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The Chattanooga Red Wolves found victory yet again on Tuesday in CHI Memorial Stadium over the previously undefeated Union Omaha in a 2-0 win. The win snaps a USL League One record set by Omaha of longest unbeaten streak, with 8 games. From the opening kickoff, it was obvious that this would be a passionate, fast paced, and physical matchup, with the second place spot in the league on the line. Chattanooga was up for the challenge however, and took care of business earning a shut out, and scoring two goals to walk away with all three points. The win moves Chattanooga into second place in the table with 18 points, trailing the league leaders by only 4 points. The Red Wolves are in excellent form and have now extended their unbeaten streak to 5 games, picking up wins in 4 of them. 

Immediately from the opening whistle, Union Omaha came out in a high press in an attempt to force Chattanooga to turn the ball over in their own half. Throughout the first half, Omaha pressed heavily, but the Red Wolves were unfazed working the ball around them and possessing out of pressure with ease. In the midfield, Ualefi Rodrigues, Conor Doyle, Josue Soto, and Tanner Dieterich all had exceptional performances, as they continued to break Omaha’s press again and again with composure and quickness. As expected, Omaha’s backline was very talented and were able to prevent Chattanooga from creating any real chances until the 18th minute when the Red Wolves were able to break through and open the scoring tab. The goal came when Ualefi collected the ball at midfield and played a curling through ball over the back line to Ricardo Zacarias, who was barreling towards the goal. Zacarias was able to bring the ball down out of the air with an impressive first touch and beat the defenders with pace before slotting the ball near post past the keeper with an outside of the foot finish. His composure with defenders on his heels resulted in his second goal of the season, as the Red Wolves were able to capitalize on their first real chance on goal. 

The Red Wolves were able to hold off Omaha going into halftime with a one goal advantage, but not without a scare. The best chance of the game for Omaha came towards the end of the half when the Union were able to break through and find an open man on the back post. Decker, the Omaha winger collected the ball with only Chattanooga keeper Alex Mangels to beat, but Mangels was not about to let that happen. Mangels came off of his line and came up big making an incredible save to deny Omaha the opportunity to draw level. A moment of chaos soon followed as the save led to another cross into the box, finding the head of another Omaha player that struck the crossbar. The Red Wolves were then able to clear the box and the halftime whistle blew. 

After a first half that showcased excellent passing and ball movement from the Red Wolves and very little solid scoring chances for either side, the players took the field and play resumed as the second half began. The second half saw more chances for both sides right off the bat, as Chattanooga center back Jason Ramos tested the keeper off of a corner kick one minute into the half. In the 52nd minute, Marky Hernandez made his much-anticipated appearance subbing on for Ronaldo Pineda. In no time he was up to his usual routine, gliding by defenders with ease and drawing attention which opened up other options. In the 63rd minute, Conor Doyle collected the ball under pressure and made an incredible play to get the ball to Zacarias, who then found Marky on the wing. Marky carried the ball until playing it across to Tanner Dieterich who was streaking alone in the box. Tanner hit a one time finish far post past the outstretched keeper to bag his second goal of the season in back to back games and to seal the game for Chattanooga, putting them up 2-0. With plenty of time left in the game against a dangerous side, the Red Wolves remained composed and found a way to close it out in a physical battle that contained 23 fouls, many of which were crunching late tackles from the Omaha side. 

Chattanooga was very pleased with their performance in Tuesday’s match, including goalscorer Ricardo Zacarias, who said, “This game was huge for us. This is our third win in a row and for us, it’s a great win on our home field. Every game we have played here we have been the better team, and early in the season we didn’t get the results we wanted but now we are getting the results and we will keep going.” Tanner Dieterich was also thrilled to pick up the win and score in his second consecutive match. He gave a lot of credit to the defense for the shut out and for their efforts throughout the match, commending Ricketts, Ramos, Ruiz, and Folla for excellent performances. On scoring his second professional goal, Tanner told reporters, “It’s just one of those things where when Marky Hernandez gets the ball, you just have to find open space and you will probably get the goal. Marky gets a lot of attention so when you find open space, he will get you the ball.” He then added, “The whole group is coming together and finding our identity and winning games. A ton of guys are stepping up right now. We have 7 separate goalscorers here and that’s so important when we have so many games in a short time. Having so many poses a challenge for other teams, when you have so many different goalscorers, teams know this is a quality side. We know we can rely on guys and different moments.” Coach Obleda was also thrilled with his side’s efforts, but now has his eyes set on Saturday, saying, “We have one more game in the tank then we have a couple days off. We are gonna find a way to keep going and do what we are doing.” Chattanooga was the better team today and the scoreline reflected it.

