Two sides with identical starts to the 2025 Major League Soccer season will lock horns on Saturday evening when Charlotte FC and Nashville SC face off at the Bank of America Stadium.
Off the back of respective defeats last time out, the teams will both head into this weekend's encounter in need of a lift as they look to get April off to a perfect start.
Match preview
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A win, a draw and a defeat from their opening three matches represented just about a decent return for Charlotte, but consecutive wins over Cincinnati and San Jose Earthquakes in their subsequent two outings signalled an upward trajectory.
However, Dean Smith's men suffered a 2-0 defeat against Colorado Rapids in Saturday's meeting at Dick's Sporting Goods Park which saw Charlotte fail to find the back of the net for only the second time this term.
On a wretched afternoon in front of goal where Charlotte struggled to fashion any clear-cut opportunity, the home side were a tad unlucky to go into the interval on level terms before second-half goals from Dorde Mihailovic decided a largely one-sided affair.
A tally of 10 points from a possible 18 represents an improvement on the Crown's tally at the same stage last season ahead of this weekend's encounter against opponents with little to choose between the sides off the back of two wins, two draws and two defeats from the previous six encounters.
Nonetheless, Saturday's hosts will feel they have the upper hand, having come out on top in all three matches in front of their fans so far by a combined score of 8-1 to remain with the division's only perfect home record.
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Like Charlotte, Nashville also need some time to get into full gear after going winless across their first two matches before embarking on a three-game winning run, leaving Portland Timbers, Philadelphia Union and CF Montreal in their wake.
An opportunity to win four league matches in a row for the first time since June 2023 awaited BJ Callaghan's men in Sunday's clash against Cincinnati which ended in a dramatic 2-1 defeat at Geodis Park.
The Coyotes broke the deadlock through Josh Bauer, and after relinquishing their advantage to Evander's leveller just shy of the break, they looked set to come away with a point before a late handball from Walker Zimmerman afforded Kevin Denkey the chance to decide the game from 12 yards.
Level on 10 points with Saturday's opponents, the away side currently sit sixth in a tightly packed Eastern Conference, with leaders Inter Miami and eighth-place Cincinnati separated by just three points.
Having claimed a 3-1 triumph in their most recent outing on the road, where they have blown hot and cold of late, Nashville will head to North Carolina with consecutive away wins in their sights, something the Tennessee-based outfit have not managed in over a year.
Team News
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Seventeen-year-old Nimfasha Berchimas is still recovering from a foot injury he picked up on duty with MLS Next Pro side Crown Legacy prior to his move to Charlotte.
Jahlane Forbes is also out of contention for the home side due to a hamstring problem, but Andrew Privett is eligible to feature once again off the back of serving a one-game suspension.
Nashville forwards Tyler Boyd and Maximus Ekk have been guaranteed absentees for a while now due to respective knee injuries, while Julian Gaines continues to recuperate from a thigh issue.
Honduran international Bryan Acosta rounds off the list of unavailable players for the visitors through a thigh problem which has seen him fail to feature since early February.
Charlotte FC possible starting lineup:
Kahlina; Doumbia, Privett, Malanda, Byrne; Biel, Westwood, Bronico; Vargas, Toklomati, Zaha
Nashville SC possible starting lineup:
Willis; Lovitz, Maher, Zimmerman, Bauer; Tagseth, Yazbek, Muyl; Mukhtar, Surridge, Qasem
We say: Charlotte FC 2-1 Nashville SC
There is not much separating Charlotte and Nashville heading into this one, and Saturday's affair could easily swing either way.
That said, we can see the home side doing enough to get the job done at the end of the 90 minutes.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Adepoju Marvellous
