Preview: Inter Miami FC v Nashville SC

Nashville secured a important draw on the road up against Supporters Shield leaders, New England Revolution. Tonight, they wrap up their three match road trip as they take on Inter Miami FC. Can Nashville secure their first win on the road? Will Miami be bale to extend their un beaten streak to four?

Inter Miami FC

Inter Miami started off their second season in a decent run of form. They lost their season opener against LA Galaxy but followed that up with a win at Philadelphia and a 0-0 draw against Nashville. However, since that draw against Nashville, it has been a fairly abysmal season as Phil Neville’s team find themselves dead last in the league with only 13 points. While they maybe last in the league, they are undefeated in the last 3 matches

For a team that boast one the most expensive rosters in the league and one of the top paid strikers in Gonzalo Higuain, Inter Miami have been abysmal in front of goal. Averaging .87 goals per game, they have the worst offense in the league by some margin and coming up against one of the best defenses in the league will be quite the problem.

Nashville SC

Going into Nashville’s road trip, most of the Speedway crew thought six out of nine points would be an acceptable tally for a team looking to host a home playoff game. The match against Toronto was a disappointing draw, however the New England result is a good result. With only two points out of the available sex, Nashville needs a win tonight.

Against New England, we saw the same three at the back formation but quite a bit of rotation. Players like Dax McCarty and Alistair Johnston were given the night off completely while others such as Hany Mukhtar, Randall Leal and C.J. Sapong made appearances off the bench. Tonight, we should see a return to an almost full strength Nashville team.

Up front, Coach Gary Smith choose to rest his preferred front three and handed starts to both Jhonder Cádiz and Aké Loba. Both Loba and Cádiz were decent on the night but struggled for service and were at times a bit isolated. Against Miami, Randall Leal and Hany Mukhtar will return to the starting 11 either side of the number nine position. The questions is, will Coach Smith go with an in form C.J. Sapong or will he give his new DP a chance with the other star attackers.

Dax McCarty may not have been in the team on Wednesday but he was in the booth commentating on the match. He has been absolutely crucial over the past month while Aníbal Godoy has been out due to injury. Godoy made his return to the team off the bench against New England and I expect to see him starting along side McCarty tonight.

Daniel Lovitz, like Godoy, made his return to the team off the bench against New Engalnd and showed why he is one of the best leftbacks in the league. He should reclaim his spot in the starting lineup but could be without his wingback partner, Alistair Johnston. Johnston is listed as questionable with a right ankle injury and I expect him to get some rest after his busy schedule with Canada.

Availability report

Pod Picks

Ben Wright

Score:  Miami 0-3 Nashville
Scorers:  Hany Mukhtar (x2), Aké Loba
MOTM:   Hany Mukhtar
Bold Prediction: New England takes close to 20 shots but have less than 1.00 expected goals.

Jonathan Slape

Score:  New Miam i1-3 Nashville
Scorers: Aké Loba, Randall Leal, Hany Mukhtar
MOTM:  Aké Loba
Bold Prediction: Loba starts and gets his first goal for Nashville SC.

Andy Simmons

Score:  Miami 0-3 Nashville
Scorers: Randall Leal, Hany Mukhtar, Aníbal Godoy
MOTM:  Hany Mukhtar
Bold Prediction:  Aníbal Godoy’s goal comes from outside the 18.

Chris Ivey

Score:   Miami 1-2 Nashville
Scorers: Hany Mukhtar, C.J. Sapong
MOTM:  Hany Mukhtar
Bold Prediction: Nashville concede’s early but comes back to win.

Fan Forecast

Have a prediction for the match? Vote in our Fan Forecast!

Nashville secured a important draw on the road up against Supporters Shield leaders, New England Revolution. Tonight, they wrap up their three match road trip as they take on Inter Miami FC. Can Nashville secure their first win on the road? Will Miami be bale to extend their un beaten streak to four?