The next match is at home once again in CHI Memorial Stadium and will be facing the number one seeded team Greenville Triumph. This will be their second matchup, but despite losing to GVL on the road 1-0, the Red Wolves are currently red-hot. Greenville will need to prepare well for this diverse attacking squad and solid defensive line. Every game counts during the abbreviated season, but the one this weekend stands out among the rest. The Red Wolves have had a tough spout of games, playing both the number three and number two within the last seven calendar days. Their motto lately has been to “find a way”, and will look to do just that this weekend. Tickets for this Saturday the 19th are almost sold out to make sure you secure yours before it is too late! Click the link below to get yours. If you are unable to attend make sure to tune into ESPN+ for all the action. 

The Chattanooga Red Wolves are set to play their makeup match against #2 Union Omaha on Tuesday, after their original match scheduled for August 12th was canceled due to a lightning storm that swelled during warm ups. Omaha has made the trek back down to Chattanooga to try to defend their top two spot in the league standings, while Chattanooga will do everything they can to hand the unbeaten Union their first loss of the season. Chattanooga is in the middle of a tough stretch of games, as they are scheduled to play #2 Omaha on Tuesday, followed by the league leaders, Greenville Triumph, on Saturday. Chattanooga (4-3-2) has been climbing the standings with 15 points, now only trailing Union Omaha (4-0-4) by one point in the table.

The Red Wolves will be back at CHI Memorial Stadium on Tuesday for the 2nd time in four days, having just picked up a massive 2-1 win against the Richmond Kickers on Saturday in the Den. Kickoff is set for 12:00 PM EST, as both teams will be looking to battle for the top two spots in the league. This will be a gripping top-three matchup, as the league’s highest-scoring offense in Chattanooga will face one of the best defenses in the league who have only conceded 6 goals so far this season. As Union Omaha was founded in 2019, they are currently in their debut season meaning that there is no history between the two sides, but the first League One matchup between the two teams on Tuesday will surely bring excitement and passion. Here are this week’s three points to picking up the win in CHI Memorial Stadium on Tuesday.

As mentioned earlier, Union Omaha has only conceded 6 goals so far this season and have solidified themselves along with Greenville Triumph as one of the best defensive sides thus far in the 2020 season. With their draw against South Georgia Tormenta FC on Friday, Omaha made history and set the USL League One record for most games undefeated in a USL League One season. A key to the match is to not be intimidated by these headlines and to just settle in and play the same style soccer that the RedWolves have been, as they are in fantastic form. As Omaha has one of the best defenses in the league, it is important to remember that the Red Wolves have one of the best attacking teams in the league as they are the highest scoring side in the league, bagging 15 goals to date. Not only are Chattanooga Red Wolves the highest scoring team, but the goals are not all coming from just one or two players. The Red Wolves have plenty of attacking fire with a very diverse offense. While Greg Hurst and Marky Hernandez lead the Red Wolves offense, combining for 8 goals and 5 assists so far, many other players have been able to get themselves on the stats sheet as well. When Marky and Hurst were injured during the Ft. Lauderdale and New England matchup, the Red Wolves were able to hold their own every game with many other scoring options. The Red Wolves have had 7 separate players bag goals this season, and have proven to be extremely dangerous at creating chances and putting them away. The first point for the upcoming match is to break down the Omaha backline with all of the Red Wolves’ offensive firepower and put them on the back foot early on in the match. 

The first point for the upcoming match is to break down the Omaha backline with all of the Red Wolves’ offensive firepower and put them on the back foot early on in the match. 

