Preview: Accrington Stanley vs. AFC Wimbledon - prediction, team news, lineups

Accrington Stanley will be bidding to make it back-to-back victories in League One when they welcome AFC Wimbledon to Lancashire on Tuesday night.

The home side are currently 13th in the table, boasting 27 points from their opening 20 matches, while Wimbledon sit down in 17th, claiming 21 points from 18 games in 2021-22.

Match preview

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Accrington, who finished 11th in League One last season, will enter Tuesday's contest off the back of a thumping 5-1 home success over Fleetwood Town on Saturday afternoon.

Fleetwood threatened to make it a nervy last 30 minutes for the home side when they halved the deficit to 2-1, but John Coleman's team went on to score another three without reply to claim an important three points.

The victory allowed Accrington to move up into 13th position in the table, just a point behind 10th-placed Burton Albion, while they are only seven points off the playoffs at this stage of the campaign.

Stanley now have another two home matches in quick succession, welcoming Wimbledon and Bolton Wanderers before travelling to Sheffield Wednesday on December 18 in their final game this side of Christmas.

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Wimbledon, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a pulsating FA Cup tie with Cheltenham Town on Saturday, running out 4-3 winners on home soil to secure their spot in the third round of the competition.

Ollie Palmer and Ayoub Assal both scored twice for Mark Robinson's side, who managed to hold off a late fightback from their fellow League One team to secure their spot in the next round.

Wimbledon have picked up four points from their last two league matches, meanwhile, beating Crewe Alexandra 3-2 at home on November 23 before drawing at home to Fleetwood four days later.

A record of five wins, six draws and seven defeats from 18 matches has brought them 21 points, which is only enough for 17th position, but they have two games in hand on a number of teams around them.

The Dons finished 19th in League One last season, but they look capable of pushing higher up the division this term, while an FA Cup run would certainly boost the club's finances.

Team News

Having picked up no fresh injury concerns during their thumping win over Fleetwood on Saturday, it would not be a surprise to see Accrington line up with the same XI for this match.

Colby Bishop netted twice at the weekend to make it six league goals for the season, and the Englishman should again lead the line with support from Joel Mumbongo and Sean McConville.

Michael Nottingham was substituted late against Fleetwood, but it was a tactical decision, so the 32-year-old will be available to feature in the middle of the defence here.

As for Wimbledon, it could be a case of same again from Saturday's FA Cup contest, with Assal again expected to support Palmer, with both players netting braces at the weekend.

Head coach Robinson will be wary of fatigue, as the same side that started against Fleetwood in the league last time out also took to the field against Cheltenham, but the hosts did use four substitutes in that affair.

The visitors are again likely to line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Jack Rudoni playing off the right and Luke McCormick operating in the number 10 position.

Accrington Stanley possible starting lineup:
Savin; Sykes, Nottingham, Amankwah; Rodgers, Conneely, Pell, Hamilton; Mumbongo, Bishop, McConville

AFC Wimbledon possible starting lineup:
Tzanev; Osew, Heneghan, Csoka, Guinness-Walker; Woodyard, Hartigan; Rudoni, McCormick, Assal; Palmer

We say: Accrington Stanley 2-2 AFC Wimbledon

This has all of the makings of an open and entertaining game of football, and we are predicting goals on Tuesday night. Both teams will believe that they can hurt the other in the final third, which should create a high-energy affair in Lancashire.

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