Inter Miami FC

Inter Miami started off their second season in a decent run of form. They lost their season opener against LA Galaxy but followed that up with a win at Philadelphia and a 0-0 draw against Nashville. However, since that draw against Nashville, it has been a fairly abysmal season as Phil Neville’s team find themselves dead last in the league with only 13 points. While they maybe last in the league, they are undefeated in the last 3 matches

For a team that boast one the most expensive rosters in the league and one of the top paid strikers in Gonzalo Higuain, Inter Miami have been abysmal in front of goal. Averaging .87 goals per game, they have the worst offense in the league by some margin and coming up against one of the best defenses in the league will be quite the problem.

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Nashville SC

Going into Nashville’s road trip, most of the Speedway crew thought six out of nine points would be an acceptable tally for a team looking to host a home playoff game. The match against Toronto was a disappointing draw, however the New England result is a good result. With only two points out of the available sex, Nashville needs a win tonight.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is NSH-M.png

Against New England, we saw the same three at the back formation but quite a bit of rotation. Players like Dax McCarty and Alistair Johnston were given the night off completely while others such as Hany Mukhtar, Randall Leal and C.J. Sapong made appearances off the bench. Tonight, we should see a return to an almost full strength Nashville team.

Up front, Coach Gary Smith choose to rest his preferred front three and handed starts to both Jhonder Cádiz and Aké Loba. Both Loba and Cádiz were decent on the night but struggled for service and were at times a bit isolated. Against Miami, Randall Leal and Hany Mukhtar will return to the starting 11 either side of the number nine position. The questions is, will Coach Smith go with an in form C.J. Sapong or will he give his new DP a chance with the other star attackers.

Dax McCarty may not have been in the team on Wednesday but he was in the booth commentating on the match. He has been absolutely crucial over the past month while Aníbal Godoy has been out due to injury. Godoy made his return to the team off the bench against New England and I expect to see him starting along side McCarty tonight.

Daniel Lovitz, like Godoy, made his return to the team off the bench against New Engalnd and showed why he is one of the best leftbacks in the league. He should reclaim his spot in the starting lineup but could be without his wingback partner, Alistair Johnston. Johnston is listed as questionable with a right ankle injury and I expect him to get some rest after his busy schedule with Canada.

Availability report

Pod Picks

Ben Wright

Score:  Miami 0-3 Nashville
Scorers:  Hany Mukhtar (x2), Aké Loba
MOTM:   Hany Mukhtar
Bold Prediction: New England takes close to 20 shots but have less than 1.00 expected goals.

Jonathan Slape

Score:  New Miam i1-3 Nashville
Scorers: Aké Loba, Randall Leal, Hany Mukhtar
MOTM:  Aké Loba
Bold Prediction: Loba starts and gets his first goal for Nashville SC.

Andy Simmons

Score:  Miami 0-3 Nashville
Scorers: Randall Leal, Hany Mukhtar, Aníbal Godoy
MOTM:  Hany Mukhtar
Bold Prediction:  Aníbal Godoy’s goal comes from outside the 18.

Chris Ivey

Score:   Miami 1-2 Nashville
Scorers: Hany Mukhtar, C.J. Sapong
MOTM:  Hany Mukhtar
Bold Prediction: Nashville concede’s early but comes back to win.

Fan Forecast

Have a prediction for the match? Vote in our Fan Forecast!

Kit matchup

Kit matchup

Match Info

Teams: Inter Miami FC (14th) vs Nashville SC (4th)
Power RankingsInter Miami FC (27) vs Nashville SC (5)
Odds: Miami (+160), Draw (+220), Nashville (+160) via BetMGM
Date: Sunday, August 8
Time: 5:00 PM Central, DRV PNK Stadium, For Lauderdale, Florida
TV:  MyTV 30 (local), ESPN+ (out of market)
Radio: 94.9 The Game 2 (English); El Jefe 96.7 (Spanish)
Forecast: 88°/79°. Scattered Thunderstorms. 50% chance of rain. 71% humidity.

Author: Jonathan Slapeoriginated from outside of Atlanta but has lived in Nashville since 2005. Original member of Speedway Soccer and has been talking and occasionally writing about Nashville SC since the USL days. Self proclaimed official fashion correspondent. Outside of Nashville SC you can find him singing the praises of Jurgen Klopp, discussing the latest in sneakers and soccer fashion with a good stiff drink.

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