Crewe Alexandra play host to Lincoln City on Tuesday evening looking for the victory which could move the club off the bottom of the League One standings.
Just nine points separate the home side to their 18th-placed opponents, who travel to the Mornflake Stadium on the back of a four-game winless streak.
Match preview
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Having won just two of their 20 League fixtures this season, Crewe can perhaps count themselves fortunate that they only sit seven points adrift of safety.
One of those victories came as recently as November 20, Alexandra getting the better of Gillingham, but back-to-back defeats have since been posted at AFC Wimbledon and Ipswich Town.
Despite positives coming from each of those outings, David Artell knows that only points will keep him in a job in the long term with the Crewe board inevitably considering his position to some degree.
In all competitions, however, Crewe have posted three wins from six games, their latest success coming over Doncaster Rovers in the EFL Trophy on December 1.
Each of those three wins came at the Mornflake Stadium, a record which gives Michael Appleton and his Lincoln squad something to think about ahead of Tuesday's contest.
Lincoln had high hopes for another promotion battle this campaign, but successive league defeats have left Appleton fully aware that his team can ill-afford another setback in Cheshire.
To add to their disappointment, they have also exited the EFL Trophy and FA Cup, Saturday's 1-0 reverse at home to Hartlepool United creating particular frustration.
While Appleton is arguably not at the stage where he is fighting to keep his job, failing to win at Crewe or Cheltenham Town will give the powers-that-be at Sincil Bank a decision to make ahead of January.
Lincoln have scored just twice in six matches in all competitions, one of those efforts coming against non-league Bowers & Pitsea.
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Team News
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Having made widespread changes for the EFL Trophy tie last week, Artell will likely revert back to the team which lost 2-1 at Ipswich Town.
Despite getting on the scoresheet in the cup, Ben Knight will drop back down to the substitutes' bench, allowing Chris Long and Chris Porter to return.
Travis Johnson is an alternative at right-back with Scott Kashket having failed to impress at Portman Road.
Cohen Bramall is one of a number of Lincoln players who will feel like they are in line for a recall.
Liam Bridcutt and Lasse Sorensen could be drafted into the centre of midfield, but Max Sanders may remain among the replacements.
Crewe Alexandra possible starting lineup:
Richards; Johnson, Offord, Sass-Davies, Williams, Adebisi; Finney, Lowery, Griffiths; Long, Porter
Lincoln City possible starting lineup:
Long; Poole, Montsma, Jackson, Bramall; McGrandles, Bridcutt, Sorensen; Bishop, N'Lundulu, Adelakun
We say: Crewe Alexandra 1-2 Lincoln City
With neither team in good form, there is a feeling that anything could happen in this match. While victory for Crewe could change the course of their season, we have to back the visitors to have slightly too much quality going forward to edge this contest by the odd goal in three.
Top tip
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 Lincoln City win with a probability of 46.24%. A win for Crewe Alexandra had a probability of 28.25% and a draw had a probability of 25.5%.
The most likely scoreline for a Lincoln City win was 0-1 with a probability of 10.71%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.23%) and 0-2 (8.15%). The likeliest Crewe Alexandra win was 1-0 (7.97%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.12%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 4.5% likelihood.
