High-tempo Chattanooga end preseason unbeaten

Chattanooga FC ended their preseason unbeaten in 5 games as they managed a dominating 5-1 win over visitors Tennessee Tempo FC on Friday evening.

Birthday-boy Callum Watson helped the Chattanooga Football Club to a resounding 5-1 over their semi-pro opponents tonight. The midfielder influenced the game from the start, notching two goals and demonstrating he is ready to be CFC’s key creative asset this season. Goals elsewhere from Keegan Ancelin (his 2nd this preseason), Jesus Ibarra (also his 2nd this preseason) and new-boy Peter Plougmand capped off a dominating performance.

Jesus Ibrarra and Nick Mendonca celebrate. Credit: Chattanooga FC

Head Coach Chris Nugent sent out largely the same team that beat the UNC Tar Heels last Saturday with Eldin Jakupović, Milo Garvanian, Farid Sar-Sar, Tate Robertson, Nick Mendonca, Callum Watson, Alex McGrath, Jesus Ibarra, and Keegan Ancelin all retained. Additions were Logan Brown (replacing Ethan Dudley) and Minjae Kwak (replacing Ameziane Sid Mohand) lining out in a seemingly 4-3-3 (or 4-3-2-1) formation.

Tonight’s game was essentially more of a scrimmage than a friendly. Open only to Chattanooga’s Season Ticket holders, the game was devoid of the usual matchday fare such as concession stands, food trucks, video boards, PA, and half-time shows. This gave the whole event an odd yet intimate feeling, like attending a training session. Nonetheless, it was a competitive bout, without constant substitutions as one might expect, and with the famous Chattahooligans lively and loud throughout.

Decent semi-pro opposition awaited them. Tennessee Tempo is a recent rebranding of Beaman United FC. Based close to Nashville, the UPSL side has a recent history of admirable cup runs to their name. They reached the first round proper of the US Open Cup in the 2023 edition (as Beaman United) and the final round of qualifiers in the 2024 edition. Tempo finished 3rd in the UPSL KY-TN region last fall, earning a 6-1-3 record before losing out to Two Knox in the regional semi-finals. They came into this game also in the final stages of their pre-season with their UPSL Spring campaign kicking off on March 22nd.

On 8 minutes, Keegan Ancelin bagged his second goal of preseason heading home a lovely pass from Tate Robertson down the right flank. 15 minutes later, Jesus Ibarra made it 2-0, tapping off a clever pull-back from Alex McGrath, demonstrating good control to slot home.

In first-half stoppage time, the influential Callum Watson walked-in CFC’s third goal, with a cheeky back-heel goal into an empty net, after good work by Minjae Kwak. The Englishman then celebrated his 25th birthday in style, heading in a neat cross from Milo Garvanian on 58 minutes.

After Tennessee Tempo had pulled one back, debutant Peter Plougmand entered the game on the 81st minute. The Danish hitman was the top goalscorer and National Player of the Year in NCAA Division II soccer in 2024, notching 25 goals for Mars Hill. Much is expected of him in blue this season and he didn’t disappoint in his first outing. After a number of close calls, it took him only five or so minutes to get his first goal in a CFC jersey, toe-poking in a poacher’s finish. The 25-year old looked impressive in his cameo. The same height as his compatriot Rasmus Højlund, Plougmand looks a similar type of center forward; strong, lumbering, and sharp. It will be interesting to see if he hits the ground running this season.

Debutant Peter Plougmand looked dangerous when he came on. Credit: NCAA

Elsewere, it was a good night for the left-wing pairing of Garvanian and Ibarra who showed great understanding of one another to trouble the Tempo defense. On the right flank, Kwak and Robertson look less familiar with one another, but this may pass with time and training. Callum Watson was, again, hugely influential in midfield, stringing passes together and causing havoc for an over-run Tempo back-line. His contributions this season will be huge. Ancelin too looked sharp. The big forward again demonstrated his ability to pressure defenders, draw fouls in key areas of the pitch, and come deep and wide to support team mates and collect the ball, particularly after Markus Nagelstad came on and assumed the center forward role, moving Ancelin wide.

There were also run outs for a pair of trialists (which is interesting this late in pre-season) and a lively Daniel Mangarov. A fine win for CFC against lower league opposition that may demonstrate a settling of this team, one that is ready to launch its MLS Next Pro campaign in earnest next month.

Tonight's match was CFC’s final test before their season opener at Inter Miami CF II on Friday, March 7 at 7 PM ET.

Next games

• March 7th, 19:00 (ET): Inter Miami II v Chattanooga FC, Chase Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, FL

• March 8th, TBA: Tennessee Tempo FC v Tennessee Vols, Siegel High School, Murfreesboro, TN

Box Score

Chattanooga FC – Tennessee Tempo FC

Finley Stadium | Chattanooga, TN

Final score:

CFC: 5-1 Tennessee Tempo

Scoring summary:

8': Keegan Ancelin

24': Jesus Ibarra

45': Callum Watson

58': Callum Watson

68': Tennessee Tempo #22

86': Peter Plougmand

My Man of the Match:

Callum Watson