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• Nashville SC v CF Montreal: Smith knows strugglers must make home comforts count

  Nashville SC coach Gary Smith knows his struggling side must make the most of their home games as they look to snap a five-match winless run against CF Montreal on Saturday.

  Nashville sit a lowly 14th in the Eastern Conference standings with just eight points from nine matches, their only league victory of 2024 coming against Charlotte FC in mid-March.

  They were pegged back in a 1-1 draw with the San Jose Earthquakes last time out as the pressure on Smith intensified further, and he knows they are running out of time to turn things around.

  "We're all very appreciative and understanding of the fact the home games represent the very best opportunity to earn points," Smith said. 

  "But I wouldn't say that I feel any more pressure than I have done for any other home game or any other fixture."

  Montreal, meanwhile, have seen their preparations overshadowed by reports that star midfielder Mathieu Choiniere has requested a transfer after entering the last year of his contract.

  While boss Laurent Courtois is none the wiser as to Choiniere's intentions, he is keen to see the homegrown talent stay put. 

  "Everyone loves Mathieu, everyone wants him to be valued, everyone wants him to stay here," Courtois said. 

  "Everyone wants him here to lift the club as high as possible, for as long as possible.

  "There will be discussions between players and the club to improve their contractual situations everywhere, and it doesn't always need to be in the public eye.

  "I don't know the accuracy of the rumour that came out. The club hasn't told me anything."

  PLAYERS TO WATCH 

  Nashville SC – Hany Mukhtar

  Mukhtar scored with one of his six shots against San Jose last time out. 

  He has taken a total of 388 shots since joining MLS in 2020, 100 more than any other player in the league in that time.

  CF Montreal – Bryce Duke

  Montreal managed just eight shots in their scoreless draw with the Columbus Crew last time out. Only Austin FC (7.8) have averaged fewer shots per match than Montreal (9.6) in MLS this season.

  Duke has created nine chances for team-mates this campaign, a tally only matched by Choiniere among Montreal players. If they are to improve their attacking output, he will have a key role to play.

  MATCH PREDICTION – NASHVILLE SC 

  Nashville have only managed three wins in 21 MLS matches since the end of the Leagues Cup last August (10 draws, eight losses, including playoffs). 

  They are also winless in their last five, drawing two and losing three, but the visit of a Montreal team who do not travel well could be a boost for Smith's men.

  Montreal have gone four away games without a victory, failing to score in any of their last three and conceding 10 goals throughout that run. This game may just come at a good time for the hosts. 

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY 

  Nashville SC – 49.4%

  CF Montreal – 23%

  Draw – 27.6%

• Vancouver Whitecaps v Austin FC: Sartini hails 'special' White ahead of enticing BC Place meeting

  Vancouver Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini labelled Brian White as a "special" player ahead of Sunday's enticing MLS meeting with Austin FC at BC Place.

  The Whitecaps are third in the Western Conference after a 1-1 draw with New York Red Bulls last time out, completing a fine April that saw them lose just one of four matches.

  Whitecaps forward White scored in that draw and may get somewhat of a hero's welcome at a packed-out BC Place after becoming Vancouver's all-time leading scorer.

  "I'm really happy he could make history here at home in front of his family, in front of his friends," Sartini said of White, who moved past Camilo Sanvezzo as the club's all-time leading scorer.

  "It adds a special, special flair to that, so I'm really happy for him.

  "He's a player so committed that it doesn't matter if he misses a goal, or he scores the first goal, or if he misses the first touch because he's going to adjust."

  Sartini even suggested his coaching has improved White, albeit in a playful manner.

  "I think he scored 99%  of the goals with me as a coach, so I can even tell that maybe that it's [to] my credit," he joked. "Because I put him in the right position."

  Austin are just two points but four places behind Vancouver in the West after winning four of their last five outings, having swept aside LA Galaxy 2-0 in their last match.

  Verde and Black head coach Josh Wolff is not getting overly excited with that form, though.

  "It's 10 games into the season so we don't get carried away," Wolff said. "When you guys [the media] are slaughtering us earlier this year, I don't get too bummed out.

  "You guys do what you do. You got to pump out headlines and you got to get readers, I understand it. Whether I agree with that or not, that's what you guys choose to do."

