Sports Mole previews Sunday’s Major League Soccer clash between Nashville SC and Inter Miami, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Inter Miami can end the month unbeaten when they continue their MLS campaign on Saturday against Nashville SC at GEODIS Park.
Both sides have won consecutive league contests, with the Boys in Gold defeating New York City FC 1-0 last week and the Supporters’ Shield leaders claiming a 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Union in their previous encounter.
Match preview
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A managerial change in the Music City has had a solid early impact on Nashville, who have won successive MLS affairs for the first time all year.
Under interim coach Rumba Munthali, this side have points in six of their previous seven league fixtures, putting them five points above the Eastern Conference playoff line in seventh.
Their victory last weekend was the first for their Zambian coach at home this season and the fourth for this team domestically in the Music City this year.
That victory over NYCFC last Saturday was only the third for this team at GEODIS Park in MLS this season and the fourth for them at home across all competitions in 2024.
Since Munthali took charge, the Boys in Gold have kept four clean sheets in league play, twice as many as they managed in MLS under Gary Smith this season before he was sacked in May.
They have never lost a competitive home match against Miami in normal time, winning this exact fixture last year by a score of 2-1.
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For a change, the Herons decided to begin their match last weekend on the front foot, taking a 2-0 lead after 21 minutes of play.
It was only the sixth time in the 2024 regular season that Miami had drawn first blood in an MLS affair, and Tata Martino‘s men boast a 100% record when doing so this year.
The Herons are currently on a six-match unbeaten run away from home in MLS, winning their previous two road contests by a 2-1 margin.
Throughout that run, they have been particularly potent in the attacking third, scoring multiple times in five of those encounters.
All season long, Miami have been the team to catch, and that remains the case as they head into their 21st match of the domestic campaign only two points above FC Cincinnati for first in the Eastern Conference, with the latter having a game in hand.
Miami come into this match unbeaten in their previous six fixtures across all competitions versus the Boys in Gold, claiming an epic shootout triumph in the 2023 Leagues Cup final at GEODIS Park, winning their first-ever club trophy in the process.
Nashville SC Major League Soccer form:
Inter Miami Major League Soccer form:
Team News
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In their previous encounter, the Boys in Gold were without Anibal Godoy because of a lower-body issue, Julian Gaines sat out with a sore ankle, Randall Leal has a hip problem and Lukas MacNaughton remains sidelined because of an ankle injury.
Shaq Moore is still with the USA at the Copa America, while Jacob Shaffelburg has come on as a substitute in both of Canada’s games at that tournament.
A 23rd-minute strike from Tyler Boyd was all Nashville would need to claim a victory against the Boys in Blue in what was his 50th MLS match, while Joe Willis has two clean sheets in his last three domestic encounters between the sticks.
Miami were shorthanded once again in their previous encounter with Marcelo Weigandt sitting out because of a hamstring strain, Federico Redondo was unavailable due to adductor discomfort and Diego Gomez still dealing with an ankle sprain.
Nicolas Freire missed that match with an ACL issue, Robbie Robinson sat out through injury and Facundo Farias is out for the season due to a torn ACL.
They will have Tomas Aviles and David Ruiz available after they each served a suspension in their previous outing, but leading goalscorers Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Luis Suarez (Uruguay), along with Matias Rojas (Paraguay) are on international duty at the Copa America.
Ian Fray scored for the first time this season in their previous encounter, with the winner coming courtesy of Leonardo Campana, his fifth of the regular season.
Nashville SC possible starting lineup:
Willis; Bauer, Zimmerman, Maher, Lovitz; Davis, Yearwood; Boyd, Mukhtar, Surridge; Bunbury
Inter Miami possible starting lineup:
Callender; Fray, Kryvtsov, Aviles, Alba; Cremaschi, Busquets, Ruiz; Gressel, Campana, Taylor
We say: Nashville SC 2-1 Inter Miami
The Herons have shown they have plenty of attacking depth, but against a side like Nashville, which have rediscovered their defensive game, we believe they will struggle to find that moment of magic that Messi and Suarez can provide.
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