Preview: Lincoln City vs Luton Town - prediction, team news, lineups

Hosts Lincoln City will hope that their strong form is not derailed by Luton Town in League One when the sides face off on Saturday at the York Community Stadium.

After the seventh-placed home side beat Burton Albion 1-0 on September 13, they increased their points tally to 15, three more than seventh-placed Luton following their 3-2 loss against Plymouth Argyle last Saturday.

Match preview

Lincoln created little against Burton, with four of their six shots inside the 18-yard box coming from set pieces, and they struggled to produce moments of quality after they netted in the 22nd minute.

The hosts have averaged the lowest possession (36.4%) and the 17th fewest attempts on target (3.1) per game this season, as well as producing the second fewest touches in the penalty area (122) of the 24 teams in the second tier.

Supporters will be delighted by their side's performances at the back this campaign considering they have kept four clean sheets in their past seven in all competitions, and they only conceded once in two of those fixtures.

Though some have criticised the style of play of boss Michael Skubala, few can argue with the results given he has overseen six victories and three draws in his side's nine most recent outings.

The Imps are yet to experience defeat at home in 2025-26, but while they have won four of their six matches at the York Community Stadium, they have been held to stalemates in two of their past three at the ground.

Luton boss Matt Bloomfield faced significant scrutiny for his team's performance against Plymouth as his side's opponents were reduced to 10 men in the 50th minute when the score was 2-2 but still managed to take all three points.

Both of the Hatters' goals last time out came from the penalty spot, and they have only produced 19 big chances this term, the 19th best figure in League One.

Saturday's teams have not faced each other since 2018, but in their eight clashes since 2010, Luton are undefeated and emerged as winners on five occasions.

Luton should be credited for keeping four clean sheets in their seven league matches - the joint second most in the division - but they have been beaten in two of their last three League One fixtures.

The visitors' triumph against Burton brought to an end their two-game losing streak away from home, and they have won two of their three League One matches that have been played on the road in 2025-26.

Lincoln City League One form:

Lincoln City form (all competitions):

Luton Town League One form:

Luton Town form (all competitions):

Team News

Midfielder Tom Bayliss was named in the Lincoln starting lineup against Burton despite some concerns about an ankle injury, but with a full week of training behind him, there is no reason to doubt his inclusion in the middle of the pitch on the weekend.

Striker James Collins is the club's leading scorer in the league this season (four), and he may feature between wide attackers Francis Okoronkwo and Reeco Hackett-Fairchild.

Luton will hope forwards Lasse Selvag Nordas and Jerry Yates can outscore Collins, though the duo have only scored one non-penalty goal between them in League One.

Bloomfield confirmed that Teden Mengi has returned to training, and the centre-back could be thrown straight into the starting XI, but his minutes on the pitch will need to be managed carefully.

George Saville is a candidate to appear in a midfield three alongside Jordan Clark and Zack Nelson.

Lincoln City possible starting lineup:

Wickens; Darikwa, Jackson, Bradley, Reach; Bayliss, McGrandles; Hackett-Fairchild, House, Okoronkwo; Collins

Luton Town possible starting lineup:

Keeley; Mengi, Andersen, Lonwijk; Kodua, Nelson, Saville, Clark, Alli; Yates, Nordas

We say: Lincoln City 1-1 Luton Town

It would be surprising if Saturday's clash was a high-scoring affair considering both teams have found it difficult to create chances.

Lincoln should be confident of avoiding defeat given they have proven resilient at home, but Luton's strong defence may help them limit the damage that their opponents can inflict.

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