Preview: Morecambe vs. Fleetwood Town - prediction, team news, lineups

Morecambe will play host to Fleetwood Town on Saturday, and a positive result for the home side could see them move out of the League One relegation zone.

Meanwhile, the visitors are in a precarious position in 19th place, with only two points separating themselves and their weekend opponents.

Match preview

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Morecambe will head into the weekend's encounter low on confidence after losing their last three league matches.

To make matters worst, the Shrimps conceded 11 goals in those three fixtures, while they also failed to score in that period.

Last weekend, a trip down South turned sour as goals from Marcus Harness and Connor Ogilvie helped Portsmouth to a 2-0 win over the Shrimps.

If Morecambe are to end their four-game winless league run, they need to improve defensively, with the Shrimps currently holding the worst defensive record in the league after conceding 44 goals.

Saturday's hosts have collected 12 of their 19 points on home soil, and they will need to make the most of home advantage if they are to avoid an immediate return to League Two.

Although Fleetwood head into the contest just above the drop zone, they will be pleased with their recent form after picking up consecutive victories in their last two games.

The Cod Army followed an impressive 3-0 win over Bolton Wanderers with a 2-1 victory against Gillingham last weekend.

Harrison Biggins opened the scoring for Fleetwood before Tom Clarke doubled his side's advantage after the break and though Gillingham pulled a goal back, they were unable to rescue a point from the contest.

Caretaker boss Stephen Crainey will hope those two positive home results will act as a springboard for an improvement in his side's away form, with Fleetwood winless in their last five away matches in all competitions.

If they are to start picking up points on the road, they need to improve defensively after conceding 17 goals in their last six league away games.

Team News

Jonathan Obika is set to keep his place in the Morecambe starting lineup after making his debut for the club last weekend.

He will be joined up top by League One top scorer Cole Stockton, who will be aiming to add to his 13-goal tally.

Robinson could make a change in defence, with Ryan Delaney likely to return to the back three in place of Scott Wootton.

As for Fleetwood, they could name an unchanged lineup for Saturday's contest following their victory over Gillingham last weekend.

That could mean that Shayden Morris starts for the second consecutive game.

Biggins will look to threaten from midfield after scoring four goals in his last three appearances.

Morecambe possible starting lineup:
Letheren; O'Connor, Delaney, Gibson; McLaughlin, Phillips, McLoughlin, McCalmont, Leigh; Obika, Stockton

Fleetwood Town possible starting lineup:
Cairns; Johnston, Clarke, McLaughlin, Andrew; Lane, Matete, Biggins; Morris, Morton, Garner

We say: Morecambe 1-2 Fleetwood Town

Although two points only separate the sides ahead of the weekend encounter, there is a disparity between the two teams in terms of form, and we think the side full of confidence will prevail on Saturday with the away team claiming all three points.

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