SM
Man City vs. Brighton: 10 hrs 19 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data
CU
League Two | Gameweek 38
Mar 25, 2023 at 3pm UK
JobServe Community Stadium
TR

Colchester
1 - 1
Tranmere

Chilvers (65' pen.)
Tovide (51'), Newby (59'), Tchamadeu (76'), Read (86'), Kelleher (90')
FT(HT: 0-1)
Saunders (13')
Mumbongo (39'), T (56'), Hendry (59'), Cogley (63'), Murphy (64'), Turnbull (70'), Briston (75'), Saunders (89')

Preview: Colchester United vs. Tranmere Rovers - prediction, team news, lineups

:Headline: Preview: Colchester United vs. Tranmere Rovers - prediction, team news, lineups:
Sports Mole previews Saturday's League Two clash between Colchester United and Tranmere Rovers, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Sports Mole

Having gone six games without a win, League Two strugglers Colchester United continue their battle against the drop on Saturday, when they host Tranmere Rovers.

While the U's are only five points above the relegation zone, their visitors sit safely in mid-table despite a downturn which saw Micky Mellon sacked earlier this week.


Match preview

Following their 3-1 home defeat to Newport County last Saturday, Tranmere's hopes of an improbable late surge towards the playoffs were all but ended, and the Wirral club's hierarchy saw fit to dispense with their manager.

Micky Mellon's side had slipped to 14th in the League Two standings after posting just six wins since October, and an 11-point gap between them and the top seven leaves little left to play for with only nine games remaining.

The Scottish coach's second spell in charge was far less successful than his first, having returned to Prenton Park in 2021 after leading Rovers to back-to-back promotions into League One during a previous four-year spell; Ian Dawes has now stepped in as caretaker manager, to be assisted by Andy Parkinson.

Tranmere will select a permanent replacement in the coming days, but must first seek an increasingly rare victory to stop the rot this weekend - even if the omens are not good.

They have scored only seven times in 10 league matches since the start of February, and with just five wins away from home this term - the same tally as Saturday's relegation-threatened opponents - they do not travel particularly well either.

Back in August, when Colchester were beaten 2-0 by Tranmere on Merseyside, the Essex club had already made a slow start to the 2022-23 season.

Fast forward to the start of this month, they were in dire trouble when new coach Ben Garner took the reins from Matt Bloomfield, and things had hardly improved before last week's trip to face Leyton Orient.

At Brisbane Road, the U's at least ended a four-match losing run by fighting back for a 2-2 draw against the League Two leaders, with late goals from Noah Chilvers and Connor Hall saving a precious point after they trailed by two heading into the 89th minute.

Before that dramatic double, Colchester had last scored a league goal in mid-February, and only Gillingham have found the net fewer times in English football's fourth tier this term.

Now five points above the dotted line, their survival is still far from assured, but such a morale-boosting conclusion offers ex-Swindon boss Garner the chance to build more momentum this weekend.

Colchester United League Two form:

Tranmere Rovers League Two form:


Team News

Once again, Colchester captain Tommy Smith will be absent from the U's squad on Saturday, after earning his 50th cap for New Zealand in midweek. His international duty continues, so Luke Chambers should start in the hosts' back three instead.

Further forward, following his dramatic equaliser at Leyton Orient, Noah Chilvers is set to feature in midfield, with Tom Hopper starting up front.

Tranmere, meanwhile, still have Kieron Morris, Paul Lewis and top scorer Kane Hemmings sidelined by injury, and Brad Walker joins them on the treatment table.

Caretaker coach Ian Dawes is unlikely to overhaul Micky Mellon's last starting XI too radically, but Swedish striker Joel Mumbongo could be drafted into the visitors' forward line.

Colchester United possible starting lineup:
O'Hara; Chambers, Kelleher, Hall; Tchamadeu, Ashley, Chilvers, Kazeem; Jay, Newby; Hopper

Tranmere Rovers possible starting lineup:
Murphy; Cogley, Turnbull, Davies, Bristow; Chalmers, Merrie, Hendry, Hawkes; Saunders, Mumbongo


We say: Colchester United 0-1 Tranmere Rovers

Neither side is bursting with confidence in the final third, so a low-scoring encounter is on the cards. In fact, a single goal could decide the outcome, with Tranmere responding positively to their former manager's removal.


For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.


Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 2.5:data


body check tags ::

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


amp_article__509634 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2024-06-05 13:10:47:
html db last update - 2024-06-05 13:10:47 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html
Read more!
Share this article now:


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Recommended Next on SM
Saturday's League Two predictions including Tranmere vs. Leyton Orient
'Priority option': Will Slot win the race for in-demand Premier League defender?
A one-horse race? Barcelona receive Neymar boost as rumours 'wide of the mark'
Tuesday's League Two predictions including Grimsby Town vs. Notts County
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Walsall37209867432469
2Bradford CityBradford36199848301866
3Doncaster RoversDoncaster361881053431062
4Notts County361710955371861
5AFC Wimbledon361791047252260
6Port Vale35151374437758
7Crewe AlexandraCrewe36141484437756
8Grimsby Town36175145153-256
9Colchester UnitedColchester36131674233955
10Bromley371313114845352
11Salford City361311124341250
12Fleetwood TownFleetwood361213114943649
13Cheltenham TownCheltenham361310134851-349
14Chesterfield351391356431348
15Swindon TownSwindon361113125252046
16BarrowBarrow35127163841-343
17Newport CountyNewport36127174561-1643
18MK Dons35126174650-442
19Gillingham35118163038-841
20Harrogate TownHarrogate36117182945-1640
21Accrington StanleyAccrington36109174454-1039
22Tranmere RoversTranmere36712172755-2833
23Morecambe3685233154-2329
24Carlisle UnitedCarlisle3569202551-2627
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www

Preview: Leicester vs. Man Utd - prediction, team news, lineups

1

PL

Ex-Chelsea youngster earns first Italy call-up as four PL players make 25-man squad

2

EY

Preview: FC Twente vs. Feyenoord - prediction, team news, lineups

3

PF

'Priority option': Will Slot win the race for in-demand Premier League defender?

4

'O

Preview: Sheff Weds vs. Sheff Utd - prediction, team news, lineups

5

PS

More dropped points for Arsenal but Man United emerge victorious: Premier League GW29 predictions

6

MD

'Straightforward' vs. 'no sure-fire favourite': Who will win the EFL Cup final?

7

'V

Preview: Jack Draper vs. Carlos Alcaraz - prediction, head-to-head, tournament so far

8

PJ

Trent blow, Konate boost? Predicted Liverpool XI for EFL Cup final

9

TB

Preview: Atletico vs. Barcelona - prediction, team news, lineups

10

PA


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .