Match Preview: Nashville SC vs New York Red Bulls
Nashville SC has had their best 12-game run to start a season this year, picking up 20 points along the way of a maximum 36. Three of those points dropped came on matchday two away to the New York Red Bulls.
11 games and 74 days later, these clubs meet once again. Let’s dive in.
Match Details
Date: Wednesday, May 14th, 2025
Time: 7:30PM CST (local)
Location: GEODIS Park, Nashville, Tennessee
Watch: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+
Listen: WGFX 104.5 The Zone (Nashville)
Head Coaches: B.J. Callaghan (NSH), Sandro Schwarz (RBNY)
Injury Report
Nashville SC
OUT- Taylor Washington, Walker Zimmerman, Julian Gaines, Tyler Boyd, Maximus Ekk
QUESTIONABLE- None
New York Red Bulls
OUT- Roald Mitchell, Marcelo Morales, Dylan Nealis, Lewis Morgan, Serge Ngoma
QUESTIONABLE- None
Lineup Prediction
Last week, when the midweek fixture was against lower-league opposition, the rotation was more clear. This time, with a league fixture, and games against D.C. United and an Open Cup Round of 16 trip to Orlando on the horizon, it’s less so.
The back four seems fairly settled, with Dan Lovitz, Jack Maher, Jeisson Palacios and Andy Najar in front of Joe Willis. You could see Josh Bauer and/or Wyatt Meyer take either of the two fullback spots, but given Red Bull’s pressing intensity, it seems unlikely.
The midfield of Eddi Tagseth and Patrick Yazbek has looked incredible the last few weeks, and it’s also the double pivot that looked the best against Red Bull two months ago. The same goes for Ahmed Qasem, who gets the start over Jacob Shaffelburg, and joins Hany Mukhtar, Alex Muyl and Sam Surridge in the front four.
Analysis & Prediction
These teams both enter this one off the back of big wins. The Red Bulls demolished the LA Galaxy 7-0 at the weekend, while Nashville claimed a hard fought 2-1 win over Charlotte.
Last time these teams met, it ended in a 2-0 win for the home Red Bulls, and they deserved it after carving through Nashville’s very young midfield of Matthew and Corcoran and Wyatt Meyer.
Does a healthier, first choice midfield make the difference? Maybe.
The benefit a Tagseth/Yazbek midfield duo provides is an incredibly high work rate. They’re constantly moving around and changing their angle of attack. That should make the center of the park a little harder to press, if the back four can get it in there.
When the midfield was shifted to that pairing in the second half in March, Nashville immediately looked the more dangerous of the two sides, though Red Bull’s 2-0 lead definitely had something to do with that.
Nashville has still never beaten the Red Bulls. I think I would rather be wrong about this one calling for a boring snooze fest than the other way around. Give me a 0-0 sleeper of a game, with both teams comfortable to share the spoils.