Chattanooga FC is in the middle of its three-match homestand as it gets ready to take on Crown Legacy FC at Finley Stadium on Saturday night.
Taking a step in the right direction, Chattanooga comes into Saturday following a 2-2 draw with Inter Miami CF II that saw the Scenic City come out on top 5-4 in the shootout for an extra point.
Saturday will be the club’s second meeting of the season with Crown Legacy FC, with the last matchup resulting in a 2-1 win for Chattanooga back on April 19.
Head Coach Chris Nugent spoke with media about the ups and downs that the club has had throughout the season.
“It’s the reality of it, no team goes unbeaten,” said Nugent. “You are going to get bad luck against you at times, sometimes that bad luck comes early and sometimes it comes when you’re winning, it doesn’t matter. We’re very big on the process of doing the right things consistently. If we continue to do the right things then we’ll get results and the right things will happen. We’re still in a great place, the record’s a great one as well.
“I think the hard part is that we started so hot that it feels like more of a dip, whereas if we had this record going up and down throughout the year, everyone’s talking about how great we’re doing. I think, looking at the bigger picture, being realistic of it, that we’ve been very competitive, and [with] one or two moments of a cleaner finish or a cleaner attack, we go on and win games. That’s it and that’s also the reality of football at this level. You miss out on a key moment and you may lose or you may win. We saw at the start of the year, we were incredibly efficient in front of the goal, that’s dropped off a little bit and it hurts, so that’s what we’ve got to continue to push. If we keep creating these chances, we’ll start scoring.”
Nugent also previewed Saturday’s matchup against Crown Legacy FC.
“We know they’re a tough team, they had a difficult result the previous week, so I know they will be fired up and ready to bounce back,” said Nugent. “It was a competitive game when we played them here a couple of months ago. We know they’ve got multiple ways of building. They’re very well-structured and coached. If plan A doesn’t work, they’re going to execute plan B, and they’ve got a few options to go through. So, we have to be switched on and prepared because if we’re not ready to transition between those moments, that’s when they’re going to catch us, and I think that’s what happened last time."
Jakupovic was one of four goalkeepers selected to compete in the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro Goalie Wars during the MLS All-Star Skills Challenge presented by AT&T on Tuesday, July 22 and reflected on the experience this week
Chattanooga FC forward Xavier Rimpel made his professional debut for the club last Saturday against Inter Miami CF II and sealed CFC’s 5-4 shootout win
Crown Legacy FC (4W-6L-8D, 23 pts) is led by Head Coach Gary Dicker, who is in his first season with the club.
Andrej Subotic, Jack Neeley, and Emmanuel Uchegbu are all tied as the leading goalscorers for the club, with four goals each.
Adrian Mendoza earned MLS NEXT Rising Star of Matchweek 18 honors after scoring his first professional goal in just his second start for Crown Legacy FC during its 4-3 win at Inter Miami CF II on July 13.
Crown Legacy enters this weekend’s match after being shut out 4-0 at home against Philadelphia Union II last Saturday.
Join Chattanooga FC for a celebration of the world’s game that brings us all together! Wear your favorite national team jersey to Finley! General admission tickets for Saturday’s game will be available for $5 and can be purchased at CFCTIX.com.
Venue: Finley Stadium | Chattanooga, Tenn.
Kick-off: 7:00 p.m. ET, Saturday, July 26
Broadcast: MLSNEXTPro.com | Talent: Jon Gross