Preview: Blackpool vs. Luton Town - prediction, team news, lineups

Back-to-back draws have seen the Hatters drop to 10th spot, while their hosts sit 16th following a defeat to West Bromwich Albion in midweek.

Match preview

After a slow start to the Championship season under the new management of Michael Appleton, Blackpool found an improved run of form in October, picking up 10 points from a span of five games having firstly beaten Watford and drawn away at Sheffield United before suffering a defeat at the hands of Hull City.

The Tangerines would return to winning ways at home to rivals Preston North End in the following encounter, dishing out a 4-2 beating with Jerry Yates hitting a brace alongside goals from Charlie Patino and CJ Hamilton.

Yates would again be on the scoresheet as they made it back-to-back triumphs away at Coventry City, netting an 80th-minute winner after Gary Madine initially drew Appleton's men level early in the first half.

Looking to continue their climb up the division after initially fighting at the bottom end, the Tangerines most recently travelled to take on West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday, but they left empty-handed as Okay Yokuslu's 85th minute goal made the difference after the contest looked set to end goalless.

Such a result saw Appleton's men drop back down to 16th spot after their improvement, and they will look to bounce back to winning ways on home turf at the weekend with the chance to move into the top half depending on other results.

They welcome a Luton Town side looking to correct their form after a brief slip, after Nathan Jones's side put themselves in the top six of the Championship table with 24 points from 15 games.

In that time, the Hatters managed five victories while only conceding 14 goals, but a seven-game unbeaten run was then put to an abrupt end by a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of rivals Watford, as Keinan Davis, William Troost-Ekong, Joao Pedro and Ismaila Sarr all helped themselves to goals in a rampant display.

Hoping to make an immediate return to winning ways, they hosted Sunderland last weekend and led through Carlton Morris, only for Elliot Embleton to draw their visitors level 10 minutes from time and force a share of the spoils.

Jones's men would return to action most recently on Tuesday at home to Reading, and with neither side able to break the deadlock, they again shared the points and dropped to 10th spot in the second tier as a result.

Now three points outside of the playoff places and just four points better off than their 16th-placed opponents, the Hatters will be desperate to get back to winning ways on Saturday and begin climbing back towards the top end of the division instead of being dragged further down into mid-table.

Blackpool Championship form:

W

D

L

W

W

L

Luton Town Championship form:

D

W

W

L

D

D

Team News

Arsenal loanee Charlie Patino was an unexpected absentee from the Blackpool squad on Tuesday due to illness, and it is yet to be seen whether he will be ready to return on Saturday, while Lewis Fiorini will also remain out of contention for the midfield spots through an injury picked up in August.

Given those likely absences, Kenneth Dougall and Sonny Carey should again be joined by Callum Wright in the midfield unit, with Callum Connolly having moved back to a right-back role.

Target man Gary Madine will again spearhead the attack with plenty more threat coming from Jerry Yates, who sits joint-top of the Championship scoring charts with nine league goals so far this season.

Luton Town have a star man of their own in attack, with Carlton Morris having scored eight times in the second tier this term, and he should come back in from the outset on Saturday after only featuring from the bench last time out.

Key defender Sonny Bradley is out of contention after being forced off on a stretcher in their draw with Reading, while Gabriel Osho will continue to serve a suspension, meaning either James Bree or Amari'i Bell could have to move back from their usual wing-back roles and form a makeshift back three alongside Tom Lockyer and Dan Potts.

Luke Freeman will be pushing to start in a creative midfield role after also coming off the bench last time out, while Allan Campbell is bound to keep his place in the engine room, likely alongside Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu.

Blackpool possible starting lineup:

Maxwell; Connolly, Ekpiteta, Thorniley, Husband; Carey, Dougall, Wright; Yates, Madine, Hamilton

Luton Town possible starting lineup:

Horvath; Lockyer, Potts, Bell; Bree, Campbell, Mpanzu, Doughty; Freeman; Cornick, Morris

We say: Blackpool 2-1 Luton Town

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