Plough Lane will play host to an intriguing FA Cup third-round contest on Saturday afternoon, with League Two outfit AFC Wimbledon welcoming Championship side Ipswich Town.

AFC Wimbledon have had to win twice to reach this stage of the competition, putting five goals past both Cheltenham Town and Ramsgate, but this is Ipswich's first FA Cup contest since losing 2-1 to Burnley in the fourth round of last season's tournament.

Match preview

AFC Wimbledon have been impressive in the FA Cup this season, securing their spot in the second round of the competition courtesy of a 5-1 victory over Cheltenham, before thumping Ramsgate 5-0 to ensure that they would be present in the third round of the tournament.

Johnnie Jackson's side will be up against it in this match, but they have had an impressive season to date, picking up 39 points from their 25 League Two matches to occupy seventh position in the table.

The Dons only narrowly avoided relegation to the National League last season, finishing down in 21st position in League Two, but they are looking up the table rather than down due to their strong form this term.

Jackson's team will enter this match off the back of a 1-1 draw with Forest Green Rovers on New Year's Day, but they beat Colchester Untied 5-3 in their last game in front of their own fans on December 29.

AFC Wimbledon have locked horns with Ipswich on six previous occasions and have only managed to win once, which was a 3-0 victory in a home League One clash in April 2021.

Ipswich, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a goalless draw with Stoke City in the Championship, which made it five matches without a victory for the Blues.

Kieran McKenna's side have been excellent in the Championship this season following their promotion from League One, boasting a record of 16 wins, seven draws and three defeats from 26 matches, which has left them in second position in the table on 55 points.

Ipswich are only three points clear of third-placed Southampton, though, and also now sit 10 points behind the leaders Leicester City, who are threatening to run away with the division.

The FA Cup is far behind the Championship when it comes to the team's list of priorities this season, and the league clash with Sunderland on January 13 will be viewed by the club as a far bigger contest than this one.

The Blues have previous when it comes to winning this competition, though, lifting the trophy in 1977-78 courtesy of a 1-0 victory over Arsenal in the final at Wembley.

Team News

AFC Wimbledon head coach Jackson could name the same XI that took to the field for the five-goal success over Ramsgate in the last round of the competition.

Ali Al-Hamadi scored twice in that contest, and the 21-year-old is enjoying an impressive campaign, finding the back of the net on 17 occasions in all competitions.

Omar Bugiel, who has netted five times in all competitions this season, is likely to join Al Hamadi in attack, while there should also be a spot in midfield for Jake Reeves.

As for Ipswich, McKenna has a strong squad available to him at this moment in time, and no fresh injuries were reported following the goalless draw with Stoke last time out.

There will be a number of changes to the side that started against Stoke, though, with Christian Walton set for a role between the sticks, while on-loan Manchester United defender Brandon Williams should also come in.

McKenna is also set to make alterations to his midfield and attack, with Sone Aluko, Freddie Ladapo and Omari Hutchinson likely to be introduced into the XI for this match.

AFC Wimbledon possible starting lineup:
Bass; Biler, Lewis, Johnson, Currie; Neufville, Reeves, Little, Lemonheigh-Evans; Al Hamadi, Bugiel

Ipswich Town possible starting lineup:
Walton; Tuanzebe, Ball, Edmundson, B Williams; Hutchinson, Luongo, Taylor; Aluko, Ladapo, Burns

We say: AFC Wimbledon 1-2 Ipswich Town

This has the potential to be a very tricky match for Ipswich, especially as the Championship outfit are unlikely to have a full-strength side on the field. The Blues are struggling to win games at the moment, but we are backing them to navigate their way past AFC Wimbledon to advance to the fourth round.

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

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