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CHARLOTTE – Guzmán Corujo has played every single minute of Charlotte FC’s four games alongside fellow teammates Christian Makoun and Alan Franco. But for the first time this season, Makoun and Franco won’t be available to play because of international duty.

“First thing’s first, I'm so happy for Alan and Christian for their national team call ups, I’m proud to be able to play alongside teammates who are representing their national teams on the biggest stage,” said Corujo.

“Now we just wait to see how Miguel [Ramírez] wants to set up the team for the weekend. We’ll be preparing all week to see who the best choices are for the best possible first eleven in the upcoming match.”

With the absence of Franco, CLTFC’s latest addition, midfielder Derrick Jones, has an opportunity to make a statement in training to aid him in being selected for that first eleven this weekend. But Jones knows it won’t be easy with what he has seen in his brief time training with the team.

“The training and dedication are really up there. Guys are dedicated to playing, even in training you see it, everyone is working hard,” said Jones. “But I’m excited to be here.”

On opposing ends of the spectrum, Corujo has been at the Club since the very beginning while Jones just arrived a little less than two weeks ago. But they are a good example of the bonds being created despite the difference of time at the Club or the language barrier the team has learned to overcome.

“Naturally, us Spanish speakers are closer together simply because of the language,” describes Corujo. “But this is a beautiful group of human beings who all try to help each other, breaking that language barrier so that we aren’t different small groups but rather one large, unified one.”

The team has shown a genuine camaraderie even with the early adversity they have faced. They lost their first three matches despite playing well enough to earn results in all of them but Ramírez has helped keep the team’s morale with the help of the veteran players on the team.

“He’s very passionate about what he does. I haven’t been here for a long time but I love him for that. He tries to understand us as players...,” said Jones who has early on connected with Ramírez.

“Without a doubt Miguel is a grand leader that knows how to navigate these situations. Here everything is about work and respect,” said Corujo. “But in those tough times, it’s up to the experienced players who are the leaders to also step up and help the group find balance. There is a great phrase that encapsulates the balance that we need to have ‘The best thing isn’t when we win and the worst thing isn’t when we lose’.”

On what getting the first win meant to the players and what it means going forward for the team, Corujo believes it was an important boost but that there is still a long way to go.

“Getting that first win, and getting it at home, was an injection of confidence and excitement for the whole group. But we have to keep that balance, we have to keep working because we still have a lot to improve on, but we know we are on the right track.”