Wilfried Zaha waited for the start of the second half to officially introduce himself to his new hometown fans, setting up one goal four minutes into the half, then scoring himself five minutes later as Charlotte FC beat Atlanta United 2-0 in its home opener.

With Arabic and Hebrew roots, the name Zaha has interpretations of being clear; pure; bright; or peaceful. The 32-year-old who was born in Abidjan, the largest city in the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, a country on the southern coast of West Africa but raised in London from age 4, embodied that.