As the Red Wolves have many standout players on the stats sheet, Union Omaha does not have any go-to goalscorers. They have a couple players such as Evan Conway and Ethan Vanacore-Decker who have two goals each, but they have a very disciplined side who moves the ball well. The Red Wolves have to stay focused and battle to keep from conceding goals. Even as Chattanooga is in excellent form, unbeaten in their last four matches while picking up three wins, they still have conceded goals during brief moments of losing focus or turnovers that have made the games closer than they had to be. The second point to victory on Tuesday is keeping focused and defending as a unit, while limiting turnovers in their own half. Chattanooga moved the ball extremely well this past weekend in the win over Richmond, and if they can play as they did this weekend they should be able to sit in a good position. 

The second point to victory on Tuesday is keeping focused and defending as a unit, while limiting turnovers in their own half.

It is important for the Red Wolves to defend as a whole, but it is equally important for Alex Mangels to be a big-time shot-stopper during the match. Since Union Omaha has only conceded 7 goals for the season, the likelihood for the match to be low scoring is high. If the Red Wolves are only able to capitalize on a few chances, to increase their odds for victory, the third point is for them to not let any shots cross the goal line. While conceptually speaking, it may sound easy but there are many factors to accomplishing that objective. If the Red Wolves earn a hard-fought clean sheet, it will free up the offense to make the most of the difficult chances they will come across. 

If the Red Wolves are only able to capitalize on a few chances, to increase their odds for victory, the third point is for them to not let any shots cross the goal line.

The Red Wolves need this win to bring them one step closer to the top spot in the league. The Red Wolves’ destiny is in their own hands this week as they will have the opportunity to play the only two teams above them in the standings. The Red Wolves need to be the ones to make a statement to the league by extending their unbeaten streak to five games while handing the only remaining, record-breaking, team their first loss of the season. The Red Wolves cannot afford to lose both games this week and need to pick up at least one win out of the two games, but Coach Obleda will aim to pick up all 6 points and close the gap behind the league leaders, putting themselves in striking distance.

The match is set to kickoff at 12:00 PM EST on Tuesday, September 15th at CHI Memorial Stadium. Be sure to tune in on ESPN+, pick up your tickets at https://www.chattanoogaredwolves-sc.com or follow along on twitter @ChattRedWolves for live updates.

The Chattanooga Red Wolves capped off the long three-game week with a win on Saturday by snapping the #3 Richmond Kickers six-game unbeaten streak with a late stoppage time goal. The dramatic 2-1 win at CHI Memorial Stadium against a fantastic Richmond side sealed an impressive 7 point week for the Red Wolves, who earned a point on the road against Ft. Lauderdale on Saturday, followed by a 2-1 win against New England Revolution II on Wednesday, and another a 2-1 win today. 

From the opening whistle, Chattanooga came out with their feet on the gas pushing for an early goal. They were able to hold possession and spend most of the first 10 minutes working the ball around their opponents half. However, after a mis-hit pass in the midfield, Richmond was able to collect the ball and counter attack, scoring on their first attempt on goal. The ball was pushed out to the wing and crossed into the box from the right side, to the lurking Argentinian forward, Emiiano Terzaghi of Richmond. The league leading scorer was able to redirect the ball past Alex Mangels, capitalizing on the Kickers first opportunity and giving them the early 1-0 lead in the 12th minute. However, the early goal did not shake Chattanooga, as they continued to work the ball around with patience in order to create opportunities. Team Captain, Josue Soto, had a standout performance at defensive mid, remaining cool and collected on the ball and moving it left to right resulting in an extremely dangerous 50/50 ball being played into the box, where Ronaldo Pineda was able to beat the keeper to the ball. He took a touch past him and rattled off a curling shot from near the baseline, which hit the post and bounced around the box creating chaos before the defense was finally able to clear it. The first half came to a close with minimal scoring opportunities from both sides, but with an unfortunate scoreline of 1-0 in Richmond’s favor.

Patrick Okonkwo, the recent Chattanooga signee from Atlanta United, subbed on at the start of the second half for his much anticipated Red Wolves debut and he immediately showcased his ability to hold up the ball, lay it off, and distribute it wide. The second half continued on as the majority of the first half had, with Chattanooga working the ball around on Richmonds half with patience, awaiting their opportunity to put one in. Marky Hernandez subbed on in the 53rd minute, after sitting a week out due to injury, but played as if he had never left, making an immediate impact on the game picking up an assist within 60 seconds of subbing on. Conor Doyle laid off the ball to Marky who then found Tanner Dieterich in the box, who was able to hammer it home and bring the scoreline even at 1-1 in the 54th minute. As the game began to get physical and chippy, Chattanooga kept focused pushing forward for another goal. 

