The promotion and relegation battles in League Two are as fierce as ever this season, and tonight’s midweek action is not exempt from that as automatic promotion hopefuls Wrexham travel to a Sutton United side currently sat adrift in the bottom two.
Wrexham’s recent form has been particularly unextraordinary, as they have lost three league matches on the bounce, with that run extending to four if you include their FA Cup disappointment against Blackburn Rovers. The Welsh outfit have struggled for goals during that run, with their only league goal in the past three outings being in a 3-1 away defeat to Salford City.
With teams around them picking up points, such as all three of the sides currently in the automatic promotion places, Phil Parkinson’s men may be targeting this match as an opportunity to get their push for League One football back on track.
Sutton on the other hand have also had a pretty torrid time of it this season. Currently sitting in 23rd, and seven points off safety, they are without a win since Boxing Day. New boss Steve Morison had hoped to turn the club’s fortunes around after picking up four draws in their last six games, however, so far, it has failed to be enough. They will now be hoping that their shift in tactics, to a five-back formation, will allow them to keep solid in their matches.
A win for the home side won’t do anything to their league position. Still, it could help close the gap to Grimsby Town and Colchester United just out of the relegation zone, whereas an away victory could see Wrexham revisit the automatic promotion spots.
Here is what The Real EFL pundits think about this matchup…
Charlie Beeston
“On paper, when predicting a game between 5th and 23rd, you’ll only have one outcome. However, Wrexham’s recent form throws that into question. Not only are they struggling to win, but they have also struggled to score, something which has not really been much of a problem all season. The loss of form at this stage does not have to be too detrimental to their whole campaign, but that will require them to turn things around sooner rather than later.
Sutton may not have viewed this as a winnable game in their relegation dogfight, however, with some of the recent belief instilled at the club by their change of manager, they may think that it is now a distinct possibility that they get something out of this game.
This is not a traditional must-win for both sides. The Dragons are still only two points behind Crewe Alexandra in 3rd and have two games in hand and as stated, this is hardly one that Sutton will be expected to win, even though I now think there’s a chance, therefore, I’m going for a bit of an upset and think the home side will clinch a draw.”
Sutton United 1-1 Wrexham
Ivan Newsome
“Despite improving since Matt Gray was relieved of his duties as manager, Sutton are still yet to get their first three points under new man Steve Morison. They badly need a win soon if they want to give themselves any sort of chance of retaining their Football League status.
Given that they’re 23rd in the table and Wrexham are fifth, this may on paper look like a one-sided affair. Phil Parkinson’s side have however lost each of there last three and have as a result fallen down the table and out of the automatic spots. With just one goal in their last three league games, Wrexham are struggling in an area which is usually their strength.
You would however expect them to find their form in front of goal again and it may just click in their game against Sutton. It’s a huge game for both sides for very different reasons and I do think Wrexham will come out on top. As much as Sutton have improved they just struggle to win and if Wrexham find their best, will be very hard to beat.”
Sutton United 1-3 Wrexham
