Preview: Burton Albion vs Leyton Orient - prediction, team news, lineups

Looking to maintain their impressive League One form, Burton Albion play host to Leyton Orient at the Pirelli Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Last time out, the Brewers beat Blackpool 1-0, while the O's drew 1-1 with the same opponent.

Match preview

After a fire broke out at St James' Park last week, Burton's game away to Exeter was postponed, meaning Saturday's clash will be the Brewers' first action in two weeks.

Following a poor start to the season, winning just one of their opening eight League One games, Burton Albion have turned a corner in recent weeks, losing only once in their last eight league encounters.

The month began with a 6-0 FA Cup thrashing of Isthmian League Premier Division side St Albans; however, their free-scoring form in cup competitions has not fully translated to the league, with just three teams in the third tier scoring fewer goals than the Brewers' 16.

Two weeks ago, Gary Bowyer's side beat Blackpool 1-0, with Jake Beesley scoring his fifth goal of the season to help secure Burton's sixth league win and move them up to 14th with 22 points.

Although the Brewers have been enjoying a good run, their overall home form remains a concern.

Only Plymouth Argyle and Port Vale have worse home records, with the Staffordshire-based side collecting just 10 points from eight games at the Pirelli Stadium.

Meanwhile, Leyton Orient have endured a challenging season after narrowly missing out on promotion to the Championship last term.

Seventeen games into the season, Richie Wellens's men have won six, drawn three and lost eight, leaving them 16th with 21 points.

The O's had been building momentum, picking up 13 points from their last six league outings, before a 94th-minute equaliser from Blackpool's Ashley Fletcher denied them three valuable points last time out.

Despite their inconsistent form throughout the 2025-26 season, with the London-based team five points outside the relegation zone, their attacking output has been a notable positive.

No side in League One have scored more than their 25, highlighting that there is a foundation for Wellens to build on.

Burton Albion League One form:

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Burton Albion form (all competitions):

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Leyton Orient League One form:

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Leyton Orient form (all competitions):

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Team News

Burton Albion may be without Charlie Webster, who was forced off injured last time out.

JJ McKiernan, who replaced him, was also substituted shortly after, and it remains unclear whether that was due to injury.

They will, however, welcome the return of Toby Sibbick, who has not played for the Brewers since the start of November after featuring for Uganda on international duty.

Jack Hazlehurst and Dylan Williams will miss out again, but Terence Vancooten returned to the bench last time out after his injury and could push for a start.

As for Leyton Orient, a season-ending ACL injury for Rarmani Edmonds-Green means he will be unavailable once again.

Theo Archibald has not played for Orient since February 2024 because of a long-standing knee injury but has recently signed a new contract; although he will not feature on Saturday, the Scottish winger is nearing a return to football.

Tayo Adaramola was shown a red card just after the break against Blackpool and will miss this one through suspension.

Burton Albion possible starting lineup:

Collins; Godwin-Malife, Moon, Hartridge; Lofthouse, Chauke, Evans, Armer; Revan; Beesley, Shade

Leyton Orient possible starting lineup:

Cahill; Craig, Beckles, Happe, James; Bakinson, El Mizouni, O'Neill, Wellens, Connolly, Ballard

We say: Burton Albion 2-3 Leyton Orient

With both sides picking up a high number of wins in recent weeks and sitting in similar positions in the table, Saturday's fixture is a tough one to call.

Burton Albion will be eager to get their home form back on track, but we expect one of the league's highest scorers to challenge their defence and Orient to eventually come away with three points.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.