As time ran out, the 4th official added three minutes of stoppage time and with two of those gone, the ball went out for a throw in on Richmonds half. A quick throw in to Marky Hernandez that caught Richmond sleeping left him with only one player to beat. Marky glided past the defender and slipped the ball across the box finding the feet of Steven Beattie who buried it home with less than a minute to go to bring the game to 2-1 in Chattanooga’s favor. The final whistle blew shortly after the restart, and the last minute stoppage time goal lifted #4 Chattanooga to a win over the #3 Richmond Kickers. 

Chattanooga are now unbeaten in their last four games, picking up three wins and a draw and moving them up in the standings to third place in the league. After the game Coach Obleda praised his team’s resilience and noted the spectacular effort from the substitutes, who combined accounted for both assists and the game winning goal. After the match he spoke to reporters about his team, saying, “This group has really grown and matured. We knew that we had this game and we knew the way we had been playing. They had no doubt that this win was gonna happen. We are going to keep going and we are not stopping.” When asked to comment on the spectacular performance of Marky Hernandez, who subbed on in the 53rd minute and assisted both goals to win the game, Coach Obleda said, “I told Marky you are gonna play 40 minutes and I need you to come and do what you do. He came in and he lights the world on fire.”  Tanner Dieterich was also thrilled with the win, saying that scoring his first professional goal for Chattanooga, in the state of Tennessee where he grew up playing, meant alot to him. 

Steven Beattie expanded on his coach and teammates’ excitement, explaining how much scoring that game-winning goal in the dying moments meant to him and how he is excited for what’s in store for the team. 

Richmond had not dropped a game in their last 6 matches, and taking down the #3 ranked team and snapping this streak was a huge accomplishment for Chattanooga, but they will not be satisfied with it. The Red Wolves have made it known that they want to finish in the top two spots, and they are nearing that goal. However, they will have to keep taking care of business going forward. The Red Wolves have a huge opportunity this upcoming week to reach these goals, as they are scheduled to play the undefeated #2 Union Omaha on Tuesday, followed by the league leaders, Greenville Triumph on Saturday. Both of these crucial matches will be played at CHI Memorial Stadium. Tune in to ESPN+ to watch the #3 Chattanooga Red Wolves take on #2 Union Omaha on Tuesday, at 12:00 PM. 

Kickoff is set for 1:00 PM EST on Saturday for a USL League One top 5 matchup between the Chattanooga Red Wolves (3-2-3) and the Richmond Kickers (4-1-2). The Red Wolves enter the match after an action packed three game week, picking up a 2-1 win against New England Revolution II on Wednesday night on the road, and a 1-1 draw against Fort Lauderdale on Saturday. The Red Wolves are back home at CHI Memorial Stadium for the match against Richmond on Saturday after a long week of traveling. Chattanooga’s recent results have helped them recover in the standings and climb back up to #4 in the League One standings with 12 points. Richmond currently sits in the #3 spot, with a 2 point advantage on Chattanooga with a game in hand. 

Richmond extended their unbeaten streak to 6 games on Wednesday with a 2-2 draw against FC Tucson, and have not lost a game since the season opener against Greenville. This weekend’s match will be the first matchup between the two teams of the 2020 season, with a top 3 spot on the line. Richmond has shown that they are a very strong side with plenty of talent and depth in their squad, and they will be looking to give Chattanooga a run for the money. The Richmond Kickers’ Darren Sawatzky has been named USL League One’s Coach of the Month for August after his side won all four of its outings in the month, propelling the side to a top-two position in the League One standings. Chattanooga are looking to keep up the momentum and pick up a huge win in this tough contest to continue to climb the table.

