Nashville SC vs. CF Montréal
2026 MLS Regular Season | Matchday 17
Wednesday, July 22 | 7:30 p.m. CT
GEODIS Park | Nashville, TN
Broadcast Details
Watch | Apple TV
Listen | 104.5 The Zone
Nashville SC returns to GEODIS Park for the second time in five days to resume its charge toward the Supporters’ Shield title, this time on Wednesday against CF Montreal. The Boys in Gold (first in MLS) sit on 36 points through 15 games and are the only side yet to lose at home in league play in 2026.
Key Storylines
Breaking the drought
Aside from Shak Mohammed’s late winner, the story of Nashville’s win against Atlanta on Friday was the number of players sidelined through injury. For the first time in more than two months, however, Sam Surridge was not among them — making his first start in any competition since April 7 and playing the whole 90 minutes.
The star forward’s return to the lineup handed the hamstrung Boys in Gold — lacking usual starters Warren Madrigal and Cristian Espinoza — a vital focal point up top. But, for the fifth time in his last six appearances, Surridge didn’t find the back of the net, a rare drought for one of the league’s premier strikers. His two most recent goals came in 45 minutes off the bench against Charlotte in April, with his three games as a starter since a March 21 hat trick all ending goalless.
That is not in any way meant as an indictment of Surridge’s superb scoring chops, which remain among the best in MLS. He sits just four goals back of Hugo Cuypers in the Golden Boot lead having started six fewer games, and every game he has scored in he has scored at least twice. He was also voted — by coaches — as an MLS All-Star for the second-successive season, a testament to how highly he is regarded by those unfortunate enough to play him.
If Surridge is to get back on the scoresheet, Wednesday seems as likely an occasion as ever. The Canadian team has leaked goals in 2026, surrendering 31— 20 more than Nashville — through 15 games and has never tasted victory at GEODIS Park. The 27-year-old also has the most goals for Nashville against Montréal after a May 2024 hat trick and a late-game score to secure a road draw last October.
More goalkeeping history
Few words remain to describe the historic season Brian Schwake is putting together. The 24-year-old goalkeeper has been one of — if not the — standout players in MLS in 2026, sitting second in clean sheets in his first season as a starter. Should Wednesday go his way, further accolades will follow.
According to FotMob, Schwake sits in the 90th percentile or better among MLS shot stoppers or better in save percentage, goals conceded, goals prevented and clean sheets per 90 in 2026. Of the 17.21 expected goals on target he has faced, he has surrendered just 11 goals, two of which came from the penalty spot. Perhaps most impressively, only three of the goals he has conceded resulted in dropped points for his team; a 1-0 loss at Chicago and 2-2 draw against D.C. United.
Team achievements, of course, come first; with a victory against Montréal, Nashville would set a club-record five-game win streak, remain the only MLS team unbeaten at home and extend its undefeated run to 10 games. But should Schwake keep a shutout, his eighth of the season, he would become the first goalkeeper in club history to do so through 16 matches and maintain Nashville’s defense as the league’s stingiest.
An unknown quantity
If Nashville has been one of MLS’s most consistent sides in 2026, Montréal has been one of its most volatile. The club endured a difficult start to the season, surrendering eight goals in two games in road losses against San Diego and Chicago. A 3-0 win at a then-high-flying Red Bull New York stemmed the bleeding, but defeats against Orlando, Cincinnati, New England and eventually Philadelphia in their home opener by a combined 11-5 meant Montréal found itself rooted to the bottom of the conference.
That is, until it ripped off a 4-1 win to sweep RBNY and shut out New York City FC 1-0 to close out April before putting together a chaotic May. That included two-goal losses to Atlanta and Chicago, a 2-0 win against Orlando and draws against Portland and D.C. United by an aggregate 6-6, in addition to a 5-0 Canadian Championship win.
Put another way, this Montréal team is hard to gauge. Striker Prince Owusu has been spectacular with nine goals and five assists through 14 games, as has midfielder Wikelman Carmona, with four and four. Only four Eastern Conference teams have scored fewer goals than Montréal’s 22, however, and only three have conceded more. Season-wide form and series history indicate Nashville should be heavy favorites in this match, but Montréal has proven itself a bit of a wildcard in 2026. The Boys in Gold will have to play composed and assertively if they hope to maintain their stranglehold on the table.
Series History & What’s Next
Nashville has dominated Montréal across their 11 previous meetings, winning six times and losing just once. The Boys in Gold have outscored their Quebecois opponents 17-7 in that span and have conceded just twice in their last four meetings, including a 3-0 win at GEODIS Park last March.
Upon the conclusion of Wednesday’s game, Nashville hits the road for the first time since MLS play resumed for a rematch with Orlando, scheduled for Saturday at 6:30 p.m. CT.
