Nashville SC picked up points for the second match in a row and secured four out of six points in their two-match home stand, drawing with Orlando City 1-1.
Below are our player ratings for the match.
Each member of the Speedway Soccer crew gives each player that saw the pitch a rating based on their match performance. Below is a quick guideline of our evaluation process.
- A rating of 6 denotes and average performance. Each player starts out with a 6 and their performance either adds or subtracts from that rating.
- Scores are determined after re-watching the match and looking at the stats, and are the averaged total of each Speedway member’s ratings.
Joe Willis – 7.5: Willis could do nothing about Benji Michel’s world-class strike, but did come through with some big saves as the game winded down.
Daniel Lovitz – 8: Speedway’s unofficial man of the match, Lovitz was awesome with his forward passing and runs down the flank. He’s quietly making a case as a top leftback in this league.
Walker Zimmerman – 7.3:  Did a really good job keeping Daryl Dike in check, who really caused Nashville problems in their last outing.
Dave Romney – 7.3: Also locked up Orlando’s front line really well, forcing them to try and attack from out wide.
Alistar Johnston – 6.8: Johnston had a few hiccups in the back that could’ve been disastrous. His service and pace are still his strongest assets though.
Dax McCarty – 6.7: McCarty seemed a bit flustered with Orlando’s press in the middle, with misguided passes and an inability to keep possession.
Anibal Godoy – 6.5: A rare misperformance from Godoy, who got bullied off the ball which set up Michel’s goal. He’ll surely bounce back.
Alex Muyl – 7: Was fine in his role on the flanks, nothing too extravagant.
Hany Muhktar – 7.5: Played Leal through for his goal with an excellent weighted ball. Also worked hard by dropping back a ton for support and to collect passes from the back line.
Randall Leal – 8: FINALLY. Leal’s numerous efforts on goal pay off as he snagged his first MLS goal on a well-timed run and build up. The finish was just enough to squeeze in to the far post from the angle he faced.
Dominique Badji – 6.5: Did get some decent service and made some decent runs, but he was just missing a proper touch to spring him free.
SUBS
Daniel Rios – 6.2: Brought on in a straight striker swap. Rios, however, just didn’t have the pace on the ball to beat the Orlando defense.
Abu Danladi – 6: Another sub that was brought on to bring some dynamic play, Danladi just couldn’t get things going in the amount of time he was allotted.
David Accam – 6.2: Had a good look at goal, seeing his first action in quite some time. Perhaps we see more of Accam moving forward?
Brian Anunga – 6: A late sub that was brought on to help preserve the draw.
MANAGER
Gary Smith – 7: Smith rotated back to a normal lineup that we’re more accustomed to, but was it too soon? His team seemed lost when Orlando pressed, and the tired legs were apparent near the end of the match. The fixtures are only going to continue to come at his side during this congested schedule, so perhaps squad management is a high priority for him moving forward?
What say you? Do you agree or disagree with our match ratings? Feel free to reach out to us on Twitter and let us know your thoughts!
