Welcome to Boys in Not Gold, with the latest on Nashville SC’s players out on loan, with their national teams or elsewhere wearing Not Gold. Elliot Panicco photo courtesy Nashville SC.
Defender Robert Castellanos
On loan with Tampa Bay Rowdies in USL Championship
Castellanos started the Rowdies’ season opener against Birmingham Legion, but left the game in the 13th minute with an ankle injury. Prior to his exit, he completed all seven of his passes and cleared the ball from his defensive area once.
Tampa next hosts Indy, which can be seen on ESPN+ at 6:30 p.m. CDT Saturday (though the expectation is we do not see Castellanos in action).
Goalkeeper Elliot Panicco
On loan with Indy Eleven in USL Championship
Panicco started and went the distance between the pipes in Indy Eleven’s season-opening loss to Loudoun United. He faced three shots, making two saves but allowing the game’s only goal in a 1-0 loss. He also made two defensive clearances, and completed 10/17 passes, with Indy asking him to go long for the most part (11 long passes, six short), rather than pass to possess.
Indy next travels to Tampa Bay, which can be seen on ESPN+ at 6:30 p.m. CDT Saturday.
Winger Rodrigo Piñeiro
On loan with Unión Española in Chile which Nashville SC has not announced for reasons that are unclear
Piñeiro made his competitive debut for Unión Española in the fourth game of the 2022 season, coming on as a 64th-minute sub at left wing. Although his team had been a man down since late in the first half, they managed to find a winner in the 86th minute to defeat Curicó Unido 1-0.
Piñeiro was in the starting lineup at wing for the next match. He was carded for time-wasting in the 66th minute (keep this in mind for a sec). He then scored the go-ahead goal for his team to make the score in the 84th minute… and was shown his second yellow and sent off for a celebration that included removing his shirt. His team managed to hold on for the 1-0 win.
In the Copa Supamericana, he started as a central attacking midfielder in a 4-3-3 formation against fellow Chilean side Deportivo Antofagasta (in what essentially amounts to a play-in game, with 16 domestic matchups to qualify for the second round of the competition). He was subbed off in the 85th minute as his team fell 2-1. He was not involved in any of the three goals (which all took place in the first 13 minutes of play) before coming out as an 85th-minute substitution.
The second leg of that two-legged Copa Sudamericana tie takes place in Antofagasta this Thursday.