Blackpool play host to Stevenage on Saturday afternoon looking to record the win that will move them to within two points of their opponents in the League One standings.

From the perspective of the visitors, they have the opportunity to advance into third position as they bid to earn a surprise playoff spot at the end of the season.

Match preview

With Neil Critchley back at the helm and in a lower division, Blackpool supporters would have expected big things from their side at the start of this season.

Instead, just 16 points have been collected from their 11 matches, just three wins coming from their most recent 10 league outings to leave them off the pace.

Although they have a game in hand on some of the teams above them, Critchley will be disappointed with 10th position, particularly when they had seemed to have turned a corner with recent back-to-back victories over Reading and Barnsley.

Since then, Derby County left Bloomfield Road with a 3-1 success before Blackpool blew a two-goal lead at Charlton Athletic to have to settle for a share of the spoils.

Having gone four successive games without a goal earlier in the season, positives can be taken from netting in five of their following six contests, but this is a squad that is under-achieving when they were one of the favourites for promotion.

In sharp contrast, Stevenage are over-achieving on their first appearance in the third tier in 10 years, helped by a fast start to the campaign where they won four of their six matches.

However, Steve Evans's side have followed that by posting just two victories from their following six games, one of those triumphs coming over hapless Cheltenham Town.

To their credit, Stevenage were able to shake off consecutive defeats to Oxford United and Bolton Wanderers to get the better of Wigan Athletic last time out.

Nevertheless, having fallen six points off the automatic promotion places, Evans knows that his players need to rediscover their ruthless streak from the early weeks of the season.

Team News

Karamoko Dembele will hope to be drafted into the Blackpool attack ahead of Shayne Lavery, despite the latter missing out on selection for Northern Ireland.

Youngster Kylian Kouassi is expected to remain among the substitutes despite scoring a hat-trick against Liverpool Under-21s in the EFL Trophy.

Jordan Gabriel, Matty Virtue and Kyle Joseph all remain on the sidelines due to injury.

Alexander MacDonald will miss out for Stevenage after his sending off last time out, although he was only expected to be named among the replacements.

Dan Butler is also absent due to suspension, a consequence of five yellow cards, and that should result in Reece Hannam being drafted in at left-back.

Luther James-Wildin will continue to be assessed after the head clash that he suffered during the fixture with Wigan.

Blackpool possible starting lineup:
Grimshaw; Pennington, Casey, Husband; Hamilton, Dougall, Norburn, Carey, Thompson; Rhodes, Dembele

Stevenage possible starting lineup:
Ashby-Hammond; Wildin, Sweeney, Piergianni, Hannam; Thompson, Vancooten, Forster-Caskey; Roberts; List, Pressley

We say: Blackpool 1-1 Stevenage

Despite this being the early phase of the season, Blackpool will feel that they need to come out on top in games such as this one. However, despite their recent blips, we are backing the visitors to earn a share of the spoils, one that would keep their mid-table opponents at arms length.


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