Intelligence Report: Orlando City vs. Nashville SC

Orlando City’s busy schedule shows no signs of slowing down. After getting past Toluca in the Leagues Cup quarterfinals on Wednesday, attention now returns to MLS play. The Lions are entering a brutally difficult stretch of the league schedule, which starts with a road match Saturday against Nashville SC.

A date with the Coyotes means I spoke to Ben Wright, the executive editor and one of the founders over at SixOneFive Soccer, an excellent independent outlet covering soccer in the Nashville area. As always, Ben was very helpful in getting us up to speed on how things have been going for Nashville SC, and we appreciate his assistance.

This is the first full season under BJ Callaghan, and Nashville has had an impressive turnaround — currently sitting third in the East after finishing 13th last year. What’s been working so well this year as opposed to the 2024 season?

Ben Wright: First of all, Callaghan has implemented a clear structure and principles of play. Everyone knows their job, where their teammates are, and what is expected of them in every situation. On top of this, Sam Surridge has continued to score goals and has had better service, while Hany Mukhtar has rediscovered his form after a disappointing 2024. Nashville has maintained its defensive level, and added in a much more functional attack.

Nashville could actually be even higher in the table if not for losing its last three league games. Has there been one consistent theme to those losses, or have there been a variety of contributing factors?

BW: For starters, they’ve all been on the road. Two of the losses – San Diego and New York City FC – have come against playoff teams. The St. Louis result was a bit of an outlier. In all three losses, especially St. Louis and New York, Nashville created enough to at least leave with a draw. Poor finishing from Nashville and opportunistic finishing from their opponents swung the result against them, but after rewatching, I don’t think they played as poorly as the results indicated. Returning home should give them a chance to bounce back.

Outside of the usual suspects like Hany Mukhtar and Sam Surridge, who is a player that Orlando fans should keep a close eye on during Saturday’s match?

BW: Those are the main two. Andy Nájar has been fantastic at right back — arguably the best in MLS this year. So much of Nashville’s attack runs through him. He’ll be crucial. Jonny Pérez is another player who has impressed, and he’s turned into one of Nashville’s more dynamic players. In midfield, getting more consistent ball progression from Eddi Tagseth and Patrick Yazbek is key.

Will any players be unavailable due to injury, suspension, etc.? What is your best guess at a starting XI and a score prediction?

BW: No suspensions, but several injuries to keep an eye on. Dan Lovitz has missed the last two games with a foot issue and the entire team has suffered. He looked on track to play earlier this week, but how much he’ll be involved is up in the air. Tyler Boyd could also make a return after 13 months out with an ACL tear, and he’ll be a major boost if he can get acclimated quickly.

(4-2-2-2) – Joe Willis; Daniel Lovitz, Walker Zimmerman, Jack Maher, Andy Nájar; Gaston Brugman, Patrick Yazbek; Jonathan Pérez, Jacob Shaffelburg; Sam Surridge, Hany Mukhtar.

I’m going with an incredibly tight 2-1 Nashville win.

 Thank you to Ben for the excellent primer on Nashville SC. Vamos Orlando!