Ahead of tomorrow’s match at home against Oxford United in League One, I asked the Vital Lincoln City members what three things they think The Imps need to do to pick up all three points.
NEW QUIZ: Oxford United (h): Last Time At Sincil Bank: We have also published a quiz about the last time the two sides met at Sincil Bank, which can be found HERE, or at the bottom of the page!
Here’s what sedgleyimp said (article discussion link):
1. Unleash the shackles and trust the defence to do their job. Our strength lies at the back irrespective of who fills out the roles there. In Carl Rushworth, we have an exceptional young goalkeeper who will either save or earn Brighton millions in a few years’ time. Whoever plays in the centre of defence can be trusted to give a 7 out of 10 performance and deal with 95% of all attacks, Louis Montsma will be back from suspension which strengthens that position more. So that leaves the rest of the positions which we should be utilising to make more chances per game. This includes the wing-backs. It includes the midfield two. It certainly includes the wide attackers. Players in those positions need to stand up to the plate and take this game by the scruff of the neck whether that might slightly deviate from the game plan as they can go out the window once the first whistle is blown. Do that and those chances created only a few games ago at Accrington are created again.
2. Get at Oxford early and keep at it should a lead be obtained. Our opponents tomorrow are fragile. They haven’t won since the 21st of January. That win was against Ipswich though so it does show they have players capable of getting results against the best teams in our league. But they are without a head coach after sacking Karl Robinson this week and that can lead to teams not knowing exactly what is expected of them. It will be a strange situation for their players and we can exploit that, but only if we don’t allow them to settle into their game. Get at them from the kick-off.
3. Play smart. Oxford are struggling but they still have players who are very decent for our level. The likes of James Henry and Cameron Brannagan to name but two would be welcome at any club in this league. So we need to be aware of the capabilities of our opponents and not just look at the last couple of months. So don’t give away any silly free kicks within shooting range. Don’t allow players to cut in onto their favourite foot (see Garrick’s goal last week). If we need to undertake the odd dark art, so be it as it does frustrate opponents and knocks them out of their strides. Play smart and make the correct decisions and three points will be there for our taking.
Thank you to Graham Burrell and Lincoln City Football Club for the photograph!
– @OUFCOfficial (h): Three Things The Imps Need To Do To Win:https://t.co/YlqKv5e3eC#ImpsAsOne #WeAreImps #OUFC
— Vital Lincoln City (@VitalLincoln) March 3, 2023
