Nashville SC (7W-5L-5D, 26 pts.) kicks off a busy month of July on Sunday with a holiday weekend home matchup against the Portland Timbers (5W-6L-7D, 22 pts.) at GEODIS Park.
Sunday’s matchup is the first of six matches in July, including four home matches, all against teams that have never visited Nashville. The Boys in Gold are coming off a decisive 3-1 win over D.C. United on the road last Saturday in Major League Soccer play. Midfielder Hany Mukhtar scored his third brace of the season in the victory, earning MLS Player of the Week honors.
From the music to the atmosphere to the fast-paced action, there’s no better time to be at GEODIS Park. Tickets are still available here.
Here’s everything you need to know about Sunday’s match:
Date: Sunday, July 3
Time: 7:30 p.m. CT
Location: GEODIS Park (Nashville, Tenn.)
TV: MyTV30
Local Stream: NashvilleSC.com/stream, Nashville SC App
English Radio: iHeartRadio Online, Nashville SC App
Spanish Radio: El Jefe 96.7 FM
Tickets
A-Z Matchday Guide
GEODIS Park Policies
Parking and Transportation Info
Matchday Lineup
Lessons Learned – Nashville SC is looking to rebound in this match after exiting the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup in the quarterfinals on penalties on Wednesday against Orlando City SC.
Head Coach Gary Smith said the lessons from that Open Cup loss will reverberate throughout the rest of the Major League Soccer season.
“Whilst we’re not going through to the next round, and that is disappointing, there are so many positives to come out of this game,” Smith said. “I do genuinely feel that, as we work towards the remaining part of our season in the league, this occasion will serve us very well when we get towards the nitty gritty and those postseason games.”
Recover and Return Home – The Boys in Gold have three days of rest after Wednesday’s U.S. Open Cup match. Smith says the quick turnaround doesn’t affect his strategy against Portland on Sunday, especially coming home to Nashville, where the team has earned a result in 33 of 36 all-time MLS matches.
“We now have the opportunity to go back home feeling pretty good about ourselves against this group,” Smith said. “I don’t see any problems. It will be for me to work out who’s physically in the right place and who isn’t, but we’ll be fine come Sunday.
Scouting the Timbers – Nashville SC is set to face Portland for the first time since March 2020 when the Timbers won 1-0 at Providence Park. The Boys in Gold outshot Portland 14-3 with four shots on target in the club’s second-ever match in MLS.
At the midway point of the regular season, Portland sits eighth in the Western Conference, four points behind fifth-place Nashville. The Timbers are currently on a two-match winning streak and will be seeking their second road win of 2022 on Sunday. They’re led in scoring by Jaroslaw Niezgoda and Bill Tuiloma, who each have five goals. Sebastián Blanco has been the engine in midfield, dishing out six assists so far this season.
Nashville will look to control a Portland offense that hasn’t been shut out since May 22, as well as score against a defense that has given up the fourth-most goals (27) in the Western Conference this season.
