Just one week after his transfer from the Colorado Rapids, Andre Shinyashiki is making a name for himself with Charlotte FC.
The forward signed with the expansion team only five days ago, in a deal that sent $400,000 in General Allocation Money to the team that drafted the 2019 MLS Rookie of the Year.
Shinyashiki quickly debuted with his newest club, coming off the bench in Saturday’s victory over Inter Miami. It couldn’t have been more perfect for the forward, who scored the lone goal to secure the triumph and three points for the league’s newest team.
“I’ve been trying to come to Charlotte for a while,” the 24-year-old said postgame. “Even in preseason I know that they tried to get me and Miguel was very interested. He even showed me on his iPad, something that said Andre Shinyashiki, one of our targets. But unfortunately it’s not always easy to leave a club.
“In Colorado, I had very good moments and I had reasons to stay there too. But ultimately there was the idea of how Miguel plays and what he wants for me personally. That made a huge difference in me coming to Charlotte instead of a few other options I had.”
The goal came after the forward connected with Yordy Reyna, finding his cross to complete the shot from the right side of the six-yard box and into the top left corner.
“I’m happy for him today because he was disappointed and he wanted something new in his career,” Ramirez said. “He chose Charlotte before other big and good options in MLS, so I really appreciate this movement from him and I’m happy. Hopefully it’s just the beginning.”
After a great start to his Charlotte FC career, Shinyashiki is dreaming big.
“Everybody can dream. Why not?,” Shinyashiki posed.
“That’s what I always said in Colorado; nobody believed we were going to win the West last year, literally nobody. Then we end up winning it, so why not. If you do the work every day, that should give you confidence going into the weekend that you’re going to get points.”
The expansion side currently sits in eighth place on the Eastern Conference table with 13 points in 11 games and a record of 4-1-6.
They stand just one point away from the league’s top seven to qualify for the 2022 MLS playoffs. With months to go, Charlotte FC may just make the postseason in their first-ever campaign.
