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Despite some shaky results over the last couple of months, Cambridge United are sat top of the Sky Bet League Two table.
The U’s midweek win against bottom of the league Southend saw them move above Newport and Carlisle to the summit of League Two, although both have multiple games in hand on Mark Bonner’s side. Despite pre-season predictions of a mid-table finish, Cambridge look like they can genuinely challenge for automatic promotion to League One.
Of course, this is in no small part down to their summer signings. Paul Mullin is still League Two’s top goalscorer, having found the net 18 times in 24 games, and has been linked with a move away from The Abbey with his contract expiring in the summer.
Norwich City legend Wes Hoolahan has also been instrumental to their success, despite his age hindering him from playing on as regularly as he might have liked. The 38-year-old has still managed five assists and three goals across 15 League Two games this season.
Bonner has also had to manage without some key players throughout a crucial run of fixtures. Midfielder Liam O’Neil was injured within 30 minutes of the first game of the season against Carlisle and is yet to return to full fitness, while MK Dons loanee Hiram Boateng suffered a dislocated shoulder in the defeat to Mansfield and is yet to feature since. Luke Hannant, the only out-and-out winger at the club, suffered a knock in the U’s 2-1 win at Colchester, and may not be fit to return to face the Bradford on Saturday.
Of course, the U’s were stunned by the Bantams in their last meeting in mid-December, with Harry Pritchard’s goal the difference between the two sides at Valley Parade. Bradford had struggled massively, being slowly dragged into a relegation battle until Stuart McCall left the club in mid-December.
Since then, they’ve been on an upward trajectory, having been unbeaten since Mark Trueman and and Conor Sellars were appointed as joint caretaker managers. The West Yorkshire side against Cambridge, Grimsby and Tranmere, but are yet to play in 2021 one due to a string of postponed matches.
The clash at The Abbey could see Danny Rowe handed a debut following his transfer from Oldham Athletic. The 31-year-old was unable to really hit the ground running in Greater Manchester, but showed some real flashes of brilliance, including a couple of stunning long range free-kicks. There’ll be huge pressure on him to increase his goal tally with the Bantams, who are among the lowest scorers in League Two this season.
The U’s, on the other hand, will be without young defender Harry Darling, who sealed a move to League One side MK Dons on Friday night. The 21-year-old played an instrumental part in Cambridge’s defence, which remains one of the tightest in the entire division. Robbie Cundy will be set to step in at centre-back alongside captain Greg Taylor.
On paper, this should be a comfortable game for the hosts to try and extend their lead at the summit of the table, but these are the kind of matches that they often struggle with. Bradford could have the mental edge over their opponents, having won the reverse fixture. Furthermore, their extended period of rest may give them a head start over the U’s, who played their last game just five days earlier.
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