This EFL Trophy match sees two Football League sides in Carlisle United and Fleetwood Town go head-to-head.
Carlisle United, the Football League club closest to the Scottish border, are still one of two unbeaten teams in the entire Football League pyramid – Premier League Tottenham Hotspur being the other side. This of course is the main reason why they are currently sitting nicely inside the League Two automatic promotion spots where an impressive seven points separates them from the play-off chasers.
The Cumbrian side nearly had a bit of an FA Cup fright away against non-league St Albans City (a 572 mile round trip for Carlisle fans) at the weekend after they found themselves level in the 65th minute before bringing their superiority to the fore and coming out 5-3 winners.
Manager Keith Curle has been in charge of Carlisle for a while now (by football standards) and has overseen a transformation over the last two years. The former England international has led the club from scrapping for survival in the Football League League Two after relegation the season before, to fighting hard for promotion back into League One.
The League Two side are currently on an excellent run of form in all competitions. They have won their last seven matches in all competitions and their one loss this season came in a penalty shootout defeat to Championship side Derby County in the League Cup. If Curle’s side had not had so many draws earlier on in the season, there is no doubt that they would be well clear at the top of the table.
League One Fleetwood Town are suffering a bit of fixture congestion this week. On Monday they played, and only managed a draw, against non-league Southport, they then play Carlisle in the EFL Trophy on Wednesday before travelling to Port Vale in the League on Saturday. With such fixture congestion it would not surprise me if manager Uwe Rosler rests a few players for the EFL Trophy match given the fact it is probably their lowest priority right now.
Rosler’s team are in a decent position in League One, sitting tenth and just two points off the play-off places. However, the Trawlermen have been incredibly inconsistent all season and the last time they won two matches on the spin was all the way back in August. If Fleetwood can sort out their inconsistencies then they may well find themselves in the play-offs come the end of the season.
That inconsistency may come from a wobbly back-line. Fleetwood have conceded 21 goals this season, which is equal to, or even worse than, many sides below them.
With Fleetwood being so inconsistent and Rosler likely to rest players, I expect a very good Carlisle United side to beat Fleetwood in Cumbria. The price is pretty good on this market at 13/10.
Additionally, goals should be on the menu. Although I think Carlisle will win – especially given Fleetwood’s defence – the Trawlermen are capable of scoring goals themselves and it would not surprise me if the League One side score against the Cumbrians. Both teams are capable of scoring goals, but neither are the soundest at the back. The League Two hosts should dominate against what is likely to be a youthful line-up from Fleetwood, but the League One team should certainly have their moments and thus goals all-round are expected. Interestingly, each of Carlisle’s last five matches saw at least three goals go in, while this occurred in three of Fleetwood’s last five.
See more EFL Trophy tips here.