Rain or shine, home or away, first minute or last, Nashville finds a way.
Nashville SC, fresh off the biggest win of its MLS season to date, headed up to Harrison, N.J., Wednesday night looking to expand on its five-point Supporters’ Shield lead. After trouncing the second-place team so decisively on Saturday, a trip to a volatile Red Bull New York seemed an easy assignment by comparison. But the Boys in Gold were made to work for every yard on the banks of the Passaic River, converting Maxwell Woledzi’s late goal into a 1-0 win that vaults them seven points clear in the MLS table and secures their first-ever win at Sports Illustrated Stadium.
The main battle Wednesday night was between the Boys in Gold’s width and Red Bull’s spine. Even without Andy Najar or Cristian Espinoza in the starting lineup, Nashville held more than enough quality on the wings to cause New York problems, largely due to the dribbling ability of Elias Saad and Shak Mohammed. Their passing exchanges with Dan Lovitz and Reed Baker-Whiting were a key part of their team’s attack throughout their time on the field, more than once forcing Red Bull into uncomfortable defensive situations.
New York’s central trio of Emil Forsberg, Adri Mehmeti and Ronald Donkor, meanwhile, sought to exert control on Nashville’s two-man midfield with their superior numbers. Those three players combined for 17 league assists entering Wednesday’s match, supporting one of MLS’s breakout strikers in 18-year-old Julian Hall. And while their approach worked well — they had the bulk of the game’s best opportunities — Nashville’s unit proved the stronger of the two.
The eventual entry of Espinoza and Najar, who had an assist and a goal in the weekend’s win, after an hour swung the fight decisively in Nashville’s favor.
An Espinoza cross off a corner in the 81st minute looked to have settled things. After being repelled by New York’s defense, the ball bungled around the box before finding Sam Surridge on the left edge, who slid a pass across goal for Woledzi to slot home. The defender had just strayed offside, calling it back. But the momentum — and the partnership — was there for Nashville to chase a winner.
Standing over a free kick in the second of seven minutes of added time, Espinoza curled a perfect ball to the far post toward a blitzing Woledzi, who tucked his head onto the ball and diverted it into the net. Two goals against New York teams in 2026, two goals for the Ghanaian, and the first ever by a Nashville player at Red Bull. Game, set, match.
Even with Patrick Yazbek in the squad for the first time since the spring, Nashville maintained the midfield pivot that powered it to a 4-1 shelling of Inter Miami over the weekend. Eddi Tagseth and Matthew Corcoran, aptly described by the Apple TV commentary team as “unsung heroes,” were once again excellent against Red Bull. Their work rate and ability to dispossess opposing players, a skill set which helped them outrun Miami’s midfield unit, this time proved vital in shattering the home side’s characteristic high press.
Their passing range offered a necessary outlet in catching that press out as well. Corcoran had two feeds that nearly resulted in an opener inside 10 minutes, once to Surridge with a spectacular cross-field ball and another for Baker-Whiting to cross. Tagseth found a similar opportunity just after the 20-minute mark, too, though his through-ball saw Surridge in an offside position.
Despite Nashville’s slew of near-openers, the majority of the first half’s best chances fell the way of the hosts — one by Hall and another by Forsberg. Hall’s effort squeaked wide of the right post, but Forsberg’s looked almost certain to find the bottom corner, until goalkeeper Brian Schwake popped up with the latest in a long catalog of jaw-dropping saves.
New York nearly doubled Nashville in expected goals by the end of the first half, but the visitors’ defense held firm to preserve a shutout heading into the locker room. His eventual clean sheet marked his 14th of the season in all contributions — a club record with 14 matches still to play.
Nashville heads back to GEODIS Park for a Saturday night rematch with Columbus Crew, scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT. The Boys in Gold won the previous game 1-0, courtesy of a dramatic last-gasp winner by Hany Mukhtar.
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