A multitude of travel difficulties and a third game in eight days made for tied legs for Nashville SC as it fell to previously winless Toronto FC II, 2-0.
90 in a Nutshell
Nashville appeared to have an early lead when Brandon Allen put one into the back of the net off a corner kick. Allen ended up being called offside and the goal was wiped off the board.
In the 34’ minute, Nashville keeper CJ Cochran came off his line to cut down the angle from a Toronto attack. When attempting to play the ball, Cochran committed a foul and Toronto was given a penalty. Luca Uccello converted and gave Toronto a 1-0 lead heading into the break.
Minutes into the second half, Toronto doubled its lead. A long throw in led to Matthew Srbely working his way across the top of the 18-yard box, around the Nashville defense. Srbely placed his shot perfectly into the side netting to add an insurance tally.
Nashville used its subs to bring more offensive players into the game, but the scoring woes continued as it was shutout for the fourth time in five July games.
Goals
34’ – Luca Uccello (Penalty)
48’ – Matthew Srbely (assisted by Shaan Hundal)
Watching the East
Even with the loss, other results went Nashville’s way, keeping Nashville in 7th in the Eastern Conference.
Travel Trouble
Nashville’s trip up to Rochester was wacky before it even began. Multiple flight issues due to poor weather conditions east of the Appalachians forced the match to be pushed from 5 pm CT to 7 pm CT. Some players arrived in the morning on Saturday, while other did not arrive until just hours before the match. The travel complications undoubtedly affected preparations for this match.
Allen on the Doorstep
Nashville forward Brandon Allen nearly changed the complexion of the match early on when he knocked home a feed off the head of Matt LaGrassa in the box off a set piece. However, it was quickly blown dead as Allen was just offside. He had another chance in the second half and looked to have scored, only to have it called off for offside on the feed from Ropapa Mensah.
Opportunity Didn’t Knock
Nashville was able to dominate possession, owning the ball for 53.8% of the match. However, the Grade-A scoring chances just didn’t percolate from it. The road team had eight shots in total with three of them coming on target. On the flip side, TFC II was able to capitalize on two mistakes in the Nashville defensive third and create two goals out of it.
July Woes
The month of July was not kind to Nashville SC. The club did secure a win over Atlanta United 2 and drew top-ranked Cincinnati FC 0-0, but the club scored just one goal in the process. The end of the month provided a steep challenge with three matches in eight days, plus a myriad of injuries testing the club’s depth.
Rest, Recover, Attack
Nashville will finally get a chance to rest its legs and heal up before the club travels to the Queen City to take on top-ranked FC Cincinnati at Nippert Stadium on Saturday night. The club shut out Cincy at Nissan Stadium in the first-ever meeting between the future MLS cities.
Up Next
Nashville SC will have a normal work week leading up to a big showdown at FC Cincinnati on August 4.
