AFC Wimbledon will look to put a five-game winless run in League One to an end on Tuesday, when they make the trip to Sincil Bank to take on Lincoln City.
The hosts picked up an important victory to climb to 13th spot in the league table after a difficult start, while their visitors now sit in 17th place.
Match preview
© Reuters
After narrowly missing out on promotion in the playoff final last season, Lincoln City entered the new campaign with the hopes of completing the job and booking their spot in the second tier, but they had to endure an underwhelming start.
The Imps sat deep in the bottom half with just eight points from their opening eight league outings but have since improved their standing with seven points from their last four games.
While a victory over Burton Albion was followed by a disappointing defeat to Morecambe, Michael Appleton's men then earned a commendable point as they held league leaders Plymouth Argyle to a 2-2 draw thanks to Anthony Scully's 90th-minute equaliser from the penalty spot.
They then made a crucial return to winning ways against fellow underperformers Charlton Athletic on Saturday, as Regan Poole snatched a 2-1 victory with a 91st-minute winner after Sam Lavelle had drawn their visitors level.
With their improved form seeing them rise to 13th spot, the Imps will be keen to put a consistent run together to inspire a climb towards the playoff places.
© Reuters
They meet an AFC Wimbledon side who will look to break a five-game winless run on the back of a positive draw last time out.
After a strong start to the campaign, collecting 12 points from the first seven games in the third tier, Tuesday's visitors have since had to endure a difficult run of form, picking up just two points from the last five outings.
Mark Robinson's men suffered consecutive defeats at the hands of Plymouth Argyle, Shrewsbury Town and Rotherham United, conceding six goals and scoring just one in that time, before stopping the run with a 1-1 draw against Burton Albion thanks to Luke McCormick's 90th-minute equaliser.
The Dons then hosted promotion-chasing Sheffield Wednesday, and their position looked bleak as a Lee Gregory brace meant they trailed 2-0 heading into the final 20 minutes, only for Nesta Guinness-Walker to pull a goal back and Jack Rudoni to hit an 84th-minute equaliser at the back post to salvage a valuable point.
Having shown far more positive signs in the last two games, Robinson's men will now focus on adding to their win column and climbing back up the table, with the chance to leapfrog their hosts with an away win.
- D
- L
- W
- L
- D
- W
- L
- W
- L
- D
- L
- W
- W
- L
- L
- L
- D
- D
- L
- L
- L
- L
- D
- D
Team News
© Reuters
Following the returns of Conor McGrandles and Chris Maguire, Lincoln should come into Tuesday's game with a clean bill of health, other than important midfielder Liam Bridcutt.
Given the competition for wing spots, Maguire was trusted to lead the line, with both Teddy Bishop and Anthony Scully keeping their places in the front three.
McGrandles impressed in the engine room in the absence of Bridcutt, and he should again form the central trio with Lasse Sorensen and Lewis Fiorini.
AFC Wimbledon will remain without striker Ollie Palmer, who continues a spell out of action through injury, while midfielder George Marsh and centre-back Will Nightingale are also ruled out.
With those absences, Ben Heneghan and Paul Kalambayi should again partner up at the heart of a back four, while Jack Rudoni will continue to lead the line after his equaliser last time out.
Lincoln City possible starting lineup:
Griffiths; Poole, Walsh, Montsma, Robson; Sorensen, McGrandles, Fiorini; Bishop, Maguire, Scully
AFC Wimbledon possible starting lineup:
Tzanev; Alexander, Kalambayi, Heneghan, Guinness-Walker; Woodyard, Hartigan; Assal, McCormick, Mebude; Rudoni
We say: Lincoln City 1-1 AFC Wimbledon
While Lincoln will hope to kick into gear and build a winning run after Saturday's result, AFC Wimbledon have been resilient to earn draws against the odds recently, and we see the same happening on Tuesday.
Top tip
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 52.86%. A draw had a probability of 24.5% and a win for AFC Wimbledon had a probability of 22.59%.
The most likely scoreline for a Lincoln City win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.85%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (9.76%) and 2-1 (9.61%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.67%), while for an AFC Wimbledon win it was 0-1 (7.09%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with a 7.1% likelihood.
