Matchday 15 of the Major League Soccer campaign wraps up on Sunday when Nashville SC welcome the Columbus Crew to GEODIS Park for the first time.
A six-match league unbeaten run for the Boys in Gold has moved them up to second in the Eastern Conference, after edging Charlotte FC 2-1 last weekend, while the Crew are holding onto a wildcard spot despite losing 3-2 at FC Cincinnati in their previous domestic affair.
Match preview
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Nashville head into the final match this month in fine form domestically and looking as sharp defensively as we remember from seasons past.
Unsurprisingly, they have conceded fewer goals than any MLS side in 2023 thus far (nine), only allowing multiple strikes in a league fixture once all year.
That stingy play, along with the individual quality of Hany Mukhtar, has been their recipe for success since entering the league in 2020, and that formula has served them well again this year, with the reigning MLS MVP scoring nearly half of their goals so far in the regular season (8/19).
Coming into this contest, they have only suffered one defeat in the Music City versus Eastern Conference opponents this year, conceding a goal or fewer on each occasion.
Gary Smith's side were knocked out of the US Open Cup on Tuesday, conceding a pair of second-half goals at Inter Miami in a 2-1 defeat, their third away from home in all competitions this season.
They captured their first victory versus the Crew in 2022, defeating them in Columbus 1-0, while they drew their only home game against them in 2021 (1-1) when the Boys in Gold played at Nissan Stadium.
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In the 11th Hell is Real derby last weekend, the most hellacious part of Columbus' performance was their defending, conceding at least three goals in a match for the second time this year.
Three of the next five league games for Wilfried Nancy's men will be away from home, where four of their five defeats have transpired.
Columbus have dropped six points on the road this season when scoring the opening goal, points which could have them up to third in the Eastern Conference rather than where they currently sit, in eighth.
While there are a couple of standouts in this team's attack, the Crew have been much more balanced under Nancy, as 13 players have at least one goal, and nine have one goal involvement or more.
On Wednesday at the US Open Cup, this team had 75% of the possession but could not find a way through the opposition's backline, falling 1-0 to the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the round of 16.
The Crew have not won a match all year when conceding multiple times and are without a victory when falling behind 1-0 since August of the 2022 campaign when they edged New York City FC 3-2.
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Team News
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Walker Zimmerman will be questionable for Nashville this weekend because of a lower-body injury, which could also keep Nick DePuy on the sidelines.
Mukhtar had a brace in their previous MLS encounter, Sean Davis picked up his first assist of the year, Jack Maher led the team in duels won (eight), Teal Bunbury made his 351st career regular-season appearance and Joe Willis stopped six shots, putting him up to 45 saves this season.
In their US Open Cup exit earlier this week, Alex Muyl had their only goal, his third in all competitions, Jacob Shaffelburg, Randall Leal and Luke Haakenson led the way for them in shots (three), while Josh Bauer had a team-high for clearances (four) and interceptions (five).
Josh Williams and Milos Degenek are nursing ankle issues for the Crew, Will Sands, Eloy Room and Kevin Molino all have knee injuries, while Luis Diaz will not be available because of a sore back.
For a second successive league contest, Lucas Zelarayan and Malte Amundsen were the lone Columbus players to find the back of the net last weekend, as they are up to six and two goals, respectively, over the 2023 campaign.
After failing to find the scoresheet last year, the Crew have seen some nice bounce-back performances from Aidan Morris and Jacen Russell-Rowe, who have three and two goals respectively in the regular season.
Nashville SC possible starting lineup:
Willis; Moore, MacNaughton, Maher, Lovitz; McCarty; Muyl, Davis, Godoy; Mukhtar, Shaffelburg
Columbus Crew possible starting lineup:
Schulte; Moreira, Quinton, Vallecilla; Farsi, Morris, Nagbe, Amundsen; Zelarayan, Hernandez, Russell-Rowe
We say: Nashville SC 1-0 Columbus Crew
The Boys in Gold are so organised and well-balanced defensively that even without an international centre-back like Zimmerman, they look equally sharp and resolute.
Columbus have their share of quality and creativity, but given the form of Mukhtar and how intelligent Nashville are along the back end, we expect them to hold the Crew in check this weekend.
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Top tip
Joel Lefevre
