Recap: Nashville SC poor in lopsided road loss to St. Louis

Nashville SC dropped points for a second-straight week, falling 3-1 in their first-ever match in St. Louis as their Supporters' Shield hopes take a hit.

The XI

Head coach BJ Callaghan was forced into a few changes. Dan Lovitz (foot) and Walker Zimmerman (knee) were late additions to the injury report, and neither made the match-day squad. Wyatt Meyer was the next man up at left back, while Tate Schmitt made his first appearance in a squad since signing as a free agent back in May.

On the pitch

Nashville dug themselves into a hole in the first half. The visitors looked bright in the opening minutes, with Hany Mukhtar in particular looking a threat in transition. Poor decisions for the final ball let them down, though, and they let several opportunities pass by before St. Louis took the lead.

A spectacular double save from Joe Willis led to a corner which fell to left back Jaziel Orosco on the edge of the box. The Real Salt Lake academy product thrashed a low drive across the box with his weaker right foot, squeezing between Willis and the near post for an improbable goal.

Fifteen minutes later, the hosts doubled the lead. St. Louis had been able to get in behind Meyer several times, and made Nashville pay late in the first half. Eduard Löwen made a run from deep in midfield and found João Klauss in transition, who beat Willis again at the near post to dig Nashville in a deep hole.

With no changes at halftime, Nashville again looked flat to start the half. Aside from a handful of hopeful entry passes from Gastón Brugman, they struggled to create much in the way of sustained chances, and when they did manage to move the ball into the box, St. Louis cleaned up easily. Just as Nashville began to string some decent looks together, Sang-bin Jeong iced the game, flicking in a header from point-blank range after a deflected shot. Nashville were masters of their own demise after playing too loose in buildup.

Nashville pulled a goal back via the penalty spot. Mukhtar earned the spot kick and saw his first effort saved by Roman Bürki, although the former Borussia Dortmund shot-stopper had come off his line thanks to a heavy stutter step from Mukhtar. The 2022 MLS MVP dispatched the second attempt, but it ended up being purely academic.

Nashville looked like they'd pulled another goal back during a whopping 12 minutes of added time when Alex Muyl flicked a speculative ball from Jacob Shaffelburg in off the crossbar, but it was waved off after Teal Bunbury was judged to have fouled Orozco after a very physical back-and-forth between the two.

Goals

• 23' | STL | Jaziel Orozco
• 39' | STL | João Klauss
• 66' | STL | Sang-bin Jeong
• 85' |NSH | Hany Mukhtar (PK)

The big picture

Nashville eventually created the type of chances we've come to expect from theis side. Unfortunately, that didn't happen until they were 3-0 down against a side desperate for a win in front of their home fans.

For the second-straight match, Nashville have gone on the road and looked flat for the majority of the match. This squad is still heavily dependent on Mukhtar and Surridge for their goals (the two have scored 30 of Nashville's 43 goals), and with the pair dropping off from open play in recent weeks, Nashville's attack looks lackluster.

Injuries certainly haven't helped; Walker Zimmerman missed his 10th match with injury this season, and Dan Lovitz's absence plus the lack of match fitness for Tate Schmitt had Nashville down to their fourth-choice left back. To compound things, Wyatt Meyer hobbled off with what looked like a fairly significant injury.

Ultimately, though, Nashville were nowhere near good enough. Two losses in a row has their bid for an improbably Supporters' Shield title looking like even more of a long-shot, and they badly need to rediscover their momentum heading into the final stretch of the season.

Up next

Nashville are back on the road next weekend, taking on New York City FC on Sunday, August 17. They'll follow it up with two consecutive home matches, playing Orlando City (August 23) and Atlanta United (August 30).

Stats

Possession: STL 42% – 58% NSH
Total Passes: STL 313 – 454 NSH
Shots: STL 13 – 18 NSH
Shots on goal: STL 7 – 6 NSH
Penalty kicks: STL 0 – 1 NSH
Goals: STL 3 – 1 NSH
Expected goals: STL 2.05 – 2.04 NSH
Fouls: STL 9 – 9 NSH
Yellow cards: STL 2 – 1 NSH
Red cards: STL 0 – 0 NSH