Burton Albion will be looking to maintain their impressive record in the first round of the EFL Cup when they welcome Oxford United to the Pirelli Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The Brewers have advanced from this stage in nine consecutive seasons and will fancy their chances of extending that run against fellow League One side Oxford.
Match preview
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Albion memorably reached the semi-finals of this competition in 2018-19, where they were beaten 10-0 on aggregate by Manchester City.
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink will not be looking that far ahead just yet, of course, but Burton have been handed a favourable opening-round tie in this season's competition.
That said, the Brewers lost both league meetings with Oxford last season by an aggregate 9-1 scoreline, including a 5-1 loss the last time the sides met at the Pirelli Stadium.
However, Hasselbaink's side kicked off their 2021-22 campaign with a 1-0 win at Shrewsbury Town on Saturday thanks to John Brayford's strike with half an hour played.
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Oxford were held 1-1 by Cambridge United in their opening game of the season, meanwhile, with Steve Seddon's first-half strike being cancelled out by a Joe Ironside penalty.
Burton will ultimately be the happier with how the opening weekend panned out, then, but both managers are likely to make changes for this midweek cup tie.
Like Burton, Oxford also have recent experience of going far in this competition, having reached the quarter-final stage in 2019-20.
Karl Robinson's main aim this season will be to challenge for a playoff spot, but victory against Burton here and there is no reason why another cup run cannot also be on the cards.
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Team News
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Ryan Williams and Seddon were handed their full debuts for Oxford in the draw with Cambridge, while Billy Bodin was introduced from the bench.
Bodin is in contention to earn a place in the starting lineup on Wednesday, as are Marcus McGuane and Sam Winnall.
As for Burton, they are also expected to make a few changes for this cup tie, which is followed three days later by the visit of Ipswich Town.
Striker Kane Hemmings sustained an injury in pre-season and has been ruled out for the next three weeks in a big blow for Hasselbaink.
Lucas Akins led the line against Shrewsbury and that is likely to also be the case versus Oxford.
Joe Powell and Cameron Borthwick-Jackson are among those in contention for recalls to the starting XI.
Burton Albion possible starting lineup:
Garratt; Brayford, Shaughnessy, Leak, Borthwick-Jackson; Morris, O'Connor; Smith, Powell, Patrick; Akins
Oxford United possible starting lineup:
Stevens; Forde, Moore, Thorniley, Seddon; Brannagan, Henry; Bodin, McGuane, Whyte; Winnall
We say: Burton Albion 2-1 Oxford United
A lot will depend on the strength of the two sides fielded, but either way this is likely to be a tight contest at the Pirelli Stadium.
Oxford had the better of the two meetings last season, though we can see that changing here with Albion advancing to round two once again.
Top tip
Daniel Lewis
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 Oxford United win with a probability of 49.16%. A win for Burton Albion had a probability of 26.08% and a draw had a probability of 24.8%.
The most likely scoreline for a Oxford United win was 0-1 with a probability of 10.63%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.49%) and 0-2 (8.58%). The likeliest Burton Albion win was 1-0 (7.29%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (11.76%).
