Motherwell and Kilmarnock, two teams that have confirmed their safety in the Scottish Premiership, will clash in the penultimate fixture of the season on Wednesday.
The hosts secured their survival with a dramatic victory over Dundee at the start of the month, while the visitors similarly ensured their safety with a win over the Dark Blues at the weekend.
Match preview
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Motherwell seemed set to secure their first top-six finish in the Scottish Premiership since the 2021-22 season, having spent the majority of the campaign in the top half, including sitting in sixth place with just four games remaining.
However, Michael Wimmer's men failed to win any of their last four regular league fixtures, with two draws and two defeats, causing the Steelmen to drop to an eighth-placed finish, two points adrift of the top six.
Those results also left Motherwell only five points ahead of 11th-placed Dundee in the relegation playoff spot, meaning the Steelmen were still fighting for their survival as the post-split fixtures got underway.
They began their post-split campaign with a 3-2 victory over St Johnstone, followed by a dramatic 2-1 win against Dundee, thanks to a 91st-minute winner from Tawanda Maswanhise, which secured their survival in the top flight.
Despite a 3-0 defeat to Hearts in their last outing, the Steelmen will be determined to bounce back and finish the season on a positive note, aiming to build a strong foundation for the campaign ahead.
Their opponents, Kilmarnock, similarly extended their top-flight status with an action-packed 3-2 triumph over Dundee in their latest outing, taking them to 44 points - nine ahead of 11th-placed Ross County - with just six points left to play for.
That victory marked Kilmarnock's third consecutive victory, a remarkable turnaround from the form that saw Derek McInnes's side enter the post-split campaign with just one win in seven and only a point above the drop zone.
Now in a similar position to their hosts, Killie will be aiming to maintain their positive momentum in the final two league fixtures as they aim to start the 2025-26 campaign with a solid foundation.
Team News
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The hosts will be without Apostolos Stamatelopoulos, Archie Mair, Jack Vale, Kofi Balmer, Liam Gordon, Paul McGinn, Ross Callachan, Sam Nicholson, Shane Blaney and Zach Robinson for this match due to injury issues.
Following a disappointing performance in the 3-0 loss to Hearts in their latest outing, Wimmer could opt to make several changes, meaning the likes of Ewan Wilson and Davor Zdravkovski could start.
As for the visitors, Kyle Magennis and Thomas Wilson-Brown are not expected to feature due to ongoing injury problems, while David Watson may be a doubt after coming off with a suspected injury in their last match.
Elsewhere, as Killie are heading into Wednesday's clash having secured three consecutive victories, McInnes is likely to name a largely unchanged starting 11.
Motherwell possible starting lineup:
Oxborough; Sparrow, O'Donnell, Casey, Seddon; Halliday, Miller; Maswanhise, Zdravkovski, Wilson; Watt
Kilmarnock possible starting lineup:
O'Hara; Mayo, Deas, Findlay, Ndaba; Armstrong, Polworth, Donnelly, Murray; Wales, Anderson
We say: Motherwell 1-1 Kilmarnock
With both teams having secured their Scottish Premiership survival, leaving little left to play for, and considering that three of their last five encounters have ended in draws, we anticipate another stalemate.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
