Two teams with contrasting ambitions in the Scottish Premiership will clash on Saturday afternoon, as top-six hopefuls Motherwell host relegation-threatened Ross County.
The hosts are sixth in the standings with 31 points from 25 league outings, while the visitors are 11th in the table with 26 points from their 25 fixtures.
Match preview
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Motherwell initially enjoyed a strong opening to the Scottish Premiership season, placed fourth in the table after 17 games played having managed eight wins, two draws and seven defeats.
However, the Steelmen have endured a turbulent time in recent weeks, winning only one of their last 10 matches across all competitions, including four consecutive losses heading into this one.
Motherwell suffered back-to-back defeats to bottom of the Scottish Premiership St Johnstone in that time, leading to Stuart Kettlewell's shock resignation from the club after he and his family faced abuse from the Steelmen supporters.
Stephen Frail has briefly taken charge on an interim basis while Motherwell look for Kettlewell's successor, and the caretaker boss recorded a 3-1 loss to Celtic in his first game.
Now aiming to end their slide down the table, placed sixth and just one point above eighth-placed St Mirren, Motherwell will face relegation battling Ross County.
The Staggies have finished in the relegation playoff spot in each of the last two seasons, overcoming Partick Thistle in the 2022-23 final and Raith Rovers in 2023-24, and they appear to be heading for another relegation playoff placement this term.
Don Cowie's side are currently placed 11th in the Scottish Premiership with 26 points from 25 matches, leaving them five points ahead of 12th-placed St Johnstone and just one behind 10th-placed Dundee.
They did appear set for a climb up the table as they won three and drew one in a four-match stretch through December and January, but they have subsequently lost two and drawn one.
Cowie will be desperate for his side to start picking up points on a more consistent basis to steer themselves away from a third consecutive appearance in the relegation playoff, and they will look to draw confidence from their 2-1 win against Motherwell in November.
Team News
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Motherwell are dealing with an injury crisis with up to 10 players unavailable for this match, including Apostolos Stamatelopoulos, Archie Mair, Aston Oxborough, Lennon Miller, Paul McGinn, Ross Callachan, Steve Seddon and Zach Robinson.
Marvin Kaleta and Dominic Thompson are also doubts for the Steelmen after both were substituted due to injury concerns in the defeat to Celtic, meaning Harrison Paton and Davor Zdravkovski may start.
As for Ross County, Alex Samuel (thigh), Jack Grieves (head), Michee Efete (Achilles), Ryan Leak (Achilles) and Will Nightingale (unspecified) are ruled out due to injury.
Goals have been hard to come by for the Staggies this season, scoring a league-low 24 times in 25 matches, and they will be hoping a potential strike force of Ronan Hale and Kieran Phillips could deliver the goods here.
Motherwell possible starting lineup:
Balcombe; Paton, O'Donnell, Gordon, Blaney, Zdravkovski; Sparrow, Halliday, Nicholson; Armstrong, Maswanhise
Ross County possible starting lineup:
Amissah; Wright, Tomkinson, Campbell; Brown, Randall, Nisbet, Ashworth; Chilvers, Phillips, Hale
We say: Motherwell 2-1 Ross County
While Motherwell have struggled in recent weeks, they have been at their best at home - taking 18 of their 31 points at Fir Park - leading us to believe the hosts will win this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
