Cristian Espinoza: "Nashville was the right decision for me"

ANTIOCH, TN – On Sunday, hours before Nashville SC jet off to Florida to begin their preseason preparations, Mike Jacobs was beaming.

Sitting at a podium in front of a room packed with local media, Nashville's General Manager and President of Soccer Operations was seated next to winger Cristian Espinoza, who officially joined the club last week as a Designated Player, a marquee addition that shows both Nashville's intent and their stature within MLS.

"A couple of years ago, I had a reporter ask me, without picking a player on your team, who was the best attacking player in the league not named Lionel Messi. And without hesitation I said Cristian Espinoza," Jacobs smiled.

Espinoza signed in Music City after leaving a San Jose Earthquakes team that made the playoffs just twice in his seven seasons, despite stellar play from the winger. Joining Nashville puts him in a more dangerous team, widely expected to be one of the best in MLS next season. Lead by an exciting young head coach in BJ Callaghan, Nashville's ambition was a key factor in his decision.

"I think the coach was a key for me, that he was able to be in our meetings and show me that he was really interested to come to me for this club," said Espinoza. "And then I was trying to find a club who had the best intention to grow and to achieve great things in this league and that's why I chose Nashville. So I think it was the right decision for me and for my family as well and we are very happy for this."

An ascendant attack

One of the best attackers in MLS over the last seven years, the 30-year-old Argentinian attacker joins an attack coming off the best season in club history, scoring 74 goals in all competitions and powered by a dynamic duo of Hany Mukhtar and Sam Surridge. Espinoza, who has the fifth-most goal contributions in MLS since joining San Jose in 2019, looks set to elevate an already ascendant attack.

"They are two great players and I am really happy to be part of this team and share the field with them," said Espinoza of Mukhtar and Surridge. "Hopefully we can achieve all together great things for this club... I think with my speed, I really tend to be in the wide position and to assist the striker. And I think we have one of the best strikers in the league in this team."

Espinoza takes up Nashville's third and final Designated Player spot, alongside Mukhtar and Surridge. While Jacobs and his staff had initially planned to keep the spot open to use in the summer transfer window, once signing Espinoza became a possibility, the decision was a no-brainer.

"We always want to make sure that we were to maintain flexibility and to be able to strike when the opportunity presented itself, whether it was adding a Designated Player, a U22, whether it was doing it during the course of the season at the front end or at the back end," Jacobs explained. "We felt once we were able to create the cap space, we wanted to have the flexibility. We were in position that when the right player came along, we could do that. And as soon as we knew that we had an opportunity to grab Cristian, we just grabbed him with two hands."

Espinoza's addition has been touted as one of the best moves of the winter transfer window. Nashville were already viewed as a competitor in the Eastern Conference, but the move has raised the expectations.

"I always try to under promise, but it's hard to do that when you're announcing someone like Cristian," Jacobs laughed. "I don't hide behind the fact of what [he] represents for our group.

"This offseason, an important aim for us was to be more diverse more multifaceted in our attack. For years we were like a one-trick pony; try to find Hany. Then this last year, we only had two attacking players. We feel really good about the fact that with the work done this offseason, we've enhanced our group... There's a lot of different ways that we can attack."

How will Espinoza fit?

With the signing done, the work now shifts to BJ Callaghan, tasked with finding a system that gets the best out of his players and emphasizes their strengths. For Espinoza, that will likely keep him on the right flank.

"I think the way the coach has them play using the wide positions very well, I think that I can fit pretty easy in those areas," he said. "Combining with all my teammates even if I have to play a little bit in the pockets to give another team the opportunity to go wide. As I said before, it was a really easy decision for me. Once I talked to BJ and to Mike in a phone call, I knew it right away that naturally it was the right decision."

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"When you think about scoring goals, you have to look also at chance creation, and there have been few players around the league who have been a better chance creator than Cristian," said Jacobs. "Like he mentioned, whether it's coming inside in the pocket and kind of slipping past the guys, whipping in crosses, being involved in set pieces, his ability to create chances – both he and Hany – gives us a unique dimension to our group."

Nashville's window to win

Is this a "win-now" moment for Nashville? After winning the US Open Cup in 2025, they've got a taste of silverware, and with Hany Mukhtar and Sam Surridge in their prime, as well as a high-level squad built around them, adding Espinoza feels like a crucial step towards more trophies.

"We're one of five teams in MLS history that have gone to the playoffs in five of the first six seasons," said Jacobs. "The existing group we have right now has been a large part of that. We're one of five teams that have been two cups finals in the last three years... We're one of nine teams in MLS currently who've been in Concacaf Champions Cup in two of the last three years.

"The window of opportunity is right now for us take advantage of, of what this group has done. Other than Los Angeles FC, no other team has been able to do all three things I mentioned and do it right now. So this is a team that's built to do these things and built to do it right now."