Timbers hope to keep Nashville SC scoreless on season

Nashville SC will continue their search for a first win on Saturday night when they welcomes the Portland Timbers in a clash of retooling clubs.

Nashville SC (0-1-1, 1 point) has yet to score. They opened the campaign with a goalless home draw against the New England Revolution, then followed by conceding two early goals in a 2-0 road loss to the New York Red Bulls last weekend.

However, manager B.J. Callaghan is taking a patient approach in his first full season in charge after a winter that saw significant roster turnover. While 2022 MLS MVP Hany Mukhtar remains in the fold, Anibal Godoy, Shaq Moore and Sean Davis were among the well-used regulars to move on.

For that reason, Callaghan took some promise out of the loss against the defending Eastern Conference champions.

"I think it was an opportunity for us to learn against a team that was ... really well coached and a team that came out with some real high intensity in the beginning of the game," Callaghan said. "It took us a little while to get up to that speed. And then I think once we were able to sort of adapt to it, there were some positives to take away."

The Timbers (1-1-0, 3 points) are also in the midst of discovering a new identity following a blockbuster move that sent Evander -- a finalist for the 2024 MLS MVP award -- to FC Cincinnati for a transfer return reported to be around $12 million.

Portland used some of that money to sign Portuguese attacker David Da Costa from RC Lens in France. And after a frustrating 4-1 loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Timbers' home opener -- in which Portland went down to 10 men after 11 minutes -- Da Costa scored an 89th-minute winner last weekend in a 1-0 victory over visiting Austin FC.

Da Costa's free kick from the left appeared intended as a cross. However, with no Timbers connecting as it dropped into a dangerous area, it instead got past Brad Stuver and gave Portland a vital rebound result.

"The adversity, what we went through last weekend, we recovered today," Portland coach Phil Neville said afterward. "And we showed we're a team that can handle adversity and can come together. And I think what we saw tonight was a (designated player) No. 10 who I think is going to be special."

--Field Level Media