Oldham Athletic vs Fleetwood Town - prediction, team news, lineups

By Adeyeye Oluwapelumi | 20 Sep 2026 17:19, Last updated: 20 Sep 2026 17:19

Two League Two sides already familiar with each other this season meet again on Tuesday evening when Oldham Athletic welcome Fleetwood Town to Boundary Park as they kick off their EFL Trophy campaigns.

Both teams have been drawn into Northern Group G alongside Barnsley and Leeds United Under-21s, with the Latics looking to halt a run of three successive league defeats and the Cod Army aiming to bounce back from their first loss of 2026-27 at Barnet.

Oldham may have hoped for a smoother start to their second successive League Two campaign after returning to the EFL last season, but four defeats from their opening seven matches have left Micky Mellon's side in 16th place in the League Two table with seven points.

The Latics had collected those seven points from their first four league games, including home victories over Port Vale and Swindon Town, yet their encouraging beginning has given way to a four-match sequence of one draw and three defeats without a win.

That downturn has included three consecutive league losses against Tranmere Rovers, Chesterfield and Rochdale, with Saturday's 2-0 reverse at their Greater Manchester rivals extending a trend that has seen all five of Oldham's competitive defeats this season come in matches where they have conceded multiple goals.

More interestingly, the Latics' current winless run started with a 1-1 draw at Fleetwood, with each of the last three meetings between the clubs ending in the same scoreline, while Oldham are without a victory in this fixture in six games since their home success in League One in 2017.

However, returning to Boundary Park should still provide optimism for Mellon's men, who, despite losing their most recent match at the ground, have won two of their three games played there this season, knowing that victory here would enhance their chances of avoiding a second successive group-stage exit following last term's disappointment.

Meanwhile, the competition has already offered Fleetwood a more productive recent journey than Oldham, with the Lancashire-based club reaching the round of 16 last season before losing at Doncaster Rovers, their deepest run in the tournament since a last-eight exit in 2017-18.

That being said, the Cod Army arrive at Boundary Park following a 3-1 loss at Barnet, where Will Davies's 36th-minute equaliser proved futile as Matt Lawlor's side conceded two more goals after the interval, with the result leaving the team 11th in the League Two table while bringing an end to their nine-game unbeaten start to the season.

That setback came only three days after Fleetwood had produced one of the biggest results in their history, edging Championship side Sheffield United 1-0 to reach the historic fourth round of the Carabao Cup, where they will face reigning Premier League champions Arsenal.

Tuesday's contest offers a glimmer of optimism for the Cod Army, who recorded a 5-2 victory in their last EFL Trophy meeting with Oldham at Highbury Stadium in 2019, three years after losing at the same ground in the very same competition.
 

Oldham remain without long-term absentee Jack Stevens, while Mellon could use the opportunity to freshen up his side.

Kai Payne, Josh Hawkes and Lewis Temple are among those who could benefit from rotation, while Aston Wilson may be considered between the posts after Mathew Hudson has started the majority of the games this campaign.

Mellon also has attacking decisions to make after Oldham failed to score in two of their last three matches, with Elliott Nevitt and Mike Fondop among the options who could be given another opportunity to provide a cutting edge.

Meanwhile, Kane Thompson-Sommers continues his recovery from surgery, while Andy Cannon remains doubtful after missing each of the last four matches for Fleetwood.

Lawlor may also recall Ched Evans to the lineup after his involvement off the bench on Saturday, while Aaron Loupalo-Bi, Adam Murphy and Crispin McLean could also be given an opportunity to make an impression.

Meanwhile, Ronan Coughlan could start back-to-back games in attack, having scored the late equaliser against Oldham earlier this month.
 

Oldham Athletic possible starting lineup:

Hudson; Scott-Morriss, Daniels, Delaney, Robson; Fawunmi, Norburn, Appiah-Forson, Hawkes; Kavanagh, Fondop

Lynch; Rooney, Bennett, Potter; Neal; Murphy, Helm, McLean, Andrew; Evans, Coughlan

Neither side has been able to gain the upper hand in their recent meetings, while both are likely to rotate after weekend defeats, so another closely fought contest could develop at Boundary Park before the EFL Trophy's penalty format determines who takes the extra point.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Get FREE daily news and in-depth previews for games from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football — straight to your inbox.