Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.
Austin FC’s interim head coach Davy Arnaud is confident his side are up to the challenge of facing Eastern Conference leaders Nashville SC in MLS.
Austin still have outside hopes of trying to clinch a playoff spot in the Western Conference, sitting 13th on 31 points, just five off LA Galaxy in the final wildcard place.
They are unbeaten in their last eight games (W3 D5), though all of their wins have come on the road in that time.
However, last time out at home, they trailed 3-0 to San Diego FC before coming from behind to earn a draw.
Austin come back from the international break knowing they face a tough test versus Nashville, but Arnaud has no doubt his players will give it their all.
“Nashville is very good, and we understand that. Listen, there is not an easy game in this league,” Arnaud said.
“We say the most important thing is for us to be tough to beat.
“I think you’ve seen these guys; they’re up for any challenge. I think they’ve shown that.”
Nashville are top of the East on 60 points, with a 14-point cushion over the New England Revolution and Inter Miami in second and third, respectively.
With seven games left to play, BJ Callaghan’s side need 15 points to break the all-time points record for a regular-season campaign.
They have lost just one of their last 10 league games and went into the international break on the back of two straight wins in which they did not concede, against the Chicago Fire and Toronto FC.
Staying sharp. https://t.co/4KtdQjhJj8
— Austin FC (@AustinFC) October 8, 2026
Ramirez scored in the 82nd and 86th minutes in Austin’s draw with San Diego, and he has now scored five goals in the 80th minute or later this season.
That is tied for the most such goals by any MLS player this year and is the most in a single season ever by an Austin player.
Mukhtar scored his 100th MLS goal (95 regular season, five playoffs) for Nashville, the first player to hit the mark for the club and the seventh in MLS history to do so with any single team.
The next five highest-scoring German players in league history have a combined 97 goals (regular season and playoffs).
Nashville have won three of their five all-time meetings (D1 L1) with Austin, with the last being Nashville’s 2-1 triumph in last year’s U.S. Open Cup Final.
That was one of Austin’s two times hosting Nashville, as the teams also played out a 1-1 league draw in Texas in 2022.
Nashville need 15 points over the final seven regular-season matches to surpass Inter Miami (74 in 2024) for the most points in a season in MLS history.
Austin, meanwhile, extended their unbeaten streak in league play to eight games (W3 D5) with a 3-3 draw with San Diego, coming from 3-0 down.
It was Austin’s first time earning a result in an MLS match (regular season or playoffs) in which they trailed by 3+ goals (L23 prior to the draw).
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