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Preview: St Mirren vs. Motherwell - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's Scottish Premiership clash between St Mirren and Motherwell, including predictions, team news and possible starting lineups.

St Mirren will host Motherwell on Saturday as they return to domestic action, having won both of their opening matches in the Betfred Cup.

Stephen Robinson's side, on the other hand, have been out of action since September - with their latest match featuring a 5-1 loss against Rangers.


Match preview

St Mirren manager Jim Goodwin pictured in August 2020© Reuters

Jim Goodwin's men have picked up five points from their first set of games in the Betfred Cup, with the Saints currently topping Group G.

Their first match resulted in a convincing 4-1 win against Partick Thistle, before they came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 against Queen of the South, with St Mirren winning on penalties.

However, their time in the Premiership has been disappointing, with Goodwin's side claiming just two wins so far this campaign.

Their latest league game ended in a 2-1 loss away to Aberdeen and they have failed to pick up three points since August, currently sitting 11th in the table.

Although, they will feel disappointed to have missed a point during their trip to the Pittodrie Stadium, with Lewis Ferguson claiming the late winner in injury time.

Meanwhile, Motherwell have also endured a pretty poor run in the early stages of the campaign, especially after their impressive finish to the 2019-20 season.

Robinson's men are only two places above their upcoming opponents in the table, having gained the same amount of wins as St Mirren.

Their 5-1 defeat to current leaders Rangers would have left a rather bad taste in their mouths, with their only goal coming from George Edmundson as he headed the ball into his own net.

The Well have not been involved in the Betfred Cup group stages, due to their qualifying games for the Europa League.

Unfortunately, Robinson's side were knocked out of Europe, following a 3-0 defeat to Israeli side Hapoel Be'er Sheva which featured a sending-off for captain Declan Gallagher, after the 29-year-old received two bookings within the space of a minute.

Motherwell last met St Mirren back in February, where the Saints gained a 2-1 win against the North Lanarkshire outfit in the Premiership.

St Mirren Scottish Premiership form: LLLLLL
St Mirren form (all competitions): LLLLWW

Motherwell Scottish Premiership form: DLLWWL
Motherwell form (all competitions): LWWWLL


Team News

Motherwell boss Steve Robinson pictured in November 2019© Reuters

Goodwin has recently struggled to field a fit squad, due to the complications surrounding coronavirus, and the Irish coach could face similar problems come Saturday.

The club have revealed that two first-team players have tested positive for the virus, while a third is undergoing a precautionary self-isolation.

Ryan Flynn, who was out with a cruciate ligament injury, could return to the bench for their game against Motherwell.

New signing Kristian Dennis could also make an appearance after his time on the sidelines, having picked up a knock in the early stages of the season.

However, Robinson will still be without Scott Fox and Liam Donnelly, with both players set to be out for a lengthy spell.

Charles Dunne and Jake Carroll could return to the side soon, but neither seems likely to feature on Saturday.

The Northern Irishman could make a few changes to the team that lost against Rangers last month, with the side eager to bounce back from their poor defeat.

St Mirren possible starting lineup:
Alnwick; Tait, Shaughnessy, Fraser; Morias, Sheron, Erhahon, MacPherson, McGrath; Erwin, Obika

Motherwell possible starting lineup:
Carson; Gallagher, Mugabi, Lamie; O'Donnell, Campbell, O'Hara; Polworth, Grimshaw; Long, Lang


SM words green background

We say: St Mirren 1-2 Motherwell

Although they recorded a recent 5-1 loss against Rangers, the visitors picked up a decent win against Aberdeen before the international break and have been in better form than the home side. Meanwhile, St Mirren appear to be struggling and are in desperate search of another point, but will find it hard to compete against a determined Motherwell.


Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 1.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 1.5:data

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(ret.)
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
Championship Group
1Celtic110082275581
2RangersRangers110074245078
3Hearts101046341263
4Kilmarnock10104334952
5St Mirren10013945-643
6Dundee10014556-1141
Relegation Group
1Hibernian11004752-542
2Aberdeen11003649-1338
3Motherwell10014652-637
4St Johnstone10012549-2431
5Ross County10013258-2630
6Livingston11002459-3521
 
First Phase
1Celtic33246380265478
2RangersRangers33243672234975
3Hearts33195946341262
4Kilmarnock33131284334951
5St Mirren33127143843-543
6Dundee331011124454-1041
7Hibernian33912124451-739
8Motherwell33813124651-537
9Aberdeen33811143549-1435
10St Johnstone33710162446-2231
11Ross County3379173256-2430
12Livingston3339212259-3718


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