Livingston and Motherwell will be looking to kick off 2023 with a win when they go head to head at the Almondvale Stadium in round 20 of the Scottish Premiership.
While the home side are without a win in their last three outings, Steven Hammell's men head into the new year winless in six consecutive matches across all competitions, and both sides will be looking to end this dry spell.
Match preview
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Livingston failed to move into the top half of the Scottish Premiership table as they were held to a 1-1 draw by St Mirren when the sides squared off last Wednesday.
In a game where both sides finished with 10 men, Curtis Main struck three minutes after the hour mark to cancel out Cristian Montano's 56th-minute opener and force a share of the spoils.
Prior to that, the Livi Lions enjoyed a decent run of results during the World Cup break as they picked up two wins and lost one of their three friendly outings before suffering successive league defeats against Celtic and Hibernian respectively.
David Martindale's men, who are now winless in four league matches on the bounce, are currently seventh in the league standings, level on 24 points with sixth-placed St Johnstone.
While Livingston will be looking to arrest their slump and kick off the new year on a high, standing in their way is a Motherwell side who are unbeaten in each of the last seven meetings between the teams, claiming five wins and two draws since a 1-0 loss in February 2020.
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Hammell's side have endured a horrid first half of the season and find themselves 10th in the league table, just three points above rock-bottom Ross County, albeit with one game in hand.
Motherwell's underwhelming campaign has been owing to their struggles on home turf, where they boast the league's worst record with just one win and five points from eight matches so far.
The Well took to the pitch for the last time in 2022 on Wednesday when they suffered a 3-0 defeat away to Rangers courtesy of goals from Alfredo Morelos, Connor Goldson and Bayern Munich loanee Malik Tillman.
Motherwell have now failed to win any of their last six matches across all competitions, picking up two draws and losing four since October's 1-0 victory against Dundee United at Tannadice.
Team News
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Livingston will still have to cope without Scottish defender Jamie Brandon, who has been sidelined since August through a severe groin injury.
Fellow countryman Pittman will also play no part in Monday's game as he serves his suspension after receiving an early bath against St Mirren in midweek.
In his absence, former Rangers midfielder Jason Holt will push for a starting role at the centre of the park, teaming up with Sean Kelly and 33-year-old Andrew Shinnie, who has started 10 of the 16 league matches this season.
As for Motherwell, they will be without the defensive duo of Bevis Mugabi and Nathan McGinley, who are currently recuperating from knee and muscle injuries respectively.
Louis Moult has missed the last three matches through an ankle problem, while Rolando Aarons is currently dealing with an ankle injury.
Livingston possible starting lineup:
Konovalov; Devlin, Obileye, Boyes, Montano; Kelly, Holt, Shinnie; Bahamboula, Anderson, Kelly
Motherwell possible starting lineup:
Kelly; O'Donnell, McGinn, Lamie, Penney; Slattery, Goss, Spittal; Cornelius, Shields, McKinstry
We say: Livingston 2-1 Motherwell
While Livingston have suffered a drop-off in form, they have been solid at home in recent weeks. With that said, Motherwell should expect a tough 90 minutes at the Almondvale Stadium as they look to end the winless run. We predict an action-packed contest, with the Livi Lions claiming a slender victory in front of their home fans.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joshua Ojele
