MLS is Back! Tournament kicks off this week with Nashville SC vs. Chicago Fire betting odds and picks as well as previews listed below. Be sure to claim your welcome bonus from Jazz Sports (maximum offered: $1000). Jazz has been serving the betting community for nearly 25 years now.
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Odds
Nashville FC +265, Chicago Fire -125, Draw +255
Time
Time: 9:30 p.m. Central, July 8
Place: ESPN Wide World of Sports, Orlando
TV: ESPN
Tips
Chicago should be in good form after nearly stunning the champion Seattle Sounders pre-pandemic.
Nashville arrives in Orlando with a number of positive tests for Covid-19 and will likely be a bit in disarray.
Chicago Fire's form hasn't been good, as the team has won only 2 of their last 19 away matches (Major League Soccer)
In their last 7 games in Major League Soccer, Chicago Fire have been undefeated on 6 occasions
The big question for Chicago: How the midfield pieces fit will bear watching. If Gimenez and Stojanovic -- along with holdovers Djordje Mihailovic and Przemyslaw Frankowski -- can provide a steady supply line to new forward Robert Beric, the Fire could do some damage.
The big question for Nashville: Can Hany Mukhtar and Randall Leal carry Nashville's attack? Neither player was what one would consider high-profile when they were acquired, but they've showed some flashes of quality in the early going. NSC will need more of that if it is to advance.
What More to Know
With reports emerging that expansion team Nashville had five players test positive for COVID-19, ESPN’s Stefano Fusaro says it’s likely the July 8 match will be pushed back, though no news yet as of Monday afternoon.
There is a drive-in watch party slated for this match at Soldiers Field in Chicago, which will of course be postponed should the matchup be postponed.
Walker Zimmerman has the lone MLS goal for Nashville SC at the moment while Nashville has 21 attempts at goal and 8 shots on target as a team through their first two games of the season.
Robert Beric and Jonathan Bornstein each have a goal this season for Chicago, with the Fire having 18 attempts at goal and 9 shots on target through their first two matches played this season.
- Mary Montgomery, Gambling911.com