On Saturday night, Minnesota United fell for the first time in the 2026 season, losing 3–1 to Nashville SC at Geodis Park. The result brought their record to 1-1-1, good enough for a 10th place tie with Austin FC at weekends' end.
Most of last weekend's eleven remained intact for the road match save for one important piece, centre-back Michael Boxall. Boxall has been a constant presence on the Loons' backline for a decade, rarely missing matches in that time. Cameron Knowles slotted Morris Duggan into Boxy's spot while Devin Padelford jumped into Duggan's spot. Knowles praised the two players' performance following the loss in Nashville, stating:
“The team in general had a lot of really good moments. We came here and got 14 shots against a very good team and we had some great looks in front of goal. The guys across the back Jeff [Jefferson Diaz] included, there were some really good moments. Again there are some things as a team we really need to correct.”
Both players had a few slip ups and Padelford was beaten a few times in the box by Nashville's league leading attack. But Padelford and Duggan had serviceable nights at centre-back. As for Boxall's presence in the back being missed, Knowles said:
“Obviously you're missing someone that has tremendous experience and steady leadership and an elite performer. He hasn't missed a game in, I don't know how long, in terms of being withheld though injury. It is an opportunity for guys to step up. On the whole, I don't think you can pin it on just missing Boxy [Michael Boxall]. I think collectively, our team's defending was not up to the standard that we've seen so far this season.”
Nashville worked their way into 5 cornerkick opportunities on the night while holding setpiece-marvel Minnesota to 2. Sam Surridge and Hany Mukhtar led the host's offense. While Mukhtar was missing his finishing touch, he was able to carve out space in Minnesota's thin defense, paving the way for the goalscorers, Surridge (29' and 47') and Cristian Espinoza (33').
The Loons had a moment of their own in the 35' when Nectarios Triantis once again took up the 'bangers only' mantle with a solo run and a rocket from well beyond Nashville's box. The 2-1 scoreline didn't hold for long but getting on the board buoyed the Loons in a tough match - and made Triantis a fan hero again, if only for the remainder of the first half.
Next up for Minnesota is a match with last season's MLS Cup runner-up, the Vancouver Whitecaps. The 'Caps hammered Portland Timbers 4–1 on Saturday night in their third MLS win this season. The Loons will head back Minnesota for film review and training before leaving for the Pacific Northwest for the first of three times this season. Cameron Knowles said post match they'll "really be quite analytical about the performance," in order to "make sure we are not just reacting to the result."
