Preview: Livingston vs. St Johnstone - prediction, team news, lineups

St Johnstone have also lost their last two matches and Callum Davidson will be hoping to rectify this situation in West Lothian to move up the league table.

Match preview

Livingston have made a mixed start to the 2022-23 campaign under David Martindale in the Scottish top flight, occupying eighth place in the standings after nine matches.

Last time out, the Lions suffered a disappointing 1-0 defeat at home to bottom side Ross County courtesy of a 73rd-minute header from Owura Edwards, which condemned them to a second successive loss following on from a 2-1 defeat against St Mirren in Paisley the previous week.

Frustratingly, goals seem to be a problem for Martindale's men despite creating their fair share of chances within most league games so far this season.

Offensively, their output concerning chance conversion has been poor, with just seven goals scored in nine league games, giving them the second-worst attacking record in the Scottish Premiership behind Ross County.

Cristian Montano has been their major bright spark in front of goal in 2022-23, registering three goals from eight matches played in total. His ability to be in the right place at the correct moment has proved crucial to giving Livingston some momentum during their indifferent start, with all three strikes securing 1-0 victories against Dundee United, Hearts and Kilmarnock earlier on in the season.

This weekend, the West Lothian side will look to be less wasteful when presented with opportunities as they aim to break into the Scottish Premiership top six.

Visitors St Johnstone come into this one in a similar predicament to their opponents and will also be eyeing a much-needed result to push further up the table.

In their most recent outing, the Saints suffered a heartbreaking loss at home to champions Celtic despite coming extremely close to getting a point from the game.

Andrew Considine turned the ball into his own net to give the league leaders the advantage just before half time, while the away side missed a flurry of gilt-edged chances that should have seen them wrap up a comfortable result on the day.

Nevertheless, St Johnstone battled their way back into the match in the latter stages and were unlucky not to be level before stoppage time as Stevie May and Connor McLennan went close.

In the 93rd minute, defender Alex Mitchell sparked wild scenes in the home end as he brought Davidson's men back level with a composed finish in the area.

Nevertheless, it was not to be for St Johnstone as Giorgos Giakoumakis struck with virtually the last kick of the game to leave the home side without any reward for their efforts. They will be aiming to react swiftly this weekend to put to rest a run of just one win in five matches.

Livingston may well be the ideal opponent to face during their poor spell of form, as they can leapfrog them into seventh position with a win at the Tony Macaroni Arena.

Livingston Scottish Premiership form:

L

L

W

W

L

L

Livingston form (all competitions):

L

L

W

W

L

L

St Johnstone Scottish Premiership form:

L

W

D

W

L

L

Team News

Tom Parkes continues to be out on a long-term basis for Livingston due to a knee injury, so he will not be available to face St Johnstone this weekend.

Livingston hopes that Jack Fitzwater and Stephane Omeonga will be ready to feature on Saturday as they battle back from injury concerns, while Jamie Brandon and Esmael Goncalves are both doubts for the hosts.

St Johnstone will be without striker Chris Kane due to cartilage damage that has kept him out all season, whereas Callum Booth and Cammy McPherson also will not be partaking in proceedings this weekend.

It is unclear whether Drey Wright will be able to play against Livingston owing to an ankle knock sustained in the latter stages of the match with Celtic last week.

Livingston possible starting lineup:

George; Devlin, Obileye, Kelly, Montano; Shinnie, Holt, Pittman; Bahamboula, Nouble, Anderson

St Johnstone possible starting lineup:

Matthews; Wright, Mitchell, Gordon, Considine, Brown; McGowan, Hallberg, Kucheriavyi; May, Bair

We say: Livingston 1-1 St Johnstone

Being so close together in the table, this will no doubt be a keenly contested encounter between two relatively even teams.

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