Newport County visit Milton Keynes Dons at the Stadium MK in EFL League Two this afternoon.
The Dons are currently fifth in the table and can move into the top three with a win.
Meanwhile, Newport look to close the gap to their nearest contenders in the battle to survive the drop.
State of Play
A run of three away games in a row for Newport began with a 2-0 defeat away to Swindon Town on Wednesday evening.
The game, which was televised on Sky Sports, saw County hold The Robins for over an hour, until two quickly taken goals for the home team sealed their loss.
A tough schedule has seen them draw four of the top six teams in a row, with a trip to Salford City on Tuesday evening and a home game against Cambridge United next Saturday.
The nearest team to Newport are Barrow, who are merely three points ahead, although Newport are unlikely to overtake them even with a victory.
Our Opponents
There has been a huge turnaround in Milton Keynes Dons’ fortunes over this season.
The Dons finished 19th in the division last term, but are now aiming to secure a third promotion in the club’s history.
After losing to Colchester United on New Year’s Day, they have gone on an impressive run of four wins in their last five, with a narrow 3-2 victory at Cheltenham Town last weekend.
MK can climb into the top three if results go their way on Saturday, helped by their goal difference being the best in the league.
What They Said
Dons boss Paul Warne was under no illusions of the tough test that Newport will pose on Saturday.
“Every game is as difficult as the next. We prepare as hard for this one as we would for Cambridge or Salford away”, he said.
“We’ve been good at home, if you take away our pretty horrific start to the season we’d be handsome.
“But there’s no such thing as a home banker. There’s certain things I know about them: I think they’ve been really unlucky in tight games that could have gone either way.
“Their physical stats are only second to us in the league. They are quite a young team – the fact they played midweek and are playing Saturday will not bother them.
“It is hard to play against teams with an amount of determination, and they will have that.”
Head-to-Heads
This rivalry is still very much fledgling, and the two sides didn’t meet each other until an EFL Cup tie in 2016.
Of the ten matches played, MK Dons have won six and Newport have won two, with two draws in between.
The last time Newport beat The Dons was back in December 2024, in a remarkable 6-3 victory at Rodney Parade.
Newport have yet to win a game at the Stadium MK, with last season’s 0-0 draw the best result they have picked up in Buckinghamshire.
The past two seasons have seen a goalless draw between the two teams in the league.
