DC United @ Nashville SC: Preview, time, and how to watch
DC United is back on the road this evening as they head to the Music City to take on Nashville SC. DC United hopes to continue building on their momentum, but they know they need to elevate their game even further against Nashville, who are tops in the Eastern Conference table.
“We have to play with our best level. Everybody has to play on the best level,” head coach René Weiler said during media availability this week. “[Nashville] are on the very top of the table and it speaks for itself. So there is no alternative. We have to play a very good game there.”
They have found momentum in scoring production recently, putting 9 goals in the back of the net over the past three matches. And the mentality that was missing a month ago is very much present in the confidence that is building within the team.
“Yeah, I mean, we’re better off than where we were before, for sure,” captain Lucas Bartlett said. “The culture is changing. [Weiler] has mentioned he’s feeling that he sees a shift in the momentum of what we’re doing as a team and the commitment that we’re showing as players. That’s vital. That’s important.”
It will be important to put their best performance of the season thus far together against a Nashville team that has scored 21 goals in 10 matches while only conceding 6. Sam Surridge, with 9 goals already, is playing at a MVP level, and Hany Mukhtar is still dangerous despite only having 3 goals on the season. DC United truly will have to elevate their production in an effort to get a result against Nashville and show the rest of the league that the Black-and-Red have turned the corner.
DC United @ Nashville SC
Location: Geodis Park, Nashville
Kickoff time: 9:15pm ET
Available streaming: FS1, Fox Deportes, Apple TV
DC posted their usual pre-game pictures, and Baribo’s jersey can be seen in the locker room. Not sure if he’ll start or not, but he should be available after being listed as questionable
Lineup:
Johnson; Hefti, Rowles, Bartlett, Kurokawa; Peltola, Servania; Stroud, Hopkins, Peglow; Louis
Baribo makes the bench after being questionable, and Kijima makes a return to the bench
Wild that Kijima ever would get left out of the squad, given the attacking depth.
I enjoy watching Kijima dribble, but dude has no end product. Last year in 1600 minutes, he had 2 goals and no assists.
He’s not an elite forward, but his skill set is definitely useful in an MLS midfield if actually incorporated.
To be fair, we hardly scored last year. It was pretty hard for anyone to generate much in terms of goals and assists.
An update: this match is on FS1 and Fox Deportes in Spanish in addition to Apple TV
Yup I pointed that out in yesterday’s Freedom Kicks. I’m looking forward to maybe getting Lloyd Sam calling the game on FS1 instead of whoever Apple gets.
This league just keeps finding new ways to shoot itself in the foot. This is DC’s only FS1 appearance of the year, meaning it’s the only chance for most casual fans to actually watch a game. But it’s a late kickoff for east coast fans, the start was moved to FS2 because of pickleball, and the team social media accounts don’t even acknowledge the fact that the game is on anything but Apple TV. What a mess.
Orders from Darth Garber and the League office probably.
Lloyd Sam on the call in FS1 for any fellow Lloyd Sam commentary enjoyers
FS1 coverage temporarily on FS2 since the Toys’R’US Pickleball USA finals tourney semifinal is running over…what a weird thing to type.
Pickleball is a legit sport, in terms of professional talent and popularity.
Europe has padel, but if there’s increasing overlap and/or popularity, it’s gonna hit the Olympics sooner rather than later.
Hopkins gets a shot on target 21 seconds into the game, and then Nashville gets a shot about a minute later
So who thinks that Najar is somehow involved in at least one goal we give up tonight?
100%
Now back to FS1 from FS2
Louis gets another goal!
LOUIS! 4 goals in 3 games!
Bartlett!!!!………and its called for offside on a corner?
Yes overturned on VAR!!! It’s 2-0!
This should absolutely stand
We get the correct VAR call.
Our reputation is shifting closer to protagonist status before our eyes.
Shh…don’t jinx it.
Protagonist status doesn’t mean “always win,” just means the narrative is no longer “dispense with these scrubs.”
Exactly don’t jinx it.
This is a bit like it raining during a drought, someone commenting on it, and saying “don’t jinx it” during the downpour
Fair…just a little paranoid about how DCU gets treated after all these years.
I do think we’re moving steadily in the right direction for reputational salvaging, but it was a shame on the Hefti “trip” that we aren’t there yet, cuz that was misguided perception I think a league protagonist is inured from, and Hefti has a yellow to give instead of a sending off.
Mukhtar is now sitting on a yellow for entering the VAR area during the check.
If anyone is watching on Apple, can you let me know how disappointed the commentators are on that platform? 😆
I’m watching FS1, it’s been good on the commentary front. Lloyd Sam actually likes us lol
I’m watching on FS1, I’m just wondering how they’re handling the trauma.
Seeing as Apple thought “how many former Redbull players can we get in here?”
Johnson keeping a clean sheet so far with some big saves.
Wow, someone incredibly lazy to keep Muyl on there, not sure who
Unfortunately excellent play by Najar to keep Peglow from firing one
Hefti picks up a yellow
I don’t think that leg trip was intentional by Hefti for the free kick that Muhktar almost converts ruthlessly
I haven’t even seen a leg trip. I thought the Nashville player just lost his footing.
On one of the replays the FS1 broadcast showed it looked like Hefti may have kicked out at the end…
Hefti’s leg caught him as he fell, seems pretty unlikely there was yellow card intent there, dude was going to ground without a ton of awareness
Wait random question. Was anyone currently in the XI or the bench with DCU or the Academy when Najar was on the team?
Hopkins. Najar played for us till 2023, Jackson has been senior since 2022.
That said, seeing as Najar left in 2023 and the churn, he probably is the only one.