The Red Wolves met with the Richmond Kickers four times in 2019, with Chattanooga getting the better of the contests. The first two meetings were both played at the home of Richmond. The first resulted in a 1-0 loss for Chattanooga on April 27th, but Chattanooga bounced back and beat the Kickers 2-0 on the Kickers home turf on June 15th. Later that month the Kickers headed down to David Stanton Field in Chattanooga, the former home of the Red Wolves, where Chattanooga was victorious in a 2-1 win at home. The Kickers would eventually make one more trip back to Chattanooga, once again losing 1-0 to wrap up the two sides’ 2019 history. Chattanooga won both home games, also picking up a win on the road. The kickers went on to end their 2019 season with a 9-14-5 record finishing 9th in the league after self-regulating to USL League One from the USL Championship. The teams have yet to meet in 2020, but the red wolves trail the kickers by 2 points with a game in hand. Make sure to tune in to ESPN+ to keep up with the game on Saturday. 

The Chattanooga Red Wolves are back in action at CHI Memorial Stadium this weekend in a match up against the Richmond Kickers to close out a busy week. The Red Wolves are fresh off a 2-1 win on the road against New England Revolution II on Wednesday, and they picked up a 1-1 draw against Fort Lauderdale last weekend. The recent results have helped Chattanooga climb to #4 in the League One standings with 12 points, trailing the #3 Richmond Kickers by two points. Richmonds extended their unbeaten streak to 6 games on Wednesday with a 2-2 draw against FC Tucson, and have not lost a game since the season opener against Greenville. The Richmond Kickers (4-1-2), have proven to be a very strong side with a dangerous offense and they will surely be an excellent test for the Chattanooga Red Wolves (3-2-3), who will be looking to make a statement. This game will give Chattanooga the opportunity to break into the top 3 with a win, but it will not come easy. Here are this week’s three points to beating the Kickers in front of a home crowd on Saturday. 

First and foremost, the Red Wolves will have to overcome fatigue and be ready to utilize their depth. As earlier mentioned, Saturday’s match will be the third game in 7 days for the Red Wolves. Chattanooga’s key players have all put in many minutes on the pitch, and they will have heavy legs going into the biggest test of the season on Saturday. Richmond has had the week off, and they will be well rested, focused, and ready to throw everything they have at the Red Wolves. Luckily, Chattanooga has a strong bench and a lot of depth in the squad. As goalscorers Greg Hurst and Marky Hernandez have been out with injury this week, many others have stepped up and gotten the job done, and the Red Wolves will need everyone to be ready this Saturday to take on Richmond.

Second, the Red Wolves will have to lock down Emiliano Terzaghi of the Kickers. The Argentinian forward is currently the league leading scorer with 6 goals, just one more than Greg Hurst. Not only does Terzaghi know how to tuck away chances, but he is excellent at creating them. He is ranked third in the league in shots taken with 17 shots, and he knows how to break down a defense and create opportunities. Chattanooga will need to account for him throughout the game and try to limit his chances, because he has proven that he is dangerous and that he can take advantage of them. Midfielder Ryley Kraft also can be dangerous, as he has 2 goals on the season as well. The Red Wolves will need to defend as a unit and keep the ball away from #32 Emiliano Terzaghi and #98 Ryley Kraft. 

Lastly, Chattanooga will need to protect the ball and try to limit turnovers. Richmond is a very dangerous counter attacking team, and turning over the ball and allowing them to counter at the back line with players like Terazaghi will be very dangerous. Chattanooga has a very talented midfield, who do a great job of moving the ball, but they will have to be sharp this weekend. The Red Wolves have to take care of the ball and try to keep possession. Chattanooga is strong when they move the ball and utilize their speed on the wings, and limiting turnovers on their own half will be key to limiting Richmond’s chances. 

Kickoff is set for 1:00 PM EST on Saturday, September 12th. Make sure to keep up with all of the action and tune into ESPN+ or follow along on twitter @chattredwolves for updates on the game, as Chattanooga tries to end the week with another win. 

Jason Ramos’ 39 yd rocket in last night’s win triggered an onslaught of social media support and ultimately caught the eye of the Sportscenter Top Ten selection committee, coming in at #7 in today’s Top 10. Last night’s goal marks Ramos’ first for Chattanooga. The center back helped get the short-handed Chattanooga side on the board early and ultimately to a 2-1 win off of an 83rd minute goal.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (September 1, 2020) – Chattanooga bolsters its offense by adding 22 year old Patrick Okonkwo.

