A look ahead to MK Dons' trip to Fleetwood Town

MK Dons will finally get their game with Fleetwood Town this evening at the Highbury Stadium.

The original fixture went the way of Storm Bert back in November, a late call coming in with fans already en route for Lancashire.

Ahead of that game, Dons were in the midst of a winning run but fast forward a couple of months and the story is much different for Scott Lindsey’s side, but also the Cod Army too.

Charlie Adam had been in charge at Highbury Stadium for the original fixture, but he has since been sacked and replaced with former Barrow boss Pete Wild. He has only been in charge for three games, but he has picked up a win, a draw and a loss in that time. On Saturday, they halted Salford City’s winning streak with a 2-0 win at the Peninsula Stadium to move them to 14th in League Two - two placed and four points behind Dons.

Dons meanwhile were beaten 4-2 by league leaders Walsall as they slipped to their fifth defeat in seven games, stark contrast to their form ahead of the original fixture.

Today's game is the 14th meeting of the sides, and there is little to tell between the teams. Dons have claimed five wins to Fleetwood's four, with four draws. Dons though have not won any of the last five encounters between the sides, losing on both occasions in 22/23, drawing both in 21/22, and the penultimate game of the 20/21 season. A Joe Mason hat-trick in January 2021 at Stadium MK was the last time Dons beat the Cod Army.

Highbury Stadium has not been a happy hunting ground for Dons down the years. Despite winning on their first two visits, they have to look back to September 2016 for the last victory there - a 4-1 win thanks to a Ryan Colclough hat-trick. Their record reads two wins, three draws and two defeats.

And the hosts are fairly solid at Highbury Stadium too. Despite only winning three of their 12 games on home turf, they have only lost twice, with seven games ending all square this season.

Referee Thomas Parsons will take charge of the game. In his 20 games this season, he has booked 102 players, sent four off and awarded four penalties. His last Dons game was the 3-1 defeat to Leyton Orient in the EFL Trophy back in November. Overall, Dons have won one, drawn one and lost two in games Parsons has officiated. Simon Robinson and Karl Buckley will run the lines with Fourth Official Adewunmi Soneye.

Bookmakers bet365.com have MK Dons at 21/10 to win the game, Fleetwood are 6/5 and it is 23/10 the draw.