Fresh off the back of consecutive Sky Bet League One victories, Cambridge United aim to climb the table by extending their winning run this weekend as they welcome basement side Burton Albion to the Cledara Abbey Stadium…
How to Watch
Fresh from welcoming 7000 fans last time out on home soil, another near-capacity crowd is expected, with demand high for Saturday’s 3pm match-up.
The Mead Family Stand and Petrest Main Stand are on the cusp of being sold out, whereas it’s anticipated that the Newmarket Road End and North Habbin will also be approaching capacity.
Avoid disappointment by purchasing your tickets online at cufctickets.com, over the phone by calling 01223 566500 (option 1) or by visiting the Ticket Office. All prices increase by £2 when buying in-person on the day.
Unable to attend? Be sure to back the boys from home via your CUFC TV account. Overseas supporters can stream the game live, whereas UK U’s can tune into audio commentary.
Opposition Focus
Founded back in 1950, the former non-league outfit have rose through the ranks within the past few decades and have not looked back ever since they reached the Football League in 2009. Enjoying rapid progression, Burton Albion have ascended as high as the Championship in 2016, where they spent two seasons. Part of the third tier furniture, years of stabilisation with rankings of 16th, 16th and 15th was creditable, but they left it late to seal safety last time out. The arrival of Chelsea development squad boss Mark Robinson was an exciting one in the summer, but the inability to click meant the hierarchy pulled the trigger in midweek.
This was as a result of a winless start to the campaign for the Brewers, who are rock bottom after registering just four points from their opening 11. On the opening day, they were undone courtesy of a 2-3 thriller defeat against Lincoln City, before registering four consecutive draws against Mansfield Town, Stevenage, Northampton Town and Rotherham United. However, they’re now in the midst of a turgid six-match losing streak, where they’ve conceded 16 in that time. With three points separating them from the U’s, an enticing encounter awaits as they devise a plan to breathe some life.
At their disposal, Burton have 27-year-old Harry Isted between the sticks with a back three of Terence Vancooten, Ryan Sweeney and newcomer Alex Bannon. On the flanks of the four-man midfield is dribbler Nick Akoto and the creative Ben Whitfield, who has made a strong impression since arriving from Barrow. Elliot Watt and former SC Heerenveen youngster Charlie Webster provide the energy in the middle of the park, with Mason Bennett, Swede Jack Love or Lithuanian international Tomas Kalinauskas further ahead supplying for the talismanic Danilo Orsi, a marquee signing who has continued his Crawley Town momentum by bagging six already.
Form Guide
- 28/09/2024 – Blackpool 3-0 Burton Albion – Sky Bet League One
- 01/10/2024 – Reading 3-1 Burton Albion – Sky Bet League One
- 05/10/2024 – Burton Albion 1-3 Bristol Rovers – Sky Bet League One
- 19/10/2024 – Bolton Wanderers 2-1 Burton Albion – Sky Bet League One
- 22/10/2024 – Burton Albion 2-3 Wycombe Wanderers – Sky Bet League One
The Amber Angle
A memorable evening saw the U’s claim back-to-back League One wins courtesy of a professional 0-2 triumph against local side Stevenage at the Lamex Stadium last time out.
Playing on the front foot since the first kick of the game, the visitors registered a plethora of chances throughout a dominant opening half where they capitalised through Korey Smith’s strike half an hour in. From here, they dug in deep, absorbed pressure and nullified a notoriously dogged Boro, before making sure of the points at the death when Sullay Kaikai concluded a counter to cap an impressive showing.
Beaming with pride post-match, Garry Monk said: “We deserved it, that’s the most pleasing bit. We’ve really deserved it even though I’d have taken a scrappy 0-1 win, but we’ve actually put convincing performances in, which is great… If we can go about it (the next block of fixtures) the way we’re currently going about it then we’ll pick up more positive results.”
The rejuvenated U’s have shown an exceptional application to overcome real adversity of late to put themselves in a situation where they could claim nine points from a week. Last securing three league wins on the spin in January 2022, the side are playing with energy and have confidence searing from the defence to the attack. Buoyed by the Abbey crowd, they’ll strive to decrease their gap from safety to the solitary point and go into the break full of belief.
Form Guide
- 28/09/2024 – Cambridge United 0-2 Lincoln City – Sky Bet League One
- 01/10/2024 – Cambridge United 0-1 Rotherham United – Sky Bet League One
- 05/10/2024 – Exeter City 1-0 Cambridge United – Sky Bet League One
- 19/10/2024 – Cambridge United 2-0 Wigan Athletic – Sky Bet League One
- 22/10/2024 – Stevenage 0-2 Cambridge United – Sky Bet League One
Quick Quotes
Monk on the upturn in fortune: “It’s been a good week so far, but it’s only two games, two really good games which is great, but we have to earn the right to put ourselves in the position to win the game.”
Monk on Burton: “We’ve watched a lot of them and they’ll have a similar feeling to us in terms of feeling like they’re much better than their league position. Looking at their games, they’ve deserved more points than they’ve got. They’re a very good team so we’ll have to be ready and really prepared for that expectation, but also make sure we earn the right to be able to get those points again.”
Jubril Okedina on that winning feeling: “The boys work so hard, they’re confident at all times and it is made easier when you’ve got two wins going into a game. We see the positives but we won’t lay on our laurels.”
Team News
On the injury front, striker Ryan Loft has trained and is expected to be available to make the squad after missing out in midweek, whilst Korey Smith is available and has no problems despite going off with cramp. As for the likes of Gary Gardner, Josh Stokes and Shayne Lavery, the November international break is a realistic timeline for their return.
Head-to-Head
- Cambridge United Wins: 7
- Burton Albion Wins: 7
- Draws: 6
Last Time We Met
Saturday 27th January 2024 – Cambridge United 0-0 Burton Albion – Sky Bet League One
Our last meeting at the turn of the year resulted in a frustrating stalemate for United, who were forced to settle for the solitary point against a well-oiled ten-man Burton. A positive first 45 for the hosts soon petered into a crappy contest, but the complexity changed on the hour when, seconds after entering the book, Steve Seddon received his marching orders for a second yellow. Whilst they enjoyed the space and time on the ball with an extra man, the Brewers adapted superbly to run down the clock and claim their share of the spoils. The line-up that day: Stevens, L. Bennett, R. Bennett, Morrison, Andrew, Digby, Cousins, Kaikai, Kachunga, Brophy, Taylor.
Boot in Both Camps
Albania-born, Zeli Ismail was a highly-rated youngster who was a product of Wolverhampton Wanderers’ academy – he signed his first professional contract in 2010 and would go on to make his senior debut in September 2012. With pace to burn and a low centre of gravity, the winger would go on to appear for MK Dons, Notts County, Oxford United and the Brewers twice – which included his first senior goal – prior to making 11 appearances and scoring once for the U’s at the back end of 2015/16. He left Molineux that summer and enjoyed spells with Bury, Walsall and Bradford City, before dipping into non-league with Hereford in 2021. The 30-year-old is now regarded as the assist king for Cymru Premier outfit Newtown, setting up his teammates on 11 occasions already this campaign.
Officials
- Referee: Declan Bourne
- Assistant Referee: Declan Ford
- Assistant Referee: Scott Chalkley
- Fourth Official: Aaron Farmer