Patrick Okonkwo is a former academy product signed to Atlanta United’s first team before seeing minutes with Atlanta United II. Okonkwo who was born in Lagos, Nigeria was raised in Atlanta. Growing up as a product of the Atlanta United organization, Okonkwo has a degree of excellence instilled in him from an early age. He has an impressive resume, and has also spent time on loan with the Charleston Battery of the USL Championship.

The addition of Okonkwo bolsters the electrifying Chattanooga offense which is currently hindered by injuries to USL League One’s second top scorer Greg Hurst and last week’s USL League One’s Player of the Week Marky Hernandez. 

Okonkwo is excited to be a part of what’s happening in Chattanooga. “First I wanna say thank you to Sean McDaniel, and Coach Jimmy for this amazing opportunity to learn and improve my game again,” says Okonkwo.

“This organization has shown me how to appreciate being on a team, understanding that it’s never just about you, that you’re never alone. This’s my new family, I’m grateful to be among a great group of guys who are willing to fight, and push each other to be great on and off the field.”

Chattanooga President & GM Sean McDaniel sees Okonkwo as a clear fit with the current squad. “Patrick’s a great late season addition for us beyond what he brings to the field,” says McDaniel. “We love his passion, energy and commitment to the team. We have high hopes for his time here in Chattanooga.”

Okonkwo will be eligible to play his first game with the Red Wolves this Saturday against the Richmond Kickers in the “2 Buck Beer Match” at CHI Memorial Stadium. Tickets are limited and all domestic beers will be available for $2 at the match. Get yours by clicking the button below!

Come join us on your lunch break for our rescheduled home match against Union Omaha! Have lunch on us with our Texas Road House General Admission Ticket. Sit close to the action and enjoy 3 delicious pulled pork sliders. Lunch will be made available for purchase for season ticket holders and there will be plenty to go around. 

The Chattanooga Red Wolves return to play this Wednesday at 7:00 PM EST against the New England Revolution II on the road at Gillette Stadium. The Chattanooga Red Wolves are back on the rise after a dominant 4-0 win at CHI Memorial Stadium against the Revs in late August, and are most recently coming off of a 1-1 draw in an away mid-table matchup against Fort Lauderdale CF. The Red Wolves (2-2-3) sit at #5 in the league while the New England Revolution II (1-4-2) are last in the league ranked #11. New England’s sole win came against the league leaders, Greenville Triumph, handing them their first loss of the season back in August. More recently, the Revolution lost their last game against Forward Madison 4-0. The Revolution has 5 points so far this season, while the Red Wolves go into the match with 9. The Red Wolves will need to pick up a win Wednesday to help narrow the gap between them and the teams ahead of them. The Red Wolves didn’t get the result they were looking for this past weekend, but they are determined to not let any points escape them Wednesday. Here are this week’s three points for victory.

The Red Wolves proved during their first meeting against the Revolution that they have the talent and ability to break them down and create chances. They also did an excellent job of putting them away early in the game and not taking their foot off of the gas. Coach Obleda and his squad will likely look to mimic this again on Wednesday. There is no doubt about it, the chances will come. The speed, talent, and strength from the forwards accompanied by a clever midfield that sees the game and a solid backline that the Red Wolves possess will be a lot to handle for the Revolution. The Red Wolves have done an excellent job as of recently in regards to creating solid chances in the run of play, and it is important that they take advantage of them this week. With the Red Wolves offense opening up and new players getting themselves on the goal sheets such as Marky Hernandez, Ualefi, Zacarias, Steven Beattie, and of course Greg Hurst, the Red Wolves are showing everyone that they have multiple threats to be reckoned with going forward. With uncertainties regarding injuries, Ronaldo Pineda and others will be looking to take advantage of any opportunities that come their way as well. Pineda started on the wing in place of Marky Hernandez this past weekend due to injury, and picked up a vital assist to secure the draw. Early this season opposing managers thought that shutting down Greg Hurst would shut down the entire Red Wolves offense, but the other attackers are starting to step up and add their skills to the Red Wolves attacking arsenal. The Red Wolves have a lot of offensive depth, and will be looking to throw all of it at the Revolution and make another statement this week.

