Charlotte FC vs CF Pachuca Match Preview: Player Matchup & Predicted Starting XI

By Rylee McKinney (@rylees_roster) and Sean McGuffin (@SeanMCG704)

Starting XI against Pumas during Leagues Cup group stage (Photo courtesy of Francisco Diaz/TopBin90)

Charlotte FC will kick off their last group stage match for the 2026 Leagues Cup against CF Pachuca tonight. So far, their run has been successful, securing a 3-0 and a 2-0 win over Pumas and Atlas last week. With such momentum, The Crown has never looked better in the tournament compared to years past. Tonight will have fans on the edge of their seats, because anything is possible. Charlotte's recent success has also allowed Dean Smith to rotate his Starting XI heavily, granting key players genuine rest.

After this weekend's group stages, Charlotte sits in 2nd place in Group B standings. Tonight's competition currently holds 10th place.

Unlike Charlotte, Pachuca has had a difficult run in the group stages. Opening the tournament, Los Tuzos fell 3-1 to Cincinnati FC, with star of the tournament, Evander, smashing a goal from the top of the box. Then, on Friday, Pachuca lost once again to Columbus Crew, 2-1. They also unfortunately earned a red card in the second half (two yellows), suspending center-back Sergio Barreto.

Our matchup to watch tonight explores Charlotte's heavily rotated back-line with Pachuca's forcibly changed defense.

Charlotte FC - Attacking Midfield - Ashley Westwood

Captain Ashley Westwood has been a silent yet major contributor to the squad's Leagues Cup run this year.

The midfielder has started in both group stage matches and currently has a FotMob rating of 7.42 in this tournament specifically. On the pitch, Westwood has 84.6% successful passes, which reflects his key playmaker status. Most impressively, Westwood has had 110 total touches between both matches while also finding success on defense. Essentially, Charlotte's favorite tea-time partner has been holding down the midfield as per usual. Without Pep Biel (suspended for red card), Westwood will feel more pressure during tonight's match, especially during transitional moments.

FC Pachuca - Attacking Midfield - Adrian Alcaraz

FC Pachuca recently brought on Paraguayan midfielder Adrian Alcaraz ahead of the 2026/2027 season. The 26 year old has a variety of experience—and a variety of contracts—with clubs such as Libertad, Club Fernando de la Mora, Guarani and Club Olimpia. Alcaraz most recently completed the 2026 season with Club Olimpia in the Primera Division Apertura. He make 19 appearances, recording seven goals and two assists. In just his third game with Pachuca, Alcaraz scored his first goal in just seven minutes, demonstrating his lethal shot accuracy.

Charlotte FC's Predicted Starting XI against Pachuca

Here is our Predicted Starting XI for tonight:

Defensive Unit

Tyler Miller has kept a streak of clean sheets in his two Leagues Cup starts and will hope to continue the run in tonight's match against Pachuca. The defensive line will likely be bolstered by Nathan Byrne, Morrison Agyemang, Tim Ream and David Schnegg. After all, Schnegg mentioned during Monday’s presser that tonight's game will have the intensity of a knockout match: so, Dean Smith will likely rely more on his usual starters. There is a slight chance Dean Smith starts Will Cleary over Byrne as Clearly started on Friday night against Atlas..

Henry Kessler, Will Cleary and Andrew Privett will be available as substitutions.

Midfield 

Ashley Westwood continues to captain the team in midfield and will be joined by Djibril Diani. Rounding out the midfield, we have Brandt Bronico starting, but there is a very real chance Luca De La Torre takes his place.

Forward Line

Charlotte FC lost a major weapon for tonight’s game after Pep Biel received a red card after the final whistle on Friday. Dean Smith later confirmed that Biel made comments to a referee post-match. Biel had been playing on the forward line since Wilfried Zaha’s departure, but that may be a strategy of the past now that Saint-Maximin has officially joined the roster. Liel Abada and Rodolfo Aloko will likely start on the forward wings, with the striker position once again being a coin flip between Archie Goodwin and Idan Toklomati. We give the slight edge to Archie Goodwin in being tonight's starting striker. 

Available subs will be Idan Toklomati, Tyger Smalls and Allan Saint-Maximin.

Predicted Starting XI