Alex Bono had an overlapping stint, if that counts.
Apple currently has dc at a 78% chance of winning. I think that’s the highest number I’ve ever seen for dc
Jesus, was that dirty by Acosta on Stroud.
Wait was it just me or did it look like one of the Nashville subs just drank a Red Bull while waiting to be subbed on?
Well damn…
and overturned on VAR….am I dreaming?
Saved by an offisde and VAR
DCU had a tremendous offside line there. No goal. Tremendous discipline
This offside ruling brought to you by no one as clueless as Enow being out there
Fair point. Someone above was asking about the Apple TV commentators. They’ve been very complimentary towards DC. They keep talking about the old school way DC play — that BJ Callaghan had said they have a beautiful simplicity, and the pace they attack with is impressive. The commentators are kinda stoked about the 4-4-2, and looking forward to seeing Louis and Baribo pair up.
They also don’t think Hefti even committed a foul, much less a yellow-card offense. That, if there was a foul on hte play, it was going the other way.
Sean Johnson is crushing it tonight
Now THIS was a jinx.
I’ve always seen Johnson as a talented goalie with chronic failings at critical moments that kept him from being elite, and instead more of an experienced wash between dominant and faulty moments.
I was surprised how impressive his early play was, but he regressed to the mean viciously after Hefti’s sending off
Ah shit…Hefti picks up a 2nd yellow and gets sent off.
Hefti gets a second yellow.
He shouldn’t have gotten the first, but whatcha gonna do
Great run by Peltola to disrupt what was looking lilke a four on two break.
The commitment from the team is first rate. And I have to admit that Hefti has turned out to be a very strong addition (notwithstanding the red card he just picked up), and Kurokawa a pretty good pick-up too. The change in Peltola’s game is impressive. All-in-all, I’m happily shocked by how well they play as a unit, even if they don’t seem impressive to the eyeball test. Even Stroud has been effective the last few games.
There’s a long season ahead, but with Louis now finding the back of the net, I have to give high marks to Weiler and Sogut.
Damn it….
Dang, Johnson palms it too easily for an onrushing Nashville player
Game on for the 10 men of DC
Johnson needs to do a LOT better with that ball. On Apple. they think he should’ve caught it. That might have been tough, but he should have directed the rebound wide of the goal.
He got the save, but it was between worlds in terms of where he put it. Came at him fast, but a bit of an assist in his haste, unfortunately
It is a good thing to get Baribo in now.
Hopefully he can get the ball to stick when we clear it to him, and hold up the ball for a defensive breath/reset.
Well shit…..
Looked spectacular in real time, but I do think Johnson has to have that
I’m not one of those who thinks a goalie should never be beaten near post. But I do think Johnson should have pushed that equalizer wide. Slightly off positioning and not fast enough to react
And Najar has been involved with both of Nashville’s goals.
6 mins of stoppage…we’re gonna lose this one.
Madrigal needs to see a yellow that’s the 2nd time he’s knocked a DCU player over during a restart.
Ouch. They got messed up in the defense there. Herrera trying to guard two men, leaving Madrigal far too open. I’ve been critical of his defending, but not sure he deserves much blame there.
Wow, deflection cannons off the crossbar.
First 5 game unbeaten run since 2021, so that’s something
Wow. Blowing a 2-goal lead hurts, but if you told me before the match that DCU would get a draw tonight, I’d have taken that. I was sure Espinosa was going to score at the end. They need to tighten up their 10-man defense. Nashville was shredding them.
DC the better side tonight. Build on the performance not the result. Nashville quite lucky. Thought the referee was excellent outside of the hasty whistle and early yellows given out for some non-fouls.
Bummer that we don’t get Sporting KC this year. They look like they may give a run for the worst team in MLS history.
Disappointing not to get the full three points. But we frustrated Nashville really well till Hefti’s sending off and Johnson’s chronically bouncy hands changed the tide completely.
Seeing as Hefti’s second yellow would have been the kind of tactical yellow you want in a second half, and the first was not deserved, I’m not putting that on him. You can argue he should be wary on a yellow and not make that play, but you also can’t make your side a sieve as a fullback just to stay on the field. So, he gets a pass for me.
Johnson was having a really strong game, but that first goal was cushioned by him, the second he left a foot too much space and couldn’t react when the volley came.
Overall, pretty ok with this performance. Nashville have good enough weapons that having that two goal lead late is more encouraging than then ten men concessions were deflating, at least for me.
Think it’s a good trajectory still.
One thing that BJ Callaghan did was sub out a lot of his players that were on yellows. It would have been a pretty simple thing to take Hefti off, put Herrera at right back, and have Caden Clark sub in for Stroud. Or, if Weiler doesn’t trust Clark, he could have still swapped Herrera and Stroud, and put Antley in for Hefti. As it is, Hefti has made himself nearly indispensable (at least in Weiler’s eyes), and so he trusted him to play with the yellow. It cost us badly, and Callaghan didn’t give his players an opportunity to pick up that second yellow.
Yeah, that’s valid, but that’s on Weiler, not Hefti
We went on the road to what is the objectively the best team in the East this season, and came out with a point. It’s a good result. Yeah, we could have won. And without the red, we probably would have. It stings, but this is still a better result than what we could have expected over the past few years
This is how I feel. Still got a point out of it.
Against the leading team in the East no less.
We also scored two goals against a team that’s only conceded six all year up to that point. Pretty impressive.
They (Nashville) were missing some key players. Still, we were supposed to roll over and get kicked around the field while scoring no goals.
Finally showed a view from behind that shows Johnson made a great save tipping Espinoza’s shot on to the bar..