Preview: Blackpool vs. Charlton Athletic: lineups, team news, and predictions

On Saturday afternoon in League One, promotion-chasing Blackpool will host managerless Charlton Athletic at Bloomfield Road in an attempt to continue their league winning streak.

In their most recent game, the Seasiders narrowly defeated Bristol Rovers, and the Addicks’ home loss to Northampton Town led to a change in the manager’s position.

Blackpool defeated Bristol Rovers 2-1 at Memorial Stadium in the West Country on Saturday, extending their unbeaten streak in League One at the start of 2024 to three games. All of the goals were scored in a frantic first quarter of the encounter against the Pirates.

The Seasiders had an incredible start to their journey, going ahead in the first 20 minutes thanks to goals from CJ Hamilton and Karamoko Dembele. Chris Martin then pulled one back for the Gas, but they were unable to get past Richard O’Donnell’s net, so the visitors came away with all three points.

After picking up three points the previous game, Neil Critchley’s team is currently four points behind Oxford United, led by Des Buckingham, in sixth position in League One. This means Blackpool will need to put in some work if they want to win this league right away.

If Jordan Rhodes continues his goal-scoring ways until the end of the season—he has scored 15 league goals in 24 games, 11 more than any of his colleagues in 2023–2024—the Tangerines will need to win promotion to the Championship.

With 32 of their 45 third-tier points thus far earned at their Lancashire base, the Seasiders’ home record of 32 home points—more than any other team in the division—makes them very intimidating opponents on Saturday.

Tuesday night’s five-goal thriller between Charlton and Northampton at The Valley extended the Addicks’ winless streak in all competitions to a sobering 12 games. The hosts haven’t experienced victory since November 28 against relegation-threatened Cheltenham Town.

The Cobblers led by two goals in the first half, but Aaron McGowan’s own goal and Tennai Watson’s first of the season tied the score at halftime. The visitors then won the game in extra time thanks to a goal from substitute Louis Appere.

The Addicks have dropped to 16th place in the third-tier standings, barely four points ahead of Ruben Selles’ Reading in 21st place, and 19 points behind Oxford in sixth place—a distance that looks virtually insurmountable—after earning just four points from their previous ten League One games.

Michael Appleton’s tenure at Charlton ended with a fourth consecutive loss in the first five games of 2024. The former Blackpool manager could not hang on long enough in the Valley bench to meet his old employers this coming weekend, managing a meager 30% win percentage since his September appointment.

This season, Charlton has only gained nine of its thirty League One points away from home; only newly promoted Carlisle United, Cambridge United, and Reading have won as few away games as Charlton.