All eyes will be on the Kassam Stadium tonight when Oxford United take on Lincoln City in a potential League One six-pointer.
The two sides have become embroiled in a fierce battle to secure a play-off place in recent weeks. The U’s have recovered from their slow start under the stewardship of Des Buckingham, who replaced Liam Manning in November.
Saturday’s stunning 5-0 win over Peterborough United put them firmly in the driving seat for a top six finish, enhanced by Lincoln’s 2-1 defeat against Wigan Athletic at the LNER Stadium. It was a result which saw the Imps lose their 16-game unbeaten run, a streak which had seen them rise up the table at a staggering rate over the past couple of months.
Oxford will begin the evening in that all-important sixth spot, whilst their opponents have now slipped to eighth. Blackpool are sandwiched in between, although have played a game more than both their play-off rivals. However, tonight’s clash will see at least one of the teams drop points, meaning the Seasiders will be watching closely from afar.
It’s a fixture which is now a must-win for Michael Skubala’s side. They are five points adrift and know that anything less than three points will effectively see them remain in the third tier for another season. Meanwhile, a win for the home side would see them open up a six-point gap on the Tangerines with two games left to play.
Here’s how two of The Real EFL writing team see the game panning out…
Jamie Ward
“This should be an entertaining encounter at the Kassam Stadium as Lincoln have no choice but to go for it. They had been the division’s standout performers before Saturday’s defeat, in what was a game which proved to be one too far.
“Whilst they were not expected to lose to Wigan, it was a result which had arguably been coming. The Imps put so much into the last couple of months, especially in the huge wins over Barnsley, Cambridge United and Bristol Rovers. However, they were lacklustre against Reading last week, whilst Wigan had a game plan at Sincil Bank, one in which they executed superbly.
“Oxford know they can all-but-seal their place in the play-offs with a win but may be happy to sit back and pick off their opponents, who will surely put everything into their attack. Buckingham’s side have been free-scoring themselves, but they will know they don’t need to go all out here.
“Expect the home side to frustrate the Imps in what could ultimately prove to be a stalemate. This really could go either way but a draw looks likely.”
Oxford United 1-1 Lincoln City
Ivan Newsome
“Lincoln’s superb unbeaten run was ended by Wigan Athletic over the weekend and that may have just thrown a spanner in the works. They’ll be looking to bounce back at the first opportunity and quite frankly have to if they want to keep any sort of play-off hopes alive this season.
“There’s no reason why they can’t bounce back though, especially as a case can be made that they have been the strongest side in the league over the past couple of months but it does seem as if the Imps are playing Oxford at the wrong time. It looked highly likely a couple of weeks ago that Des Buckingham’s side may fall out of play-off contention but with three wins on the bounce, two of those being 4-0 wins the other being a 5-0 demolition of fellow play-off hopefuls Peterborough, they’ll be going into this crunch match full of confidence.
“A draw does nothing for Lincoln and they know that they have to go out all guns blazing if they want to preserve a chance of making the post-season. They might be able to do just that and once again blow the play-off race wide open.”
Oxford United 1-2 Lincoln City
