On Saturday, Nashville SC clinched the 2026 Supporters' Shield with their first win in Quebec since 2021, beating CF Montréal 2-0 with a composed, professional performance. Hany Mukhtar and Sam Surridge continued their goal-scoring form, propelling Nashville to their second trophy in club history.
The vibe check (TL;DR)
- What happened: Mukhtar bagged his 99th MLS regular-season goal to cap off the game after Surridge gave Nashville the lead. It wasn't the prettiest performance from Nashville, but they were never heavily tested by a Montréal side who leave the match officially eliminated from playoff contention.
- What we learned: Nashville will officially finish the 2026 MLS regular season as the league's best team. It's a testament to the elite level at which they've performed over the course of the full season, and secures home-field advantage through the playoffs and MLS Cup.
- Big picture: For the second year in a row, Nashville finish the season with silverware. They'll go into the MLS Cup Playoffs as the favorites. Before then, though, they'll look to break the MLS single-season points record, needing five points from their final three matches to make history.
Highlights
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Key moments
- 2' | In his first professional minutes, 17-year-old Montréal 'keeper Samsy Keita makes an excellent save to deny Sam Surridge an early one-on-one goal.
- 20' | A good corner kick delivery finds the head of Bryan Vera, who flicks his effort just wide of the post.
- 31' | Alexis Sánchez wins a free kick in a promising spot, but he puts his shot comfortably into the chest of Brian Schwake.
- 32' | Henadii Synchuck picks up the ball on the top of Nashville's box. He cuts inside to his preferred left foot, but his curling shot is easily saved.
- 52' | Surridge finally finds the breakthrough! It takes a couple of efforts, but he eventually turns home a cross from Reed Baker-Whiting to give Nashville the lead.
- 58' | Schwake gets across his goal well to parry away a shot from Dani Pereira.
- 76' | Hany Mukhtar doubles the lead for Nashville, winning the ball with an exceptional press and driving into the box for the goal.
- 80' | Mukhtar nearly bags his 100th regular-season goal after a great run from Surridge, seeing his left-footed effort saved by Keita.
Standout performers
- Sam Surridge grabbed his 18th regular-season goal and his 20th in all competitions, scoring the winner to officially clinch the Shield.
- He's been arguably the hottest player in MLS over the last month, and Hany Mukhtar continued his red-hot form to put the win beyond all doubt.
- Brian Schwake earned his 14th clean sheet of the year, making six saves to keep Montréal off the board. He's just two clean sheets away from tying the MLS single-season record.
Lineup notes
Head coach BJ Callaghan rolled out his strongest-possible side against the Eastern Conference's worst team. Elias Saad, Patrick Yazbek, and Reed Baker-Whiting slotted back into the starting lineup after coming off the bench against San Jose last weekend.
What it means
These are the good old days for Nashville SC, who are in the midst of one of the best seasons in MLS history. The job isn't done yet, though, with the team looking to lift the MLS Cup trophy in just two months.
Up next
Nashville are back at home for their next two matches, taking on a red-hot Philadelphia Union at Geodis Park on Wednesday night before closing their 2026 regular-season home schedule against Red Bull New York on Sunday afternoon.
Stats
Possession: MTL 52% – 48% NSH
Field tilt (per Futi): MTL 43% – 57% NSH
Shots: MTL 10 – 8 NSH
Shots on goal: MTL 6 – 4 NSH
Penalty kicks: MTL 0 – 0 NSH
Goals: MTL 0 – 2 NSH
Expected goals: MTL 0.73 – 1.90 NSH
Total Passes: MTL 321 – 405 NSH
Fouls: MTL 13 – 14 NSH
Yellow cards: MTL 2 – 2 NSH
Red cards: MTL 0 – 0 NSH
Deserved win (per Futi): MTL 12% – 60% NSH
