Crawley are under the lights against Cambridge at the Broadfield Stadium this evening in their third consecutive home game and looking to get back to winning ways.
Crawley boss Scott Lindsey was bitterly disappointed with officiating during his side’s 0-1 loss at home to Crewe last Saturday. Lindsey was “absolutely fuming” that Danilo Orsi’s goal was ruled out and he pointed out that he doesn’t even know whether the goal was chalked off for an offside offence or a hand ball violation.
Following that controversial moment, Tommi O’Reilly went on to win the game for the visitors with a goal that was scored with just over ten minutes left of the ninety left for Crawley to find an equaliser.
The Reds will be looking to get back on track against Neil Harris’s Cambridge who currently sit in the playoff places on 53 points and two points the automatic promotion spots.
Cambridge will also be looking to put things right after they suffered a shock defeat last Saturday when they lost 2-1 to bottom of the table Harrogate bringing an end to a 14 game unbeaten run in league.
Cambridge were relegated alongside Crawley last season however the U’s decided to stick with Harris at the helm for this campaign after they reappointed the ex-Milwall and Gillingham manager around this time last year in a bid to rescue them from their desperate position but was unable to achieve that task.
Cambridge’s trust in Harris has paid off so far this season as he has guided them to 15 wins and transformed them into the best defensive side in the league having only conceded 24 goals with the U’s currently in 5th position in the table.
Jonny Russell was substituted at half time with an injury to his groin as a pre-caution, which means he could be a doubt for tomorrow’s game. Lindsey said Russell “had a feeling in his groin” and that “it was hurting him when he was kicking.”
Prior to the Crewe game, Lindsey said that Louie Copley should be back ready for tomorrow’s game, which is a massive bonus for Crawley’s midfield, as he was a player that displayed some fantastic performances before picking up a knock against Barrow.
The last time the two sides met was in the reverse fixture at the Abbey in which the U’s won 3-1 when Shayne Lavery put Cambridge ahead before two second half goals from Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu and Kylian Koussai put the U’s out of sight. There was a flicker of hope when, now former Red Kabongo Tshimanga, pulled one back midway through the second half.
The last time Crawley beat Cambridge was in Crawley’s first away game of the season following their return to League One in which a late goal from Ade Adeyemo snatched all three points for the Reds on a memorable away day for the Crawley fans.
Can Crawley get back on the right path against Cambridge to continue their form from the previous few matches after a temporary setback against Crewe?
Referee Appointments:
- Referee: Alex Chilowicz
- Assistant Referee: Dean Treleaven
- Assistant Referee: Alex Mathieson
- Fourth Official: Greg Read
Following Crawley’s defeat to Crewe on the weekend Lindsey said in his post-match interview that he “hopes we have a good official”. Hopefully Lindsey’s wishes come true when Chilowicz officiates the Reds match this evening.
match details:
- Broadfield Stadium
- Kick-Off: 19.45
- League Two – Matchweek 26 (game rearranged from 10th January)
Let me know your predicted lineups, score predictions and pre-match thoughts ahead of this evening’s game in the comments section down below!
ARTICLE: Asa Finch / @k1ck_by_k1ck
Picture: Grant Mansfield / @mansfieldmedia
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