Chattanooga FC earned a hard-fought 1-0 victory against Flower City Union on Saturday evening. A wonder goal from Markus Naglestad was the difference as the league leaders brought three points home from Rochester.
The boys in blue entered the match in search of three points after drawing the last two league encounters. Chattanooga’s last win came in the reverse fixture with Flower City when Richard Dixon’s first professional goal earned a 1-0 win.
Head coach Rod Underwood unveiled the same starting eleven that drew with the Savannah Clovers last time out. Juan Louis and Mutaya Mwape started on either side of Markus Naglestad in the attack. Luis Garcia Sosa and Alex McGrath joined captain Richard Dixon in the midfield trio. Colin Stripling of Joseph Perez played either side of Anatolie Prepelita and Ayden Bowers in defense, while Jean Antoine deputized between the sticks.
There was little in terms of clear chances in the first half as the home team was happy to concede possession but not in dangerous areas.
When a goal is needed, it’s safe to lean on last year’s top goalscorer Markus Naglestad. A minute before halftime, Naglestad hit a sweet strike from about 25 yards out, hitting the top right corner to put the boys in blue up 1-0.
The second half was physical with many stoppages after hard challenges between the players. Markus Naglestad came closest to scoring again when his free kick was saved in the bottom right corner of the goal.
Flower City grew into the game in search of an equalizer but was never able to find a way past Jean Antoine. The game ended 1-0 in favor of Chattanooga FC for the second time this season.
With the result, Chattanooga FC remains top of the NISA table, undefeated with an impressive 5 clean sheets in 6 games.
The boys in blue return to Finley Stadium this Saturday, May 27th to host second placed Maryland Bobcats. To make things even sweeter, Chattanooga’s women’s side plays first in a double header feature.
About Chattanooga Football Club
Chattanooga Football Club was founded in 2009. The CFC Men's team competes in the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA), which is in the third division of professional soccer. The CFC Women's team is a summer amateur team that competes in the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL). Chattanooga Football Club became the first soccer club to offer true ownership to the fans in 2019 with 3,200+ investors from Chattanooga, all 50 states, and 31 countries. CFC plays all home games in Finley Stadium in Chattanooga.