  PLAYERS TO WATCH

  Vancouver Whitecaps – Brian White

  With a goal against the Red Bulls on Saturday, White has contributed to at least one goal in six straight matches, the longest streak by a Whitecaps player in the club’s MLS history.

  The 28-year-old has found the net – or assisted – in every game since failing to do so against San Jose Earthquakes on March 10, with the Whitecaps reaping the rewards from their star forward.

  Austin FC – Brad Stuver

  Austin have kept clean sheets in two straight matches for only the second time in club history, also doing so in June-July 2023.

  Austin kept just one clean sheet in the 25 matches in all competitions between the two streaks and their upturn in form should be somewhat credited to goalkeeper Brad Stuver, who continues to impress.

  MATCH PREDICTION – VANCOUVER WHITECAPS WIN

  The Whitecaps are the heavy favourites for this one, having won four of their six meetings with Austin FC (D1 L1), including recording victories in all three meetings between the sides at BC Place.

  Vancouver have also equalled their best nine-match start in club history with 17 points, yet the Whitecaps have never reached the 20-point mark within their first 10 games of an MLS season.

  It will be far from a routine victory, though, as Austin have won four of their last five matches (L1) following a 2-0 win over the Galaxy, including the last two in a row.

  Austin have had only one winning streak longer than two games in all competitions in club history, a four-match run in June-July 2022 – but that could come to an end here.

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  Vancouver Whitecaps win – 46.7%

  Austin FC win – 27.2%

  Draw – 26.1%

• Real Salt Lake v Sporting Kansas City: Mastroeni lauds team effort of Western Conference leaders

  Real Salt Lake head coach Pablo Mastroeni credited the collective effort of his league-leading side as they prepare to host Sporting Kansas City at America First Field for Sunday's MLS clash.

  Salt Lake sit atop of the Western Conference table after a six-game undefeated streak, having overcome Philadelphia Union 2-1 in their last outing.

  Alexandros Katranis provided a remarkable 89th-minute winner in that victory over the Union, with RSL not losing an MLS game since March 9 against Colorado Rapids.

  "I think it is everything so far, every aspect of the team has been competitive – sometimes the offense clicks, sometimes it is the defense," Mastroeni said.

  "For me, it is really the collective; from the staff, to the players, to me and the work we do every day. Scoring the first goal has been really important for us in most of the games.

  "Defensively we have been a really good team, it starts at the top, though. We're getting a lot of great contributions from all around the pitch.

  "When you tie that all together, we've got a great group firing on all cylinders."

  Peter Vermes' Wizards were defeated 2-1 by Minnesota United in their last match, leaving them 10th in the West with just 11 points to their name after 10 games.

  Kansas City head coach Vermes knows another difficult task awaits on the road this weekend.

  "They are the best team in the West at the moment," Vermes said of RSL.

  "They are always a tough defensive team. With the strike power they have up front, we will have to be focused and concentrated, it will be a tough match for us."

  Vermes' high praise of Salt Lake comes as no surprise given Mastroeni's men have only conceded nine times this season – a joint-low in MLS.

  PLAYERS TO WATCH

  Real Salt Lake – Cristian Arango

  Cristian Arango has 16 goal contributions through 10 matches this season, equalling the most in a player’s first 10 appearances of a season in MLS history (Carlos Vela in 2019, Cobi Jones in 1998).

  With eight goals in just 10 appearances so far this term, the Real Salt Lake star has already surpassed his six strikes in 2023 – and will hope to further his tally here.

  Sporting Kansas City – Johnny Russell

  Johnny Russell has scored six goals in 13 career MLS matches against Real Salt Lake (also considering playoffs), including scoring at least once against RSL in each of the last five seasons.

  The Scottish winger is yet to score in league competition this year, though, failing to find the net in any of his seven appearances – though Russell has only played 90 minutes twice in that run.

  MATCH PREDICTION – DRAW

  It will be hard to split these two sides with a draw appearing probable, despite the Opta supercomputer suggesting Real Salt Lake have the likelier chance of victory.

  Sporting have never recorded back-to-back victories when visiting Salt Lake in all competitions, though they did win the last meeting between these two sides 3-2 in October.

  SKC may have also lost their last outing but they have not suffered consecutive defeats across all competitions since April 2023, avoiding defeat in the match following each of its previous 14 losses (W10 D4).

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  Real Salt Lake win – 45.5%

  Sporting Kansas City win – 26.8%

  Draw – 27.7%