Tuesdayās meeting with Orlando City SC will mark the first-ever MLS Playoff match at GEODIS Park.
After a 1-0 loss to the Lions at Exploria Stadium last Monday, the Boys in Gold must defeat Orlando City at GEODIS Park to force a decisive Match Three in the first round of the 2023 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs.
Date:āÆNovember 7, 2023
Time:āÆ8 p.m. CT
Location:āÆGEODIS Park (Nashville, TN)
Radio:āÆ104.5 The ZoneāÆand theāÆ104.5 The Zone App
Pressure is a privilege ā Due to the result in Orlando, Nashville SC finds itself in a must win match at GEODIS Park.
āPressure is a privilege, and I think that thatās kind of the mantra that we have to take going into this game,ā said Dax McCarty. āWhen our backs have been against the wall, specifically in Leagues Cup, I think weāve shown up and weāve performed. We know that weāre going to have a great atmosphere, we know that weāre going to have the crowd behind us, and we know that at home, we have no excuses. We have to go out and win the game. Itās good to feel that pressure. It means that youāre alive, it means youāre excited about the game. Itās just managing those emotions, making sure that we donāt let our emotions get the best of us in a big game. I think if we can do that, we have a very good chance of getting this to a third game.ā
A familiar foe ā With Match One completed and a regular season match played just over a month ago, The Boys in Gold and the Lions have played two matches against each other in a short time span.
āHaving been around this group for a long time now, obviously, Iām feeling a group of players that have no fear in the game theyāre going into,ā said head coach Gary Smith. āI donāt think either of the two games that we played against Orlando in the last month ā¦ has there been at any point in time a concern about what theyāre walking into. I think thereās a respect for what and how the opposing group are going to play, but if you look at both of those games in recent times, theyāve been such fine margins.
āMy hope is that in this game alone, we can show the sort of passion ā¦ thatās needed for the game and the moment. The sort of performance that I know weāre very, very capable of at home and weāve seen on multiple occasions that are not only worthy of winning a game, but the sort of picture that the fans want to see on this occasion.ā