Salford City's search for their first League Two victory since the end of October will continue on Friday evening when they head to Essex to take on a struggling Colchester United side.

The away team's poor run of form has seen them drop into 20th position in the League Two table, while Colchester, who have lost their last five games, are 22nd, sitting five points ahead of 23rd-placed Forest Green Rovers.

Match preview

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Colchester's losing run stretched to five matches on Saturday when they suffered a 2-1 defeat at Wrexham, with the result leaving them down in 22nd position in the table on 20 points.

The Essex outfit have a record of six wins, two draws and 14 losses from their 22 league games this season, and they are only five points ahead of 23rd-placed Forest Green, who have two matches in hand, so they are currently in a very uncomfortable position in the table.

The U's, who were a Championship side as recently as 2008, were 20th in League Two last term, so it is not too much of a surprise to see them currently struggling towards the bottom.

Matthew Etherington's side were last victorious in League Two at the start of November, recording a 3-1 win over Swindon Town, which actually made it three successes in a row at the time.

Colchester's last point was at home to Sutton United on November 11, though, and their recent losing run has seen them drop dangerously close to the bottom three.

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Salford have also been on the slide, with a poor run of form seeing the promotion hopefuls drop down the table into 20th position, which is not quite what their famous owners had in mind this season.

The Ammies have not been victorious in League Two since beating Doncaster Rovers 3-0 on October 24, drawing three and losing three of their last six matches at this level of football.

Neil Wood's side were beaten by Mansfield Town, Gillingham and MK Dons in three straight matches between November 11 and November 25, before drawing their last two, both 0-0, against Stockport County and AFC Wimbledon.

Salford are currently nine points off the playoffs, which is a concern at this stage of the season, but they now have three quick-fire matches against Colchester, Tranmere and Grimsby, and positive results in all three would see them move up the division heading into 2024.

The Ammies, who lost in the semi-finals of the League Two playoffs last season, have only actually won one of their eight matches against Colchester in all competitions.

Team News

Colchester have no fresh injury concerns from their 2-1 defeat at Wrexham, and there were certainly positives to take from the overall performance against the Welsh outfit.

As a result, it would not be a surprise to see Etherington name the same XI for this contest, with a 4-2-3-1 formation expected to see the goalscorer from last time out, Jayden Fevrier, feature on the right.

Joe Taylor has been in strong form this season, scoring nine times in League Two, and the on-loan Luton Town forward will continue in the final third of the field.

As for Salford, there will once again be a start at centre-forward for Matt Smith, with a strong campaign seeing the 34-year-old find the back of the net on 15 occasions.

Kelly N'Mai has only scored twice this term, but the 19-year-old is again likely to be given the nod in the final third, with head coach Wood potentially naming the same side that started against AFC Wimbledon.

Matty Lund is an option to come into the side, with the 33-year-old netting four times from midfield this season, but he is expected to be among the substitutes for the first whistle once again.

Colchester United possible starting lineup:
Goodman; Egbo, Mitchell, Kelleher, Greenidge; McGeehan, Read; Fevrier, Jay, Chilvers; Taylor

Salford City possible starting lineup:
Cairns; McLennan, Vassell, Mariappa, Tilt, John; Humbles, Watt, Watson; N'Mai, Smith

We say: Colchester United 1-2 Salford City

Colchester took four points off Salford in their two meetings last season, but the Essex side are in such poor form, and Salford really need a result. We are expecting this to be a tight game but believe that Salford have enough quality to pick up what would be a very important three points.

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