Another major key to success this weekend is winning the mental battle. New England Revolution II is ranked last in the league and have conceded 8 goals in their last two matches. The Red Wolves have to use this to their advantage and come out hard. The Red Wolves need to forget the 4-0 result from the last time out against them at CHI Memorial Stadium and focus on scoring as many goals as they can, picking up a crucial win, and gaining momentum to come back home for another match on Saturday. 

The third point is that the Red Wolves need to battle defensively for a shutout. The Red Wolves have kept two clean sheets so far this season, and will be looking to add to that number on Wednesday. The Red Wolves are a much better side than their win record shows, and every game played so far has had victory within reach. Of their three ties and two losses, both losses have been by only one goal. The Red Wolves have been able to score goals in 6 out of the 7 games they have played this season, and they will look to continue this trend. The team will need to plateau their intensity to avoid any lapses that could potentially lead to the opposition scoring goals. The Red Wolves understand the importance of every game, and they realize that it is beginning to be crunch time to perform and get results in order to fight for a postseason spot.

         The Red Wolves are set to kickoff at 7:00 PM EST against the New England Revolution II for the second time of the 2020 USL League One season this Wednesday. Make sure to not miss out on the action and catch the game live on ESPN+.

The mid-table matchup between the Chattanooga Red Wolves and Fort Lauderdale CF on Saturday night ended with the score level at 1-1, as neither side was able to secure the 3 points. Chattanooga had to make some adjustments to their starting 11, as they were missing some key goal scorers from last week’s 4-0 shutout win, with the League’s leading scorer Greg Hurst and Player of the Week Marky Hernandez not playing after picking up an injury during the week. Ronaldo Pineda stepped up to the challenge and picked up his second start and second assist of the season. 

The Red Wolves came out fast from the opening whistle, putting on pressure and forcing Ft. Lauderdale to do some defending early on. Chattanooga was able to create some good looks early on, including a couple shots from outside the box to test the keeper early from Ricardo Zacarias. The Red Wolves kept high pressing and forced multiple turnovers in the opponents defending half which led to a handful of corner kick opportunities. Chattanooga was knocking at the door, with perhaps the best effort coming from Conor Doyle. Ualefi dispossessed a Ft. Lauderdale midfielder and made a dangerous attacking run down the right flank. Ualefi whipped in a cross to the head of Conor Doyle in the 18th minute which unfortunately found the crossbar.

All early momentum was temporarily shifted when Ft. Lauderdale was able to convert a chance in the 25th minute to open the scoring 1-0. The goal came off of a Ft. Lauderdale short corner, which was then sent into the box. The ball took an unlucky deflection and skipped past Alex Mangels, finding the back of the net on the far post. The early goal seemed to give Ft. Lauderdale momentum, which was not in their favor during the Red Wolves’ high pressed defensive start. The remainder of the first half was evenly matched with multiple chances coming for each team, with 15-year-old Valencia of Ft. Lauderdale, the youngest goalscorer in USL history as of last week, striking the crossbar and creating dangerous chances. The Red Wolves were able to bring the score level just before the half mark in the 41st minute off of a beautiful goal scored by Ualefi. The goal came after Ronaldo Pineda collected the ball out on the wing, taking a few positive touches before sending in a dangerous low driven ball through the middle just missing the crashing run of Conor Doyle, but finding Ualefi all alone just inside the top of the box. Ualefi hammered it home with the first time strike from the Brazilian, who made no mistake and picked up his first goal of the season with authority. 

The 1-1 halftime score did not change for the remainder of the game, and both teams had to settle for a point. The second half slowed down, as stamina was likely a factor in the Florida heat. Although Ft. Lauderdale held the majority of possession, edging out the Red Wolves with the 60% to 40% advantage, the Red Wolves were much more dangerous going forward and in their build-up play. Chattanooga took 8 shots with half of them being on target while holding Ft. Lauderdale to 2 shots with none being on frame. The match ended all square in Inter Miami CF Stadium, and the Red Wolves will be back in action and ready to make up the points at New England Revolution II once again on Wednesday, at 7:00 PM EST. Make sure to tune in to watch your Chattanooga Red Wolves on ESPN+, or follow along on twitter @ChattRedWolves.