MLS NEXT Pro: Match Preview - Chattanooga FC vs Huntsville City FC
- Philip Farrell
- May 2
- 5 min read
Credit: Chattanooga FC
NATIONAL SOCCER NEWS: www.nationalsoccernetwork.com
Match: Chattanooga FC vs. Huntsville City FC
Date: Saturday, May 2nd, 2026. 19:00 (Eastern)
Venue: Finley Stadium, Chattanooga, TN.
Capacity: 20,412
How to watch: OneFootball, MLSNextPro.com, YouTube
CHATTANOOGA, Tn --- We have a mid-table battle in the MLS Next Pro Eastern Conference this Saturday in the Scenic City as 8th place Chattanooga welcomes 11th place Huntsville City. This is the second meeting between these neighbors who fought out a 2-2 draw back on March 21 in Rocket City.
Chattanooga (W:3 D:1 L:3 SOW:0 GF:13 GA:12 GD:+1) will arrive into Saturday’s tie on a two-game losing streak, although one of those games was against Atlanta United in the US Open Cup. Excepting that loss to MLS opposition, they’re yet to drop points at home since their opening day loss to pace-setters Crown Legacy. Captain Alex McGrath is their top goalscorer on the season with four in all competitions and will look to spearhead another home win on Saturday as Chattanooga looks to end the Spring phase of the season on a high. Chattanooga is led by interim Head Coach Richard Dixon.
Huntsville (W:2 D:2 L:2 SOW:1 GF:12 GA:16 GD:-4) don’t look as strong as they did in 2025 and have looked very mixed so far this year. A season that began with an impressive away win over Orlando got stuck in a further two away losses and two home ties. Last time out, however, they earned a 4-2 win, again in Florida, at Inter Miami (who are one of the poorest sides in the league this year). Suffice to say, it's hard to know which Huntsville will show up on Saturday. Shak Mohammed, brought in from Orlando this season, is their top scorer on three goals and Chris O'Neal has been Head Coach since August 2024.
The match starts at 7pm Eastern and officiated by Maryland’s Stephen Foster. We can expect pleasant conditions at about 65 degrees come kick off after some showers earlier in the day. Streaming will be available on MLSNextPro.com, the league’s YouTube channel, and the OneFootball app.
The History:
Chattanooga: W:4 D:2 L:2 SOW:1 GF:9 GA:8 GD:+1
Huntsville City: W:2 D:2 L:4 SOW:1 GF:8 GA:9 GD:-1
The two teams have been pretty evenly matched since they first met early in the 2024 MLS Next Pro Season. CFC have the upper-hand though, winning half of their eight games played. The two most recently met on March 21 in Huntsville, when Chattanooga scored an unlikely draw after going 2-0 down within the first 27 minutes. Shak Mohammed and Maximus Ekk had put the home side in front before Alex Krehl and a Tate Robertson penalty hauled CFC back into the game. Huntsville went on to win the penalty shootout 4-2. Chattanooga’s Daniel Mangarov and Alex McGrath are the top scorers in the short history of this tie, with two a-piece. CFC and Huntsville will meet for a third and final time in 2025 when they clash at Joe Davis Stadium again on September 9 to close out the regular season. It's worth keeping in-mind that Huntsville ended Chattanooga’s season in 2025, beating them in the first play round at Finley Stadium. So revenge will be on the minds of the home fans on Saturday evening.
Report Cards and Lineups:
Chattanooga - Chattanooga comes into the game having lost their last two. However, the defeat to Atlanta United in the US Open Cup probably shouldn’t count when examining their current form, losing as they did to a first division side. They’ve lost three times in the league in 2026, twice away. Their only home defeat came on opening day to league leaders Crown Legacy. Last time out, Chattanooga fell to a 1-0 loss at the same opposition, but only via a Hugo Mbongue penalty for Legacy in the 73rd minute. At home, in the league, they’ve won three and lost one, scoring 10 and conceding seven.
Predicted Starting XI: Eldin Jakupović; Yves Tcheuyap, Mattias Hanchard, Farid Sar-Sar, Anthony Sorenson; Tate Robertson, Alex McGrath (C), Isaiah Jones; Damien Barker-John, Anthony García, Alex Krehl
Head Coach Richard Dixon, parachuted into his position just before the season started, seems to have settled on his preferred XI, issuing a 4-3-3 formation. And while he has roasted here-and-there, especially in Cup games, I anticipate a line-up looking like the above this Saturday.
Eldin Jakupović, a one-time cap for the Swiss national team, leads from the back as the side’s first choice goalkeeper. The 41-year-old has been ever-present in CFC’s league XI this season as he was last year. He’ll be looking for a clean sheet on Saturday. In front of him, the back-four is largely set, anchored by Farid Sar-Sar’s experience. McGrath, captain of the side who was missing for most of 2025 through injury, is the team’s most important player. The heartbeat of the side and its top scorer, no player is more important and likely nobody precedes his name on the team sheet. He’ll be joined by Isaiah Jones (on loan from Huntsville’s parent club) and the excellent Tate Robertson, who switched from right-back to central midfield this year. More rotation might be seen up front, but I expect Anthony García and Damien Barker-John (against his old team) to flank Alex Krehl. Krehl started blisteringly for CFC when he arrived from Spain’s lower leagues, but has been quiet in their last few games. A goal or two on Saturday will be his primary ambition.
I’m going with Anthony García as my CFC player-to-watch this weekend. The 22-year-old winger isn’t a prolific goalscorer nor even a creator (0 for both in 2026) but one thing he does do better than anyone in this side is draw fouls. He has suffered 12 such offences by opposition players so far this year. This is the kind of statistic that could be crucial in the high-pressure environment of a local derby where temperatures may flare and set-piece opportunities will be worth a lot.
Huntsville - Huntsville City come into Saturday’s game off a 12-day break. Most recently they won a 4-2 victory over Inter Miami CF II away that saw forwards Light Eke and Xavier Aguilar score their first goals of the season. Maxiumus Ekk netted his third of the season while Canadian Jordan Knight made it two on the year.
Predicted Starting XI: Will Mackay; Leo Christiano, Malachi Molina, Zach Barrett, Charles-Emile Brunet; Jordan Knight, Nick Pariano (C), Moisés Véliz; Shak Mohammed, Maximus Ekk, Jayin Van Deventer
Generally, Chris O'Neal has favoured a 4-3-3 since the season’s beginning. My Huntsville player to watch is striker Maximus Ekk. The 20-year-old from California was last year signed by Huntsville’s parent club Nashville through the 2025 Major League Soccer season with options for 2026, 2027, and 2028. Ekk signed with Huntsville in January of 2024 after playing his 2023 season with USL League One side Central Valley Fuego FC as a teenager. He has made 20 appearances for Huntsville City since his debut in 2024, scoring seven goals. This year he has three goals and one assist and is Huntsville’s greatest threat as they look to get their season back on a winning run.
Analysis and Predictions:
I can only see a Chattanooga FC win on Saturday. They’re the home side and come into the game on better form. With Alex McGrath in ranks and a strong Saturday contingent of Section 109 support behind them, I fancy Chattanooga to win 2-0.
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