Intelligence Report: Orlando City vs. Nashville SC

Orlando City has its first win of the season under its belt, and will now try to make it two wins in two games under interim head coach Martin Perelman. It won’t be easy though, because the Lions are about to enter a run of three straight road games under some tough opposition. First up on the docket is undefeated Nashville SC.

A trip to the Music City means I spoke to Ben Wright of the independent site SixOneFive Soccer. As always he was very helpful in getting us up to speed on how things have been looking lately for the ‘Yotes. I also answered some of his questions about Orlando City, which you can find over at their place.

Talk me through Nashville’s off-season transfer business. Who went out the door and who came in to replace them?

Ben Wright:  Walker Zimmerman was the biggest departure (more on him in a second), but players like Taylor Washington (retired), Gaston Brugman (option declined), Tyler Boyd (waived), Jacob Shaffelburg (traded), and Jonny Perez (sold) also left. It was a lot of turnover for this squad, which was still in the midst of a two-year rebuild to get this roster where BJ Callghan really wanted it. They’ve made some key additions, like Cristian Espinoza, Warren Madrigal, Maxwell Woledzi, and Reed Baker-Whiting, but they’ve also given more responsibility to Matt Corcoran in midfield to take a Brugman-esque role.

Cristian Espinoza has obviously been incredibly impressive, but what new arrival besides him has made the biggest impact?

BW: Warren Madrigal has been a huge surprise. When he was signed, he was expected to be more of a backup No. 9 behind Sam Surridge, but he’s earned a starting role on the left wing, and pitched in with two goals in the MLS opener. He’s cooled off a bit, but he’s still a threat to get in behind and more of a 1-v-1 attacker than they’ve had prior.

Nashville is tied for the third-fewest goals conceded in the league, with just two across four games. What has made the defense so effective despite moving on from longtime stalwart Walker Zimmerman?

BW: Maxwell Woledzi has been awesome, looking pretty quickly like a top-tier center back in MLS. With Walker Zimmerman missing lots of time last season, Nashville had already become somewhat used to playing without him. Jeisson Palacios was a large part of that, and in 2026 he’s formed a fantastic partnership with Palacios. Brian Schwake has also emerged as a high-end starting ‘keeper, giving Nashville a really strong defensive core.

Will anyone be unavailable for selection due to injuries, suspensions, etc.? What is your projected starting XI? Best guess at a score prediction?

BW: Chris Applewhite is the only player who’s been injured recently, and it doesn’t look like anyone picked up an injury in their CCC draw (win) against Inter Miami. I’m predicting a 3-1 Nashville win with some slight rotation.

(4-2-2-2): Brian Schwake, Reed Baker-Whiting, Maxwell Woledzi, Jack Maher, Andy Najar; Edvard Tagseth, Patrick Yazbek; Alex Muyl, Cristian Espinoza; Sam Surridge, Hany Mukhtar.

*Score prediction not provided.

Thank you to Ben for the excellent insight into this year’s Nashville side. Vamos Orlando!