Read on for a full recap, including comprehensive stats, post-match reaction and much more.
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (March 15, 2025) — Chattanooga Football Club made it two wins from two to begin the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro campaign following a 1-0 victory over Southeast Division rivals Huntsville City FC on Saturday afternoon.
Daniel Mangarov scored his first professional goal in the second minute of the match, which ultimately proved to be decisive for Head Coach Chris Nugent's side to start the season with six points.
Mangarov continued the trend of fast starts for CFC this season as he needed only 88 seconds to give the hosts the lead. Last week's opening scorer Keegan Ancelin slotted in a pass to Mangarov's feet inside the penalty area and the winger found the bottom corner.
Ancelin and Mangarov linked up again shortly after and created a big chance but Mangarov's shot went just wide of Huntsville keeper Erik Lauta's post.
The Boys in Blue nearly found another goal in the second half when Mangarov fizzed in a free-kick to the far post. Ethan Dudley's header on the back post bounced across the Huntsville goal but was ultimately cleared.
Once again, Eldin Jakupović was called upon to make crucial saves throughout the match, and the seasoned keeper collected his first clean sheet of the campaign for a valuable three points in the Scenic City.
"The result and resilience is the big takeaway today," said Head Coach Nugent in his post-game press conference. "We know we're not always going to be perfect, so to show some resilience, especially against a very good team and see the game out—that's huge for us. We would be naive to think that we are just going to dominate every team and play beautifully. Eldin [Jakupović] had a great game and made some big saves. Nathan [Koehler] came in and had a huge impact as well.
"We tried to make some tactical adjustments that we couldn't quite get right, so it was good to see the flexibility of changing some personnel and the shape, so there are some positives."
CFC will be back at Fort Finley on Wednesday evening to host Corpus Christi FC in the first round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Kick-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET and tickets are on sale now.
Noteworthy
- Chris Nugent made one change from the starting XI for the league opener in Fort Lauderdale last weekend
- Ethan Dudley came in for Logan Brown to make his first official start for Chattanooga FC
- Mangarov scored his first professional goal on Saturday afternoon
- Ancelin provided his first assist of the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro season and his first assist of his professional career
- Markus Naglestad, Jesus Ibarra and Nathan Koehler all made their first appearance this 2025 MLS NEXT Pro campaign
Man of the Match: Eldin Jakupović
Box Score
Chattanooga FC (2W-0L-0D, 6 pts.) - Huntsville City FC (1W-0L-0D, 3 pts.)
Finley Stadium | Chattanooga, Tennessee
Final score:
CFC: 1
HNT: 0
Scoring summary:
2': Mangarov - CFC
Stats (CFC / HNT):
xG (expected goals): 0.75 / 1.25
Possession: 26% / 74%
Shots: 6 / 26
Shots on goal: 2 / 5
Blocked shots: 1 / 10
Total passes: 249 / 631
Passing accuracy percentage: 65.9 / 88
Corners: 1 / 12
Total crosses: 3 / 9
Offsides: 1 / 0
Goalkeeper saves: 5 / 1
Clearances: 20 / 3
Fouls: 13 / 7
Discipline:
34' - HNT: Julian Gaines (Caution)
40' - CFC: Minjae Kwak (Caution)
48' - CFC: Callum Watson (Caution)
54' - HNT: Zach Barrett (Caution)
Line-ups:
CFC starters: Eldin Jakupović, Tate Robertson, Ethan Dudley, Farid Sar-Sar, Milo Garvanian, Nick Mendonca, Callum Watson (Steeve Louis Jean 71'), Alex McGrath (C), Daniel Mangarov (Markus Naglestad 71'), Minjae Kwak (Jesus Ibarra 64'), Keegan Ancelin (Nathan Koehler 81')
Substitutes: Michael Barrueta, Logan Brown, Robert Screen, Darwin Ortiz, Peter Plougmand
Head Coach: Chris Nugent
HNT starters: Erik Lauta, Julian Gaines (Tyshawn Rose 64'), Zach Barrett (Malik Henry-Scott 63'), Chris Applewhite, Blake Bowen (C), Wyatt Meyer, Pep Casas, Ethan O'Brien, Damien Barker John (Real Gill 78'), Christian Koffi, Raul Miglietti (Gunnar Studenhofft 63')
Substitutes: Ammar Delic, Kevin Carmichael, Isaiah Jones, Moises Veliz Rodriguez, Adem Sipic
Head Coach: Chris O'Neal
