Cambridge United will welcome Exeter City to the Abbey Stadium on Saturday in the second round of the FA Cup, with the hosts aiming to collect consecutive victories in all competitions.
Meanwhile, the visitors enter the fixture in a rich vein of form, having only suffered one defeat in their last 19 games.
Match preview
© Reuters
Not since 2017 have Cambridge appeared in the second round, and on Saturday they will aim to go one better as they look to reach their third round of the competition for the first time since the 2016-17 season.
They have been eliminated at the first round stage in their last three campaigns, but they managed to win in the FA Cup for the first time in four years when they emerged victorious in the replay with Northampton Town.
After drawing 2-2 at Sixfields Stadium, Cambridge won 3-1 in the replay with the trio of Harvey Knibbs, Sam Smith and Ben Worman all getting on the scoresheet.
Cup competitions have been a welcome distraction for the U's in recent weeks, having gone four League One games without a victory.
In midweek, Mark Bonner's side progressed in the EFL Trophy, with goals from Smith and Shilow Tracey helping Cambridge to a 2-0 victory over Walsall, and they will be hoping for another cup victory on Saturday.
Exeter sealed their place in the second round in slightly bizarre circumstances as their replay with Bradford City had to be played once again after the Grecians used too many substitutes in the initial replay.
Matt Taylor's side welcomed Bradford back to St. James Park in midweek and responded after going behind, with Timothee Dieng and George Ray scoring in the second half to clinch a 2-1 victory.
The result set up the weekend encounter with Cambridge, and the Grecians will be aiming to reach the third round for successive seasons.
There is every chance that they will manage that feat with Exeter in fine form, having won seven of their last 10 games in all competitions.
Saturday's visitors do enter the encounter winless in their last three away matches, but one defeat in their last 11 away fixtures in all competitions gives the Grecians reason to be confident ahead of the second round meeting.
- W
- L
- W
- L
- D
- L
- W
- D
- W
- W
- W
- W
- L
- D
- W
Team News
Cambridge United are still without the services of Lloyd Jones, who is recovering from a groin injury.
Tracey has returned from injury to make substitute appearances in the U's last two games and the forward is expected to be on the bench once again on Saturday.
Bonner made a few changes for the EFL Trophy game in midweek, but he is likely to revert back to the side that faced Sunderland last weekend.
Sam Stubbs continued his recovery from injury, playing over an hour in midweek, but with Exeter managing his return he may drop to the bench on Saturday.
Matt Jay has top-scored for Exeter this season, and he will be looking to add to the 10 goals that he has scored at the weekend.
Cambridge United possible starting lineup:
Mitov; Williams, Masterson, Iredale, Dunk; May, Diby, Hoolahan; Smith, Brophy, Ironside
Exeter City possible starting lineup:
Dawson; Sweeney, Ray, Hartridge; Key, Dieng, Collins, Caprice; Jay, Brown, Nombe
We say: Cambridge United 1-2 Exeter City
Although Cambridge may ply their trade in the league above Exeter, it is the Grecians who have won the last four meetings between the two, and we think that Taylor's side will emerge victorious on Saturday.
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 Exeter City win with a probability of 42.66%. A win for Cambridge United had a probability of 32.54% and a draw had a probability of 24.8%.
The most likely scoreline for a Exeter City win was 1-2 with a probability of 8.98%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (8.84%) and 0-2 (6.82%). The likeliest Cambridge United win was 2-1 (7.66%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (11.63%). The actual scoreline of 2-1 was predicted with a 7.7% likelihood.
