In what is shaping up to be a crucial battle at the bottom of League One, Fleetwood Town will welcome fellow-strugglers Gillingham to Highbury Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Both teams currently occupy places in the relegation zone, with Fleetwood entering the weekend one point and one place above their opponents.
Match preview
© Reuters
Surprise victors in the midweek round of games, Fleetwood saw off playoff-chasing Bolton Wanderers in some style, triumphing 3-0 against the Whites.
Opening the scoring through Gerard Garner before Harrison Biggins netted a late brace, the victory represented the first time that Fleetwood had ever taken three points off Bolton in the league.
It also brought an end to their six-game winless run, having failed to pick up a victory in the league since beating bottom-placed Crewe Alexandra in mid-October.
The victory also means three of Fleetwood's four wins this season have come in the comfort of their own home, offering optimism ahead of Saturday's clash against Gillingham.
Fleetwood are unbeaten in their last three home games involving Gillingham, with the Kent-based side's last victory at Highbury coming back in April 2017.
Unlike their opponents this weekend, Gillingham were unable to take three points in midweek, suffering a heavy 5-1 defeat the hands of leaders Rotherham United.
That now means Gillingham will enter the weekend in the midst of a four-game losing streak, whilst the Gills are winless in their previous eight League One encounters.
Looking to extend their eight-season stay in England's third tier, Gillingham will need to put an end to their shaky form soon, or else a return to League Two could be on the cards.
- L
- L
- L
- D
- L
- W
- L
- L
- D
- L
- L
- W
- D
- D
- L
- L
- L
- L
- D
- L
- L
- L
- L
- L
Team News
Having been sent off in the midweek defeat to Rotherham, Ryan Jackson will be unavailable for Gillingham through suspension.
The most likely replacement for Jackson at right-back will be Rhys Bennett, who has covered on the flanks for the Gills already this season.
Suspensions are something that Gillingham boss Steve Evans can ill-afford, with the club currently missing a number of key players through injury.
Jamie Cumming, David Tutonda, Alex MacDonald, Kyle Dempsey, Dan Adshead and Vadaine Oliver were all absent for the Rotherham match, with the majority facing a race to get fit in time for the weekend.
With his strike against Bolton, Garner took his tally for the season to six, helping the centre forward draw level with Danny Andrew at the top of Fleetwood's scoring charts.
While unable to add to his returns this season, unlikely top scorer Andrew will once again feature at left-back for Fleetwood as they target another important scalp.
Fresh from his brace in midweek, expect Biggins to return to the side alongside promising central midfielder Jay Matete in the engine room.
Fleetwood Town possible starting lineup:
Cairns; Andrew, McLaughlin, Clarke, Johnston; Lane, Matete, Biggins; Morton, Garner, Hayes
Gillingham possible starting lineup:
Chapman; Bennet, Ehmer, McKenzie, Tucker, Lloyd-McGoldrick; O'Keefe, Phillips, Carayol, Lee; Akinde
We say: Fleetwood Town 2-0 Gillingham
Both sides will be targeting this clash as a decisive meeting in their bid for survival, but one team heads into the fixture in significantly better form than the other.
Expect more misery to be piled on Gillingham here, with Fleetwood taking another impressive victory in the comfort of their own home.
Top tip
Amos Murphy
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 Fleetwood Town win with a probability of 49.88%. A draw had a probability of 25.3% and a win for Gillingham had a probability of 24.8%.
The most likely scoreline for a Fleetwood Town win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.75%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.42%) and 2-0 (9.2%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.03%), while for a Gillingham win it was 0-1 (7.69%). The actual scoreline of 2-1 was predicted with a 9.4% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Fleetwood Town would win this match.
