Colorado Rapids have the chance to go above Nashville SC in the MLS Western Conference standings with a win on Saturday against the visitors.
Nashville are currently sixth, occupying the penultimate playoff position, just one point ahead of Colorado who are ninth, level with Houston Dynamo in that final spot.
Match preview
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It has been a decent start from both of these sides, who will play each other for the first ever time on Saturday.
Nashville have only played two full seasons in the MLS and they were spent in the Eastern Conference, so a switch to the West for this year has presented their first opportunity to play Colorado.
In their two campaigns so far, Nashville have finished inside the playoff positions so they are currently around where they expected to be at this stage.
Whether the same can be said for Colorado however, is quite a grey area after they finished top of the Western Conference in 2021.
They were ultimately eliminated in the playoff semi-finals but hoped to kick on in 2022, rather than be lingering on the edge hoping to sneak in.
Nonetheless, with 13 games played it is still early stages but Colorado need to find some consistency and end a run of just three wins in 10 games, if they want to be comfortable inside the playoffs.
It is up-front where they have struggled, scoring the joint-third lowest amount of goals (15) in the Western Conference this season.
However, it is Saturday's visitors they share that tally with, Nashville's top scorer this season only netting four goals so far.
Compare that to Colorado and their top scorer, Diego Rubio, only has six goals this year so both teams need their forward line to step up.
Therefore, it is through remaining defensively solid that has allowed them to push for a playoff position in the early stages of this MLS season.
Only Dallas have conceded fewer goals than Colorado (14), with Nashville shipping just one more than this weekend's opponents, which should give both sides confidence for the season.
However, looking at purely this weekend, two sides who are good in defence but poor in attack, does not usually set up an all-time classic.
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Team News
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Colorado defender Auston Trusty will be back available for selection, after his suspension forced him to miss the last match against Seattle Sounders.
Meanwhile, the home side will still be without Braian Galvan, who is out for the long-term with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.
The list of those unavailable for Nashville, however, is a lot more extensive with Irakoze Donasivano and Robert Castellanos both out injured.
They are also joined by Randall Leal, who suffered an ankle injury last week, while Teal Bunbury has been sidelined with a knee problem since March.
Colorado Rapids possible starting lineup:
Yarbrough; Abubakar, Wilson, Trusty; Beitashour, Price, Acosta, Markanich; Kaye, Barrios, Rubio
Nashville SC possible starting lineup:
Willis; Miller, Zimmerman, Romney; Muyl, Lovitz, Davis, Anunga, Godoy; Mukhtar, Sapong
We say: Colorado Rapids 1-1 Nashville SC
These are two sides searching for consistent form and are very evenly matched in terms of quality. With good defences and struggles up front, it is likely that a low-scoring draw will be the outcome.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
