Burton Albion v Blackpool team and injury news as 9 out and 2 doubts for Carabao Cup clash
Blackpool travel to the Pirelli Stadium to face Burton Albion in a Carabao Cup first round clash.
The Seasiders are hoping to bounce back from their defeat against Crawley Town at the weekend, and have the chance to put it right against Burton Albion. Ashley Fletcher's 74th minute effort only acted as a consolation as they lost 2-1 to the Red Devils.
Burton Albion suffered the same fate as they fell to a 3-2 defeat to Lincoln City. They went in front through Udoka Godwin-Malife and then got back on level terms through Billy Bodin but Paudie O'Connor scored to ensure the Brewers ended up empty handed.
Blackpool and Burton faced off three times last season with two wins for the Seasiders, and one victory for Burton. The most recent meeting saw Blackpool beat Burton 2-1 in the EFL Trophy with Matty Virtue and Marvin Ekpiteta on target at Bloomfield Road.
Ahead of kick-off, here's the team news from both camps, with Burton Albion dealing with a long list of absentees.
Blackpool team news
Albie Morgan is in contention to make his first appearance of the season after missing the game against Crawley Town. He travelled to the Broadfield Stadium but wasn't a part of the match day squad however he's in contention to play tonight.
“We start building towards 90 minutes in the back end of pre-season," said Critchley when asked about Morgan.
"He missed the Accrington and Tranmere games on the same day, and the Crewe game, but he had been excellent up until that point.
“I’m sure he’ll come into contention for the starting team in the future."
Another player that missed out was Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel, who was absent through a foot injury that he sustained against Tranmere Rovers. He will be carefully managed, and at most might have to settle for a place among the substitute's before being considered for a start.
“He did a little bit of training at the end of last week,” Critchley added.
“He joined in with a group a little bit, but not full training. There’s no issue. He missed quite a bit of pre-season, and his minutes compared to everyone else are down, so we need to build him up to put him in a better position to stake a claim.”
Dominic Thompson, Andy Lyons and Kylian Kouassi are all out. Lyons suffered an ACL injury against Leyton Orient in February and is making progress but is a long way off playing.
Thompson returned to Blackpool this summer after a loan spell with Forest Green Rovers, but underwent surgery for an injury, however he is now back in training. Kylian Kouassi is in a similar position to Thompson as in May he needed to undergo surgery. It was hoped that Kouassi would be able to join in with training this week.
Out: Dominic Thompson, Andy Lyons and Kylian Kouassi. Doubt: Albie Morgan and Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel.
Burton Albion team news
Summer signing Alex Bannon wasn’t included in the match-day squad at the weekend. He missed a series of matches in pre-season and might not play a part this evening.
The hosts are also having to deal with Everton making a move for William Tamen. The Athletic are reporting that the Toffees are making progress in their pursuit of the 18-year-old defender. He was on trial with the Merseyside club in the summer and it is hoped a deal can be done soon.
At the end of July, Mark Robinson said that Charlie Webster, Jack Hazlehurst and Julian Lasson all faced spells on the sidelines. All three players didn't make the 18-man squad at the weekend. Hazelhurst and Webster both have ankle injuries which Robinson branded 'freak' but admitted there wasn't much they or the club could do to avoid them. As for Julian, he is also injured and they were assessing the length of the damage following his arrival from Nottingham Forest.
Against Lincoln City, Ciaran Gilligan and Terence Vancooten were both forced off with injuries whilst Udoka Godwin-Malife had to receive treatment. Gilligan is expected to miss out but Vancooten and Godwin-Malife are expected to play a part according to their official club website.
Jason Sraha (knee) and Geraldo Bajrami (ankle) are also out. Centre-back Sraha joined from Shrewsbury Town in the summer and suffered a knock, as well as Bajrami who arrived from Notts County. Jack Cooper-Love joined from Swedish side Elfsborg, but the club said he arrived at the club having carried an injury.
Out: Alex Bannon, Jason Sraha, Geraldo Bajrami, Charlie Webster, Jack Hazelhurst, Julian Larsson. Doubt: Ciaran Gilligan.