Photo Philadelphia Union Communications

Philadelphia Union II suffered its third consecutive shutout Saturday evening in Chattanooga, TN against Chattanooga FC 4-0.

Player availability & advance details

The first team re-opened its 2026 season three days before the Chattanooga match.  And it played its second game at home almost simultaneously with Union II’s  Chattanooga match. The usual first team players were available to Union II.

Since Sal Olivas was not included in a video Philadelphia made re-introducing the first team to the public after the World Cup break, we expected him to be on Union II’s bench in east Tennessee. 

Union II midfielder Paco Dadi is still rebuilding himself from his early season injury. He was not seen at practice Thursday, July 23rd. 

Aside from Lennon Harrington and Andrew Craig, we do not know what graduated academy seniors have moved on to college.  Official preseason division one practices may start 16 days before a team’s first officially scheduled match.

As an independent side without MLS affiliation, Chattanooga faces no player availability complications beyond whether the player is on their roster and healthy.

Before the match Chattanooga lay fifth in the MLS NEXT Pro eastern conference table  with 34 points from 19 games played. Union II lay eleventh on 26, also from 19 played. Each side had nine games — the opportunity to add 27 points — remaining.  

Union II can still qualify for the playoffs, but they must improve game results noticeably in order to do so. In the eastern conference before the day’s play, they were three places below the conference’s playoff qualification line.

This season they have shown well against teams that allow them to counterattack green space behind a restraining line. They have had trouble breaking down an opponent’s low block that itself relies on the counterattack.

Union II striker Malik Jakupovic and Chattanooga goalkeeper Eldin Jakupovic were reported to be related last season by the internet site “The One Team We Agree On”. And Chattanooga left back Anthony Sorenson was a Philadelphia Union homegrown player a few years ago.

First half

Philadelphia started strongly, dominating possession through its backline for the first ten minutes. They took Chattanooga somewhat by surprise. The hosts seemed to be defending deep with its midfield line ahead of its defenders by fewer than ten yards.

Then in the 12th a Chattanooga long ball found left winger Ameziane Sid Mohano defended by right back Sequera, and the Algerian defeated the Venezuelan who had no effective cover behind him. The Chattanooga man’s shot beat Union II goalkeeper Pierce Holbrook along the ground to the far post and Chattanooga took a lead it never relinquished.

Union II continued to dominate possession but by using their defensive line rather than their midfield. However slowly, the heat and the hosts greater age, experience, and athleticism began to shift the balance of the match in the hosts’ favor.

Philadelphia started three seventeen-year-olds and an eighteen-year-old in its midfield, with Kellan LeBlanc and Willyam Ferreira as the attackers and Timo Medoza and Matheus De Paula as the double pivot. The lack of a physically dominant athlete became clearer and clearer as the half progressed.

Chattanooga does not play possession through the midfield. They block and counter. And as time passed they did so more and more.

In the 37th minute the hosts won a throw-in in their offensive third, and 39-year-old Tate Robertson found defender Nathan Kohler’s head. Kohler’s header chipped keeper Holbrook for goal number two.

Two minutes later Union II striker Malik Jakupovic almost scored his own headed goal, but the effort was just over the bar.

Second half

At the half Union II interim head coach Chris Harmon replaced Ferreira with Oscar Benitez, introducing a dominant athlete into the double pivot. He moved De Paula to right back and shifted Sequera up to attacking mid. Philadelphia almost scored in the first minute but were themselves countered for a goal 90 seconds after the second half tap-off.

The halftime substitution Chattanooga head coach Richard Dixon made, Daniel Mangarov, found winger Damien Barker-John’s superior pace in his left attacking channel, and took newly shifted right back De Paula by surprise. After that third shot on target, Chattanooga led 3-0 by the 47th minute.

Union II’s strikers continued to lack support and creativity from their midfielders behind them.

Coach Harmon’s developmental substitutions in the midfield did not solve the problems. Heart and effort are all well and good, but creative service is indispensable and it did not emerge.

When Chattanooga scored again in the 75th minute from another penetration to the end line followed by a feed back into the box onto which someone ran successfully, an already secure result became a no-doubter.

