Chattanooga Football Club won a third consecutive league match for the first time since joining MLS NEXT Pro after coming from behind to defeat Crown Legacy FC 2-1 on Saturday evening. Second half goals from substitute Peter Plougmand and Jesus Ibarra made the difference and saw the club extend its lead at the top of the Eastern Conference.
Crown Legacy FC opened the scoring in the 21st minute when Magic Smalls finished into the top corner after a swift counter attack.
Head Coach Chris Nugent made one change at the half, bringing on Plougmand for Logan Brown, and changed the team's shape, switching largely from a 3-4-3 to a 4-3-3.
"Changing the numbers to give us three midfielders and a back four helped us progress well was a big factor for making those changes," said Nugent in his post-match press conference.
"We needed another forward on to press a little more. I felt Crown Legacy were effective when they hit that long diagonal ball and the way we were set up in the first half didn't really allow us to press that way and we couldn't get tight enough to it, so that was the reason for the change."
The adjustments made an immediate impact and CFC was level by the 51st minute when Plougmand headed in Tate Robertson's excellent delivery.
Just seven minutes later, Ibarra scored what would ultimately prove to be the winner when he picked off Baye Coulibaly's errant pass inside Crown Legacy's own penalty area and finished superbly into the top corner for his first goal of the 2025 league campaign.
Nugent's side showed the character and grit that has been evident throughout the season and saw out the result for another precious three points in the league, which sees the club extend its lead at the top of the Eastern Conference.
"We need to continue doing what we're doing and getting better at it," continued Nugent. "We had an early preseason, so having a plan of what we were wanting to do week by week, the guys have broke the season down into thirds of how they want to attack each moment. We want to have the right players on at the right time and in the right system. Our guys are so flexible and adaptable, and that makes them special. The guys need to continue to challenge themselves daily. What each of them bring themselves is what will keep helping us grow."
Next up for CFC is a trip to Columbus, Ohio to face Columbus Crew 2 on Sunday, April 27th for a 3:00 p.m. EST kick-off at Historic Crew Stadium. The club's next home match is set for Saturday, May 3rd against Philadelphia Union II, with kick-off set for 7:00 p.m. EST.
Box Score
Chattanooga FC (5W-0L-1D, 17 pts.) - Crown Legacy FC (0W-2L-3D, 4 pts.)
Finley Stadium | Chattanooga, Tenn.
Final score:
CFC: 2
CLFC: 1
Scoring summary:
21': Magic Smalls - CLFC
51': Peter Plougmand - CFC
58': Jesus Ibarra - CFC