Blackpool and Luton Town meet in the second tier for the first time in 43 years on Saturday afternoon at Bloomfield Road.
Both teams are enduring difficult runs of form; the Tangerines are currently 11th in the Championship table, two points ahead of the Hatters who are 15th.
Match preview
© Reuters
Blackpool are without a win in their last five matches and have scored just two goals in that run, which has meant that they have dropped from sixth to six points behind the playoffs.
Despite dominating possession, Neil Critchley's side managed just one shot on target against Birmingham City last weekend and lost 1-0 at St. Andrew's, conceding in the 81st minute.
Finding the back of the net has certainly proved an issue at times and no team in the Championship have scored fewer goals at home this season than the Tangerines (seven).
Nonetheless, for Blackpool to be significantly closer to the top six than the bottom three with the season nearly at the halfway mark is testament to the excellent work that Critchley has done on the Lancashire coast.
© Reuters
Like Blackpool, Luton were in the playoff positions only a few weeks ago, but have since taken just one point from their last four matches.
Nathan Jones admitted that he should have been "braver and bolder" when picking his team following a 2-1 defeat to Cardiff City last weekend.
Only four sides in the Championship have scored more goals than Luton this season (27), but the Hatters have won just twice on the road in 2021-22.
With a clash against league leaders Fulham to come next weekend, Jones will be eager to return to winning ways at Bloomfield Road.
- W
- L
- D
- D
- D
- L
- L
- W
- L
- L
- D
- L
Team News
© Reuters
Richard Keogh could be in line to return in the centre of Blackpool's defence after recovering from a calf injury.
Goalkeeper Chris Maxwell featured in a friendly in midweek as he steps up his return from a quad injury, so he should not be too far away from Championship action.
Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel, Josh Bowler and Shayne Lavery are among the names pushing for a recall to the Tangerines' starting lineup.
Jones could recall players who he dropped to the bench against Cardiff last weekend, including Fred Onyedinma and Henri Lansbury.
Jordan Clark scored his first goal of the season against the Bluebirds so should keep his place in midfield.
Luke Berry remains sidelined with a knee injury, but it is hoped that his return is not too far away.
Blackpool possible starting lineup:
Grimshaw; Lawrence-Gabriel, Ekpiteta, Husband, James; Bowler, Wintle, Dougall, Anderson; Madine, Lavery
Luton Town possible starting lineup:
Sluga; Bree, Lockyer, Bradley, Naismith, Onyedinma; Clark, Mpanzu, Lansbury; Adebayo, Hylton
We say: Blackpool 1-1 Luton Town
Both teams will see this game as an opportunity to turn their form around, so it should be a hard-fought, scrappy game in Lancashire. We think that they could cancel each other out and both take home a point that neither side will be particularly happy with.
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 Luton Town win with a probability of 38.55%. A win for Blackpool had a probability of 33.07% and a draw had a probability of 28.4%.
The most likely scoreline for a Luton Town win was 0-1 with a probability of 12.15%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (7.95%) and 0-2 (7.3%). The likeliest Blackpool win was 1-0 (11.02%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.24%). The actual scoreline of 0-3 was predicted with a 2.9% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Luton Town would win this match.
