Charlotte FC 4-0 Orlando City: Saint-Maximin scores, misses a penalty and is sent off

Allan Saint-Maximin scored, missed a penalty and was sent off as Charlotte FC beat Orlando City 4-0 at Bank of America Stadium.

Henry Kessler, Abdoulaye Doucouré and Rodolfo Aloko also found the net for Dean Smith's Charlotte FC. The result means Charlotte have now recorded back-to-back 4-0 wins in MLS.

The hosts needed only six minutes to break the deadlock, as Kessler rose well to meet Ashley Westwood's free-kick delivery and head past Maxime Crépeau.

Orlando City hit the post through Iago Teodoro from an Antoine Griezmann cross in the closing moments of the first half. The visitors paid dearly for that missed chance: four minutes after the restart, Saint-Maximin took centre stage with a superb solo goal to double the lead.

Pep Biel's brilliant placed effort came back off the crossbar in the 67th minute, and Charlotte had to wait until the 84th minute for their third. Iván Angulo fouled Aloko in the box, and Saint-Maximin's penalty was saved by the goalkeeper, but Doucouré followed up on the rebound to score his first goal in a Charlotte shirt.

The drama did not end there. Saint-Maximin was shown a red card for an inappropriate gesture towards an Orlando player. In stoppage time, Aloko met Tyger Smalls' cross with a powerful first-time strike to seal a 4-0 win.

Elsewhere in the league, FC Cincinnati beat the Philadelphia Union 1-0 to clinch a playoff spot. New York City FC, meanwhile, drew 1-1 with CF Montréal and, after conceding in the 91st minute, dropped out of the race for the postseason playoffs.

Charlotte hit form ahead of MLS Cup run

After three winless matches in MLS, Charlotte have responded emphatically, beating both Montréal and Orlando 4-0 within four days.

Saint-Maximin produced one of the most eventful performances of his career, leading his team in shots (four), touches in the box (seven), successful dribbles (five), duels won (nine) and tackles won (two). Charlotte goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina also played a major part in the victory, standing tall with eight key saves.

With their playoff hopes in their own hands, Griezmann and Orlando City host the New England Revolution in the final week of the regular season.