There were no goals, but expansion side Nashville SC officially have their first preseason match under their belt, battling Swedish outfit IF Elfsborg to a 0-0 draw in a closed-door scrimmage between the sides.
Nashville's starting XI was mostly a lineup of players who can be expected to start regularly when the MLS season gets underway, while the final two 30-minute periods featured more depth players and trialists. The Nashville lineup during the last 30 minutes exclusively featured 2020 MLS SuperDraft picks and trialists. No. 2 overall SuperDraft pick Jack Maher out of Indiana University played during the second period.
Despite the lack of attacking fireworks, Nashville midfielder Dax McCarty called the match a "positive outing" that will help the players learn each other's games as they look to acclimate to one another ahead of the start of the season.
"It's always interesting to get on the field with a new group of players," McCarty said. "And it's not the same as joining a new team, it's basically creating a team from scratch. For the first 30 minutes, getting to know guys, their tendencies and trying to establish relationships on the field is the main part of the exercise. For the most part, I think it went really well."
Goals
- None
Lineups
Nashville SC starting XI: Joe Willis; Eric Miller, Dave Romney, Jalil Anibaba, Dan Lovitz, Hany Mukhtar, Anibal Godoy, Alan Winn, Dax McCarty, Abu Danladi, Dominique Badji
Nashville SC beginning at 31': Adrian Zendejas; Brayan Beckeles, Ken Tribbett, Jack Maher, Taylor Washington, Derrick Jones, Tah Brian Anunga, Trialist, Matt LaGrassa, Alistair Johnston, Cameron Lancaster
Nasvhille SC beginning at 61': Elliot Panicco; Trialist, Trialist, Trialist, Trialist, Trialist, Trialist, Trialist, Tanner Dieterich, Shak Adams, Luke Haakenson
