Between new additions and confirmations: will this be the year for the promotion to the Championship?
It’s almost time to dress up and play. The Football League One is about to begin and between the favoured team to gain the promotion to the Championship there is also Lincoln City FC.
According to bookmakers, the team has a good chance to succeed in qualifying for the playoffs. Direct qualification remains a very difficult goal to achieve, although among fans there will surely be those who are ready to bet on the latter hypothesis. However, for those who want to try their luck on the team, it is possible to place their bets totally free, taking advantage of bonuses and promotions, such as the SkyBet offers on Oddschecker, which offer new subscribers an initial budget to get them in position to place their wages without worrying too much about losing their money.
A tough preseason to be as ready as possible
Michael Skubala, Lincoln City’s gaffer, is more than ready to start his third season at the helm. He wants his players to be as ready as he is and planned a tough preseason, with some serious friendlies, in order to be as competitive as possible from the get-go. The clear objective for the Imps is to sneak into the playoffs, a result they miss since the 2020/2021 season.
This week, the whole team is in Algarve, struggling to play in a warmer climate and expecting some news from a not-too-active transfer market. During this period, they faced Bromley, on Wednesday, and put some minutes together. Upon returning in England, they’ll have a couple of more difficult tests, against Grimsby Town (on the 22nd) and West Bromwich Albion (on the 26th), these close matches will bring the team in shape before the open training session scheduled at LNER Stadium and, obviously, the first league match, at home against Reading, the 2nd of August.
The first official game will be a good test. Lincoln performs typically well against Reading, but we are talking about the very first league game, so there will be some rust on both sides. Starting the season strong is quite important, because it gives a great psychological boost to the whole environment. Skubala and his staff are certainly looking forward to this match, to have some material to analyse and make the necessary corrections.
What happened against Huddersfield Town
The Imps already played a match this preseason. They faced Huddersfield Town last Friday and lost 5-3. The result was lucky for Town, which scored on a Tom Hamer own goal in the 10th minute and played downhill from that moment on. Lincoln City, however, found the net with James Collins, Freddie Draper and Reeco Hackett, while showing a good pace that pleased the head coach, who does not care at all about the final result, as it is often the case with mid-July friendlies. There were some mental errors that won’t take place during the regular season (such as a 30-yards own goal) and some lacking situations, but everything will be corrected in the next two weeks.
The Imps may find some help, sooner rather than later, in a couple of new faces that are training with the team, hoping to find a place in the final roster. Marcel Lavinier, a 24-years-old right-back, is working out with the lads after growing in important teams, such as Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur. He played with the Spurs in an Europa League tie, back in 2021, but then was put at the border of the project and ultimately let go.
The other player that may end up playing with City is a youngster that goes by the name of Zach Nolan. He is only 19 and played a very good season in Bray last year, dressing up for the Wanderers. He is as fast as a football player can be and is closely followed by a lot of attractive teams, such as the Italian side Atlanta. He would rather remain in the UK, though, and seems open to joining the Imps for the season. They both are pretty talented and may bring quality to a side which truly needs it, if it hopes to put together a memorable season.