After a big 3-0 win over the Chicago Fire, Nashville SC wraps up their five match homestand with another US Open Cup match. Tonight, they welcome FC Dallas to GEODIS Park as they look to advance to the Round of 16.
Nashville SC
3rd (MLS Eastern Conference) | 18 points | 5-3-3 | +8 GD |
The extended stay at GEODIS Park has been quite good for the Boys in Gold.
In the league, they picked up 7 points from a possible 9 and another win in the Open Cup to advance. Importantly, the team isn’t just picking up results but also playing good soccer and scoring goals.
Against San Antonio, Gary Smith did not use many of his first choice team but we did see most players that have been in and around the first team. Only Elliot Panicco and Laurence Wyke had not seen first-team minutes head of that match.
Tonight, I expect to see many of those same players get an opportunity against FC Dallas.
Nashville will continue to use the 4-4-2 diamond that has brought them a lot of success in the past few matches and should be bolstered by the inclusion of Randall Leal.
Leal has been out since the 25th of February and has faced a few setbacks in his road to recovery. Smith said in his pre-match press conference that Leal had a solid week and he expects to see him get a significant portion of the match. I would expect that we see him from the beginning at the tip of the diamond behind Ethan Zubak and Fafa Picault.
The other than the inclusion of Leal, the biggest change from the last round will be Lukas MacNaughton along side Jack Maher. MacNaughton was called in to action over the weekend with Zimmerman injured and put in a good performance. He didn’t have a ton to go against the struggling Fire, but performed well when called in to action.
FC Dallas
5th (MLS Western Conference) | 15 points | 4-3-3 | +1 GD |
Unlike Nashville’s last Open Cup Match, FC Dallas is an opponent they will not be so unfamiliar with. In fact, FC Dallas is the team that Nashville has played the most in its MLS existence.
FC Dallas was not a part of the last round due to their finish in the league last season so it’s hard to predict what to expect from this lineup.
However, we do know what to expect from a tactical perspective. Nico Estevez will have his team lineup in a 4-3-3 with a single holding midfielder and two 8s in front. They will look to possess the ball and rely on their technical players to create opportunities.
As far as a lineup goes, we could see something like this. A lot of first team players with a few changes.
Prematch Press Conference
Pod Picks
Valair Shabilla
Score: Nashville 0-0 Dallas
Scorers:
MOTM: Taylor Washington
Bold Prediction: Nashville scores all their pens
Chris Ivey
Score: Nashville 2-1 Dallas
Scorers: Fafa Picault, Ethan Zubak
MOTM: Fafa Picault
Bold Prediction: Dallas claws one back late in a comfortable NSC win
Ben Wright
Score: Nashville 2-0 Dallas
Scorers: Ethan Zubak, Hany Mukhtar
MOTM: Ján Greguš
Bold Prediction: Nashville scores within the first 15 minutes
Jonathan Slape
Score: Nashville 1-0 Dallas
Scorers: Ján Greguš
MOTM: Ján Greguš
Bold Prediction: Greguš scores from a free kick
Fan Forecast
The Round of 32 is here!
— Speedway Soccer 🐺 (@SpeedwaySoc) May 10, 2023
Tonight #EveryoneN takes on #DTID @GEODISPark!
Vote in our #FanForecast and reply with a #BoldPrediction.
Match info
Teams: Nashville SC v. FC Dallas
Date: Wednesday, May 10
Time: 7:30 pm CDT, GEODIS Park, Nashville, Tennessee
TV: B/R App or B/R Football Youtube
Forecast: 86°/65°. Partly Cloudy. 0% chance of rain. 41% humidity
