MLS Next Pro Group Stage Report
Chattanooga took all three points at home against Atlanta United II with a 1:0 win in the Group Stage on Friday evening. A. Krehl opened the scoring in the seventh minute and the hosts held on despite Atlanta dominating possession for most of the game. It keeps Chattanooga second on 47 points from 25 games, two ahead of Atlanta who sit third with 45 points from 26 matches.
The opening goal came early, with Krehl finding the net in the seventh minute. After that, the match settled into a pattern where Atlanta controlled the ball but couldn't break through. There were substitutions throughout the second half, with A. Sorenson coming on for Chattanooga in the 58th minute and I. Suarez replacing someone for Atlanta in the 69th. D. Mangarov picked up a yellow card in the 67th before being substituted himself in the 77th.
By then, the match had a rhythm that suited the home side. Atlanta had 86 attacks to Chattanooga's 66, but shots accuracy tells the story — 0.14 for the visitors against 0.67 for the hosts. Four shots on target for Chattanooga versus just two for Atlanta, and that efficiency mattered more than possession. There were corners too, six for Atlanta and five for Chattanooga, but neither side could turn those into clear chances.
The statistics show where the game was won and lost. Atlanta had 0.62 possession compared to 0.38 for Chattanooga, and they had seven shots off target against just one for the hosts. But four shots on target and one goal is enough when you're clinical. The visitors had five blocked shots and two offsides, while Chattanooga had zero offsides and only two blocked shots — they weren't giving anything away.
This result extends Chattanooga's run of good form. They beat Fort-Lauderdale 1:0 in their last two meetings and had a 4:0 win over Bethlehem Steel recently. Atlanta, meanwhile, drew 3:3 with Carolina Corner in their most recent game and lost 0:2 to Huntsville City. The table goes out of the window in these games sometimes, but the points difference remains tight — just two separating them in third and second place.
Yellow cards came for D. Mangarov, F. Sar-Sar, A. Mohand and A. McGrath, with the last card shown in stoppage time. No red cards were issued, and the match finished with Chattanooga holding onto their narrow advantage. The goal difference stays level at this stage of the group, but this result puts the home side in a stronger position going forward.