Following a two-week hiatus from the USL League One regular season, Fort Lauderdale CF will return to action at Inter Miami CF Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 5, at 8 p.m. ET. The match against Chattanooga Red Wolves SC will air live on ESPN+.
“[Chattanooga] is a very very good team. In scouting them, we think this is one of the top teams that we will play against this season, so I think it’s going to create some challenges for us defensively and when we have the ball,” said manager Jason Kreis. “There should be some interesting tactical decisions made out there and interesting tactical nuances to the game.”
Fort Lauderdale CF is coming off of a narrow 1-0 defeat on Aug. 22 to first-place Greenville Triumph SC. The South Carolina-based side nabbed a second-half winner on their home field while the visitors pushed hard for an equalizer, but ultimately came up empty.
Prior to the trip to Greenville, Fort Lauderdale put together a three-match unbeaten run. Forward Ricky Lopez-Espin enters this weekend’s matchup tied atop the League One goal scoring chart with five to his name, while midfielder Eduardo Sosa is tied for second in the league with three assists in just four matches.
The Chattanooga Red Wolves, meanwhile, currently sit sixth in the League One table, just one place ahead of Fort Lauderdale CF. The Tennessee-based side has put together a record of two wins, two draws and two losses to this point in the 2020 season.
The team has been led by 23-year-old Scottish forward Greg Hurst, who is tied with Lopez-Espin for top scorer in the league, and forward Mark Hernández, who has scored three goals in 2020. Hurst also leads the side with two assists.
In 2019, the team finished fifth in the table, narrowly missing playoff qualification by a total of three points; the team compiled 10 wins, 10 draws and eight losses in the regular season.
