AFC Wimbledon set to welcome Gills to Plough Lane on Tuesday evening.
AFC Wimbledon v Gillingham
Sky Bet League One
Plough Lane
Tuesday August 17
Kick-Off, 7.45pm
Team News:
Steve Evans will have to wait to see if Ryan Jackson and Stuart O’Keefe will be available for Tuesday’s game at Wimbledon. They both came off in the loss to Plymouth with knocks and will be assessed to see if they are available to feature.
Ben Reeves, Robbie McKenzie and Alex MacDonald are all unlikely to feature as they remain out with the injuries they sustained in pre-season.
Aaron Pressley and Dapo Mebude could both start Tuesday’s game for AFC Wimbledon having helped inspire The Wombles’ comeback to earn a point against Bolton. Both got on the scoresheet as they scored their first Wimbledon goals in the 3-3 draw.
Manager Comments:
Steve Evans - “I’m expecting it to be tough. We went there last year and totally dominated and were undone by a late goal, like today [Plymouth]. We need to go there, be energized and make sure that medically and physically we turn the boys around to be ready.”
Mark Robinson - “This might have been the bit of a wake-up call that we needed. We’ve got to be hard to beat, and we looked that last Saturday, and on Tuesday, but I felt that Bolton were a real threat on the break.
“Our shape behind the ball wasn’t good enough, and our ball retention wasn’t good enough in the final third. We didn’t work things out quickly enough in terms of what they were doing.”
Previous Meetings:
23/02/2021 - AFC Wimbledon 1-0 Gillingham - Sky Bet League One
24/11/2020 - Gillingham 2-1 AFC Wimbledon - Sky Bet League One
29/02/2020 - Gillingham 1-2 AFC Wimbledon - Sky Bet League One
23/11/2020 - AFC Wimbledon 1-0 Gillingham - Sky Bet League One
23/03/2019 - AFC Wimbledon 2-4 Gillingham - Sky Bet League One
Gills drew 1-1 at Wimbledon in 2017 in an action-packed first half. Former Gillingham player Andy Barcham headed the hosts in front, and just before half-time, Lee Martin received his marching orders following an off the ball incident.
However, Gills reacted quickly to the red card and were on level terms seconds later. Sean Clare managed to find the bottom corner from 12 yards out as Wimbledon were unable to defend a Mark Byrne long throw.
Gillingham’s first-ever win against The Wombles came during the club’s title winning season under Martin Allen. On-loan midfielder Romain Vincelot found the bottom corner midway through the first half on his debut for the club. Despite plenty of late pressure from the hosts, Gills hung on for all three points.
Odds:
AFC Wimbledon win - 6/5
Draw - 23/10
Gillingham win - 21/10
Special Bet: Vadaine Oliver to score and Gillingham to win 1-0- 25/1.
iFollow:
Tuesday's game is available to watch via iFollow for a one-off fee of £10. Click here to purchase your pass. Live TV pictures are accompanied by commentary from BBC Radio Kent.
Match Officials:
Referee: Darren Drysdale
Assistants: Daniel Cook and Adrian Tranter
Fourth Official: Nicholas Cooper