Exclusive: Photos from Patrick Agyemang's First U.S. Men's National Team Appearance and Goal
Soccer Sheet was the only Carolinas publication to cover Agyemang's first appearance for the U.S. - and his first goal.









All photos by Sam Spencer for Soccer Sheet.
On Saturday, January 18, Soccer Sheet travelled to Fort Lauderdale to see the U.S. Men’s National Team take on Venezuela in a friendly at Chase Stadium, the temporary home of Inter Miami CF.
Since Charlotte FC forward Patrick Agyemang got called up for national team duty for the first time, we followed the camp - and based on what we had been hearing, we made an educated guess that Agyemang would feature in the first game.








Indeed, the young forward would start at striker, and he delivered immediately. In just the first two minutes, Big Pat drew a penalty in the box, which would be missed by Matko Miljevic in the third minute.
After some solid chances for both the USMNT and Agyemang, midfielder Jack McGlynn found the net from outside the box, earning the United States their first goal of the year. Two minutes later, in the 39th minute, Miljevic made up for his miss with a great pass to Agyemang, who took an energetic run and converted it into a goal.









In the second half, the United States grew their lead to 3-0, with Agyemang substituted shortly after. Venezuela would get one back, and the friendly would end 3-1.
Agyemang would travel with the team to their second friendly in Orlando on Wednesday, January 22. Though he came off the bench in the 75th minute, it was enough for him to add the final goal of the match in a 3-0 win over Costa Rica.
“We made eye contact, and I saw [defender DeJuan Jones] play the ball … he played it well and I was just happy that it got through,” said Agyemang when asked about his first goal at a post-match media availability. “I took a touch, kind of composed myself, and I just said [to myself], ‘As long as I hit it with clean contact and put it on frame, it will be tough for the keeper to save it.’ And luckily, it just went in the goal.”
“I can’t put to words how it felt to be here,” said Agyemang. “It’s definitely a dream come true.”
Agyemang didn’t have long to rest as he joined Charlotte FC for preseason training in Florida later in the week, though he didn’t start nor participate in Charlotte’s first preseason match on Friday, January 24 against Nashville SC. However, with the permanent departure of former Charlotte striker Karol Świderski, who completed a move to Greek club Panathinaikos last week, Agyemang will almost certainly be Charlotte’s starting striker for the foreseeable future - and with the addition of Wilfried Zaha and the return of Pep Biel, Agyemang will have more playmakers supporting him this season.
“I think [Charlotte FC head coach Dean Smith]’s coaching helped him a lot last season. We haven’t seen the best out of Pat yet,” said Charlotte FC General Manager Zoran Krneta at a virtual press availability on January 20. “So yes, Pat will be one of the key pieces for us going forward.”