown host the New England Revolution next Saturday in what the club called their final match before the summer break.

Toronto drops to 3-5-5 with 14 points and is winless in seven, with four draws and three losses since a 3-2 home win over Colorado on April 4. This was also Toronto's first regular-season road match since March 8, and the trip did not go to plan. Toronto visits the Chicago Fire next Saturday in its last league match before the World Cup break.

Etienne, at least, has bigger things ahead. "It's a great feeling. I think it's every player's dream to represent their country and go to the World Cup," he said.

Closing Take

Charlotte calls itself The Crown, and Shakespeare had a line about how uneasily the head that wears one lies. This night had plenty of unease: an instant Toronto equalizer, a Toronto goal that stood until VAR said otherwise, and a pile of Zaha misses that kept the visitors breathing. But after five matches without a win, Charlotte will happily take an uneasy night that ends with three points and the crown still on.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quotes as reported by MLSsoccer.com; match notes from Charlotte FC (charlottefootballclub.com).