Pierce Holbrook deserves credit for saving a penalty kick in the 82nd minute. And Finn Sundstrom cleared a net-bound shot off the goal line a few minutes after that. But Union II have now failed to score three consecutive times.

Next match

Union II next play away to NYC FC II on the seventh day, Saturday, August 1st, at St Johns University’s Belson Stadium on Long Island. The match is scheduled for 7:00 PM. NYC FC II lies in ahead of them and are closer to playoff qualification than they, so winning would be useful.

Three points

1. Gio Sequera’s positional versatility was fully on display this evening.
2. The strategy of relying on youth requires recruiting truly exceptional young players. 
3. Malik Jakupovic is in a slump.

B O X S C O R E

Lineups

Union II (4-2-2-2, L-R). Interim head coach Chris Harmon. 1st — 3+1; U II — 6+2; AA — 2+6. Starters’ Average Age = 19.1

Starters: Pierce Holbrook; Jordan Griffin, Rafael Uzcategui, Finn Sundstrom, Gio Sequera; Timo Mendoza, Matheus De Paula; Kellan LeBlanc, Willyam Ferreira; Eddy Davis, Malik Jakupovic.

Holbrook	Griffin	Uzcategui	Sundstrom	Sequera	Mendoza
U II	U II	U II	1st	U II	AA
23.3 y/o	17.7 y/o	21.8 y/o	19.7 y/o	20.4 y/o	17.0 y/o
DePaula	LeBlanc	Ferreira	Davis	Jakupovic
AA	U II	U II	1st	1st
17.7 y/o	18.3 y/o	17.5 y/o	20.1 y/o	17.1 y/o

Substitutes: Matthew White; Kaiden Moore, Mamoutou Berthe, Abdoulaye Diop, Oscar Benitez, Samuel Gallego, Tyler Gladstone, John Ruf, Sal Olivas.

White	Berthe	Moore	Diop	Gallego	Gladstone
AA	U II	U II	AA	AA	AA
16.8 y/o	19.6 y/o	18.7 y/o	16.5 y/o	16.4 y/o	17.0 y/o
Benitez	Ruf	Olivas
U II	AA	1st
22.1 y/o	17.2 y/o	20.0 y/o

 

Chattanooga (4-3-3). Head coach Richard Dixon. Per Transfermarkt full squad average age = 23.6

Starters: Eldin Jakupovic; Anthony Sorenson, Nathan Koehler, Farid Sar-Sar, Yves Tcheuyap, Isaiah Jones, Tate Robertson, Alex McGrath, Ameziane Sid Mohano, Damien Barker-John, Alex Krehl. 

Substitutes: Griffin Huff, Mattias Hanchard, Steeve Louis Jean, Luke Husakiwsky, Darwin Ortiz, Alexis Arrua, Francis Amoateng, Yuval Cohen, Daniel Mangarov.

Goals

CFC II         12th minute       Ameziane Sid Mohano (unassisted)

CFC II         37th minute       Nathan Koehler (Tate Robertson)

CFC II         47th minute       Damien Barker-John (Daniel Mangarov)

CFC II         75th minute       Daniel Mangarov (Alex Krehl)

Yellow cards

Union II      11th minute        Willyam Ferreira (foul)

CFC II        34th minute        Anthony Sorenson (foul)

Union II      44th minute       Gio Sequera (foul)

CFC II        66th minute       Yves Tcheuyap (foul)

Union II      90+1 minute      Oscar Benitez (foul)

    Whistle & Flags

REF: Igor Bych; AR1: Logan Reeves; AR2: Fritz Barberousse; 4TH: Dorian Del Toro.

Stats

Cfc	Statistic	U II	Cfc	Statistic	U II
14	Shots	13	0	Offsides	7
7	Shots on goal	6	6	Goalkeeper Saves	2
4	Blocked shots	2	5	Clearances	6
391	Total Passes	451
80.8	Pass Accuracy %	86.3	13	Fouls	16
3	Corners	5	2	Yellow Cards	3
0	Total Crosses	7	0	Red Cards	0