Last season's League One playoff finalists Lincoln City will be hoping to turn their fortunes around with a victory on Saturday, when they host high-flying Plymouth Argyle.
The visitors, meanwhile, will be seeking their sixth league victory of the campaign which could take them to the top of the table if other results were to go their way.
Match preview
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Lincoln's inconsistent campaign continued on Tuesday night as they were beaten 2-0 by Morecambe at the Globe Arena.
Goals either side of half time from Cole Stockton and Scott Wooton helped secured all three points for the Shrimps, condemning the Imps to their fifth league defeat of the season.
That result sees Michael Appleton's men remain in 17th place, though they have been dragged closer to the drop zone as they now sit just three points ahead of Shrewsbury, who currently occupy the final relegation spot.
At this stage of last season, Lincoln were sitting in second place with 22 points on the board, level on points with league leaders Peterborough United. However this campaign, the Imps have struggled for consistency which is threatening their chances of securing at least a playoff spot.
Appleton's side won 2-0 in their home fixture against Plymouth last season and another victory this weekend could see them sneak into the top half of the table if other results were to go their way.
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Since losing their opening League One game of the season away at Rotherham United, Plymouth Argyle have enjoyed an unbeaten run of nine matches, including Tuesday night's 1-1 draw at home against Crewe Alexandra.
Ryan Hardie's seventh goal of the season in the 72nd minute cancelled out Scott Kashket's third-minute opener, and although the draw against a struggling Crewe outfit may have been considered a slightly disappointing result for the Green Army, it has seen them move level on points with second-placed Wigan Athletic in the automatic promotion places.
Many had predicted Ryan Lowe's men would endure a difficult campaign in League One, however they are certainly proving the doubters wrong, sitting 17 places and eight points above the relegation zone.
Plymouth have won only one of their last nine visits to Lincoln, though they were able to win their last two meetings against the Imps on home soil last season, securing a 2-0 win in the FA Cup second round in November 2020 before winning a thrilling 4-3 encounter in the league two months later.
Considering their present good form, Lowe's men will be confident of securing a third successive victory against Lincoln on Saturday, which could take them to the top of League One on goal difference, if Sunderland were to lose against Portsmouth and if Wigan and Milton Keynes Dons failed to win their respective league matches.
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Team News
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Lincoln trio Conor McGrandles, Tom Hopper and Chris Maguire remain sidelined with injuries, while Joe Walsh is hoping he can return to first-team training this month.
Despite losing on Tuesday, Appleton may decide to name an unchanged side this weekend, which would see Lewis Fiorini, Liam Bridcutt and Lasse Sorensen all keep their places in centre-midfield.
Lincoln's top goalscorer this term Anthony Scully, who has six strikes to his name, is set to continue on the left-wing, with Hakeeb Adelakun expected to play on the opposite flank.
As for Plymouth, Lowe could name the same starting lineup for the fourth successive game, as they currently have a clean bill of health.
Strikers Hardie and Luke Jephcott, who have scored 11 goals combined so far this season, are expected to keep ther partnership going in attack, while Joe Edwards and Conor Grant should operate again as wing-backs.
Lincoln City possible starting lineup:
Griffiths; Poole, Montsma, Eyoma, Robson; Sorensen, Bridcutt, Fiorini; Adelakun, N'Lundulu, Scully
Plymouth Argyle possible starting lineup:
Cooper; Wilson, Scarr, Galloway; Edwards, Camara, Houghton, Broom, Grant; Hardie, Jephcott
We say: Lincoln City 1-2 Plymouth Argyle
Lincoln and Plymouth head into this contest with contrasting levels of confidence but both have the same ambition to come away with all three points on Saturday.
Plymouth have been hard to beat in recent weeks and we expect the Green Army to come away with a narrow victory, extending their undefeated league run to 10 matches.
Top tip
Oliver Thomas
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Lincoln City win with a probability of 52.27%. A draw had a probability of 25% and a win for Plymouth Argyle had a probability of 22.71%.
The most likely scoreline for a Lincoln City win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.35%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (9.88%) and 2-1 (9.5%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.87%), while for a Plymouth Argyle win it was 0-1 (7.43%). The actual scoreline of 2-2 was predicted with a 4.6% likelihood.
