Lincoln City will be hoping to make it six games unbeaten tomorrow as they welcome play-off pushing Mansfield Town to the LNER Stadium.
The Imps return home following three away trips in a row that brought a draw against Bolton Wanderers last weekend as well as wins against Northampton Town and most recently Burton Albion.
Ben House’s late curling effort was the only difference as the Imps came out 1-0 victors over Burton on Tuesday night.
That second round Carabao Cup victory has now given Michael Skubala’s side a home draw against FIFA Club World Cup winners Chelsea in the third round.
Opponents: Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town on the other hand have recovered well from their slow start to the season having now won their last three league games, giving them three wins from five.
Losses to close rivals Burton Albion and Doncaster Rovers were a far from ideal start for the Stags.
However recent victories over Exeter City, Blackpool and Leyton Orient have seen a vast improvement on last season’s form
That leaves them in ninth place on nine points just one behind the Imps and two points off the play-offs.
Most recently however, Nigel Clough’s side were eliminated from the Carabao Cup by Premier League side Everton.
Team news:
Ethan Hamilton left the Imps this week as he signed for Scottish Premier League side Dundee FC with the Scot having made just one start all season.
Contrary to that Lewis Montsma returned to the bench for Tuesday’s clash against Burton Albion however head coach Michael Skubala said: “He isn’t fully ready to go.”
Despite that Skubala did say that the defender will be able to feature on the pitch over the next few weeks, although Dom Jeffries remains some time off a return.
There has also been no change on the three-month time scale given for Jack Moylan to return from his ankle injury.
Head-to-head:
The Imps rather emphatically managed to do the double over their opponents last year winning 4-1 at Sincil Bank last August.
Most recently Paudie O’Connor, Sam Clucas and Dom Jeffries sealed a 3-0 win at the One Call Stadium to earn their 29th victory over the Stags.
City also haven’t lost to the Nottinghamshire side since September 2018 when a Matt Rhead opener was cancelled out by Callum Butcher and Tyler Walker in the EFL Trophy.
Overall, however the clash is more even than it seems with the Stags winning 28 times in return and the sides having drawn on 20 occasions.
Played for both:
Tyler Walker is the most familiar name to have featured for both sides after he left the Imps this summer having made just eight appearances in 18 months in his second stint at Sincil Bank.
He first joined the Imps on loan in the 2019-20 season and went on to make 29 appearances scoring 14 goals in the sides first season back in League One.
This came directly after the forward spent a season on loan with the Stags where he made 52 appearances and scored 26 goals in League Two.