St Patrick's Athletic will be aiming to return to winning ways in the League of Ireland Premier Division when they continue their campaign against Galway United on Friday.
The away side are fourth in the League of Ireland Premier Division table, while Galway United occupy seventh, five points behind their opponent in this contest.
Match preview
Galway United will bring a three-game unbeaten run into this contest, picking up five points from their last three matches, which has left them in seventh spot in the table.
John Caulfield's side have a record of six wins, seven draws and six defeats from their 19 league matches this season, with 25 points, as mentioned, enough for seventh position in the division.
Galway United have never won the League of Ireland Premier Division, but they were runners-up in 1986.
The Galway outfit have been inconsistent in front of their own fans this season, boasting a record of four wins, one draw and four defeats from their nine matches, collecting 13 points in the process.
The last match between Galway United and St Patrick's Athletic took place at the start of May, and it was the latter that recorded a 2-0 victory.
St Patrick's Athletic have won two of their last three league games against Galway United, while they have only been beaten once by Friday's opponents in the top flight since March 2016.
The visitors will enter this match off the back of a defeat, having suffered a 1-0 reverse to Shelbourne on June 16, which followed a run of three games without a loss.
Stephen Kenny's side have won eight, drawn six and lost seven of their 21 league matches this season to collect 30 points, which has left them in fourth spot in the division, three points off second.
St Patrick's Athletic have picked up 10 points from their 10 away league matches during the 2024-25 campaign, recording three victories in the process, and they will be bidding to return to winning ways on Friday.
Galway United League of Ireland Premier form:
LLLWDD
St Patrick's Athletic League of Ireland Premier form:
WLDWDL
Team News
Galway United will have Moses Dyer in the final third of the field, with the 28-year-old bidding to add to the eight goals that he has managed in 18 matches during the current season.
There are not expected to be any surprises in the home side's lineup for this match, with Patrick Hickey also set to be another notable starter; the 26-year-old has four goals from midfield this term.
As for St Patrick's Athletic, Aidan Keena has scored seven goals during the current season, and the 26-year-old will once again feature in the final third of the field.
Jake Mulraney is also expected to continue in attack, with the 29-year-old bidding to add to the two goals that he has managed during the current campaign.
The visitors have not reported any fresh injury concerns for this match, but Mason Melia is likely to start on the bench.
Galway United possible starting lineup:
Watts; Esua, Cunningham, Bryne, Buckley; Slevin, Borden, Hickey; Dyer, Hurley, McCarthy
St Patrick's Athletic possible starting lineup:
Anang; McLaughlin, Redmond, Grivosti, Breslin; McClelland, Lennon; Power, Leavy, Mulraney; Keena
We say: Galway United 1-2 St Patrick's Athletic
St Patrick's Athletic have had the better of the recent meetings between the two sides, and we are expecting the visitors to secure all three points on Friday, but it is likely to be a close affair.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats, suggests the most likely outcome of this match is a Galway United win with a probability of 41.79%. A win for St Patrick's Athletic has a probability of 30.34% and a draw has a probability of 27.9%.
The most likely scoreline for a Galway United win is 1-0 with a probability of 12.43%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome are 2-1 (8.39%) and 2-0 (7.99%). The likeliest St Patrick's Athletic win is 0-1 (10.17%), while for a drawn scoreline it is 1-1 (13.06%).