Chattanooga FC start season with a road win
Goals from Keegan Ancelin and Milo Garvanian ensured a fine away win for Chris Nugent's side in their season opener.
A stunning solo strike from outside the box by left-back Milo Garvanian sealed all three points for Chattanooga FC tonight away to Inter Miami CF II. Collecting from Daniel Mangarov on 55 minutes, Garvanian tidily controlled the ball into the penalty arc before rifling a left-footed banger passed a helpless Matias Marin to make the tie 2-1 in CFC’s favor.
In what was mostly an evenly matched game, with Miami dominating possession but both teams roughly sharing big chances, Garvanian’s strike was all that could separate these two sides.
This was newly appointed Head Coach Cristian Ledesma’s first game in charge of Inter Miami II. They lined-out in a simple 4-4-2 formation consisting of Matias Marin in goal; Alejo Ristano, Tyler Hall, captain Giovanni Ferraina, and Abadía-Reda in defense; Alejandro Flores, Ricardo Montenegro, Bailey Sparks, and Idoh Zeltzer-Zubida in midfield; and Lovends Delinois and Daniel Pinter up-front.
Chattanooga’s Chris Nugent named a largely unchanged side from that which started their final pre-season fixtures, with Mangarov and Minjae Mwak being the only fresh starts. There were competitive debuts for Mangarov, Eldin Jakupović, Keegan Ancelin, and Nick Mendonca, with Ancelin and Mangarov making their first-ever starts as pros.
The game started blisteringly with Ancelin netting his first goal of the season and first as a professional, notching CFC ahead after only 120 seconds. It was an opportunist, poacher’s goal, poking in a pass across the face of the goal from Alex McGrath. The Jacksonville native looked sharp and physical in preseason and will be delighted to bring his fine test form into league action. The competition for the starting center forward position is fierce at Chattanooga, with veteran Markus Naglestad and fellow rookie Peter Plougmand also chomping at the bit. Ancelin’s goal and his fine performance in Florida gives him a firm advantage.
It took only three minutes for the home side to grab and equalizer. A fine pass from Ferraina found Abadía-Reda who finished from a sharp angle in the sixth minute, shooting from the left side of the box to the bottom right corner. This was his first ever goal for the club.
Miami spent much of the rest of the game desperately attempting to level the tie, but were kept at bay by an outstanding Jakupović, demonstrating his top-flight experience. At the other end, substitute Ameziane Sid Mohand came very close for Chattanooga with a point-blank header saved just after the 80th minute. It was Sid Mohand’s competitive club debut, alongside other substitutes Ethan Dudley and Steeve Louis Jean.
In the end, it would be Chattanooga to come out on top with a precious three points to take back to Finley Stadium. For Miami’s Ledesma, much to think about before the visit of Carolina Core in a week’s time.
Next games
• March 14th, 19:00 (ET): Inter Miami II v Carolina Core FC, Chase Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, FL
• March 15th, 19:00 (ET): Chattanooga FC v Huntsville City FC, Finley Stadium, Chattanooga, TN
Box Score
Inter Miami CF II - Chattanooga FC
Chase Stadium | Fort Lauderdale, TN
Final score:
Miami 1-2 Chattanooga
Scoring summary:
3': Keegan Ancelin (CFC)
6': César Abadía-Reda (MIA)
56': Milo Garvanian (CFC)
My Man of the Match:
Eldin Jakupović
Line-ups:
Inter Miami CF II: Matias Marin, Alejo Ristano, Tyler Hall, Giovanni Ferraina Marchetti (C), César Abadía-Reda, Ricardo Montenegro, Bailey Sparks, Alejandro Flores, Idoh Zeltzer-Zubida, Daniel Pinter, Lovends Junior Delinois
Subs: Derrek Martinez, Nicholas Almeida, Samuel Basabe, Theo Vorenkamp, Jack Pymm, Santiago Ledesma, Mateo Saja, Ivan Schmid, Cristian Ortiz
Head Coach: Cristian Ledesma
Chattanooga FC starters: Eldin Jakupović, Tate Robertson, Logan Brown (’73 Ethan Dudley), Farid Sar-Sar, Milo Garvanian, Nick Mendonca, Callum Watson, Alex McGrath (C) (86’ Robert Screen), Daniel Mangarov (73’ Ameziane Sid Mohand), Minjae Kwak (68’ Steeve Louis Jean), Keegan Ancelin
Subs not used: Michael Barrueta, Darwin Ortiz, Markus Naglestad
Head Coach: Chris Nugent