Playoff hopefuls Cardiff City host lowly Charlton Athletic on Tuesday evening, with kick-off 6:00 pm at Cardiff City stadium.
Cardiff have won two out of two since the return on the EFL Championship with an especially impressive 3-1 victory away to fellow playoff contenders Preston North End. Continuation of this form will surely see them achieve a top 6 finish and a spot in the playoffs.
Meanwhile, Charlton are more worried about what lies beneath them. The Addicks are three points clear of the relegation zone going into this match. However, with consecutive 1-0 victories, post-suspension survival is looking more likely.
Previous Meetings
23.11.2019 Charlton Athletic 2-2 Cardiff City
13.02.2016 Charlton Athletic 0-0 Cardiff City
26.09.2015 Cardiff City 2-1 Charlton Athletic
Team News
Both sides were unchanged in their last matches but this is likely to change due to the heavy volume of matches to be played.
Cardiff manager Neil Harris has no fresh injury concerns, although he may decide to make changes for tactical reasons and to manage the workload of his squad. Following the goals of Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Robert Glatzel off the bench against Preston, these two will be hoping for starting spots this time around. Defensive changes may be less likely, however, with solid performances in previous games.
Lee Bowyer’s Charlton side could see several changes. With captain Jason Pearce’s wife due to go into labour Charlton could be without their skipper and centre back, meaning Mahamadou-Naby Sarr could start. Elsewhere Sam Field could start in place of Darren Pratley after Pratley completed 90 minutes on Saturday. Bowyer also has plenty of striking options with Chuks Aneke and Andre Green pushing Tomer Hemed for a place in the starting eleven.
These are two sides with much to play for who have strong defensive records and have emerged from the season suspension with promising form. I see the home side edging a tight, low scoring contest.
Match Preview written by Will Edwards.