Aristizabal punishes a slip
Jack Maher slipped. That was all it took. Three minutes into stoppage time at BMO Field overnight, the Nashville centre-back lost his footing inside his own box and Emilio Aristizabal, on as a Toronto substitute, bundled the loose ball over the line. Toronto FC 2, Nashville SC 1, and the best team in Major League Soccer went home with nothing.
Nashville had led for most of the night, and they had barely earned it. The opener came from one of the strangest own goals of the season. Toronto midfielder Alonso Coello won the ball back inside his own penalty area, tried to dribble his way out of trouble, and played it straight off team-mate Niklas Dorsch. Goalkeeper Luca Gavran could only watch it roll in behind him.
Neither side ever settled. Both went long, both skipped midfield entirely, and Nashville looked exposed every time Toronto broke. Daniel Salloi levelled on 72 minutes, heading in a Theo Corbeanu cross past Brian Schwake after yet another counterattack.
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Possession without a finish
Nashville had the ball. They finished with 58 percent possession and 507 passes to Toronto’s 362. What they did with it was another matter. Toronto out-shot them 16 to 11, put seven on target to Nashville’s five, and closed on 1.76 expected goals against 0.89.
Hany Mukhtar thought he had made it two shortly after half-time, only for Reed Baker-Whiting to be flagged offside in the build-up. Sam Surridge forced a low save from Gavran on 66 minutes after a heavy first touch narrowed his angle, then hit the side netting from close range in the first minute of added time. Elias Saad, still waiting on a first Nashville goal, drew a save from outside the box early and combined tidily in the final third without ever looking like scoring.
Schwake made five saves and carried no blame for either goal. It was the second match running in which Nashville created enough and converted almost none of it, after Friday’s goalless draw at New York City FC.
The record moves further away
This was only Nashville’s third defeat of the 2026 regular season, and their 10-point cushion over Inter Miami keeps the Supporters’ Shield firmly in their hands. The other target is harder now. To beat Miami’s 2024 single-season points record, BJ Callaghan’s side need 22 points from their final 10 matches.
A win would also have clinched a playoff place. Instead Nashville close out their three-match road trip on Saturday at Inter Miami, against the only side still near enough to make the Shield race interesting.
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