CF Montreal can stretch their winning run at Saputo Stadium to eight matches in all competitions when they host Nashville SC in MLS action on Wednesday.
Le CFM have been dominant on home soil, coming away with a 4-0 triumph in their previous encounter versus Minnesota United, while the Boys in Gold remain second in the Eastern Conference following a 3-1 home victory against St Louis City last Saturday.
Match preview
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Halfway through the 2023 MLS campaign, Montreal have managed to stay afloat primarily because of their sparkling form at home, where 18 of their 22 points have come from this season.
They have been virtually impenetrable in Montreal throughout the campaign, posting seven successive clean sheets in all competitions there and becoming just the fifth team in league history to post five straight shutout victories at home in a single season.
Their five-match home winning run in this competition equals the longest stretch of consecutive victories for them in Montreal since 2018 (five), and it puts them one win away from equalling their longest such streak in a single league campaign set in 2012.
Those home victories have saved Hernan Losada for now, with Le CFM currently holding down the final playoff position in the Eastern Conference, ahead of Charlotte FC with one fewer game played.
Montreal have never beaten Nashville since the Boys in Gold entered MLS in 2020, losing both of their home games against them by a 1-0 score in 2020 and 2021.
This club have only lost one of their previous 10 regular season affairs on home soil, dropping a 1-0 decision to DC United in mid-April.
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Life in the Music City is about as good as it has ever been for Gary Smith and Nashville, who set a club record on Saturday by earning at least a point for a 10th successive encounter in league play.
Since the start of the 2023 campaign, this team have been the hardest to break down defensively, conceding a league-low 13 goals, while giving up multiple strikes in only one domestic encounter this year.
With 35 points after 18 league fixtures, it is their best-ever start to an MLS campaign, eclipsing their previous record of 28 points collected at this same stage in 2021.
Entering this contest, the Boys in Gold have claimed at least a point in four consecutive MLS road fixtures, one shy of equalling their longest-ever unbeaten streak away from home set in 2022.
Nashville have only suffered one defeat on Canadian soil since entering the league, falling 2-1 at Toronto during the 2021 campaign.
They have not lost a match all year when scoring first, while their last four winning goals have occurred beyond the 70th minute.
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Team News
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Romell Quioto continues to miss time for Montreal due to a sore hamstring, while Samuel Piette has been out for a significant amount of time because of an adductor injury.
Robert Thorkelsson was recently called up to the Iceland Under-21 squad, while Aaron Herrera will represent Guatemala at the upcoming CONCACAF Gold Cup.
In their previous match against the Loons, Mason Toye scored twice against his former team, his first two of the domestic campaign, Zachary Brault-Guillard and Rudy Camacho also scored for the first time this season and Jonathan Sirois collected another clean sheet, as he has not conceded in his last six home matches played in all competitions.
Nashville continue to be without Nick DePuy, who has been plagued all season by a lower-body injury, while Lukas MacNaughton is listed as questionable for that same reason.
Walker Zimmerman will join the reigning Gold Cup champions USA for that competition later this week, while Anibal Godoy is set to feature for the Panamanians.
Reigning league MVP Hany Mukhtar picked up his fourth career hat-trick on Saturday, with only five players in league history collecting more three-goal games than the German star striker, while he also set up their opener by Jacob Shaffelburg the last time they faced Montreal this year, with their other goal on that occasion coming courtesy of Taylor Washington in a 2-0 home victory as Joe Willis made seven stops for the shutout.
CF Montreal possible starting lineup:
Sirois; Campbell, Camacho, Corbo; Miljevic, Wanyama, Duke, Lappalainen; Choiniere; Toye, Offor
Nashville SC possible starting lineup:
Willis; Moore, Bauer, Maher, Lovitz; Davis, McCarty, Haakenson; Muyl, Mukhtar; Bunbury
We say: CF Montreal 0-1 Nashville SC
Montreal's form at home may be a little deceiving, as all of their victories this year at Saputo Stadium have come against lower-tiered teams or MLS sides currently outside of the playoff picture, as they have beaten up on teams with poor defensive records.
The Boys in Gold, meanwhile, have been nearly impossible to get through most of the year, while their star player has looked unstoppable in recent matches, which is why we are tipping Nashville to extend their unbeaten run to 11 games.
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Top tip
Joel Lefevre
