Our prediction for this League 1 match:
Saturday’s football game at Abbey Stadium pits together Cambridge United and Carlisle United, the two bottom-table sides. Cambridge United failed to win the previous ten games in all competitions and they face yet another tough challenge against Carlisle. There are no fresh injury worries in the home team ahead of the round 16 clash.
The Cumbrians, on the other hand, desperately needed a win against Burton Albion and they managed to get one, with the team quickly bouncing back from back-to-back defeats to Leyton Orient and Portsmouth. Carlisle United, though, have been having their ups and downs of late and we do not believe that they are capable of collecting more than one point from Saturday’s clash. Paul Simpson is unlikely to make too many changes to the team that defeated the Brewers as the 57-year-old tactician has no fresh injury concerns.
Highlighted Player (Tomas Holy):
Born in the town of Rychnov nad Kneznou, Czechoslovakia, Tomas Holy is a Czech professional footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper for Ipswich Town in League One. The 27-year-old was born on the 10th of December, 1991, and joined FC Hradec Kralove's youth academy in 2006. After spending four years with them, he signed for Sparta Prague and started playing for its B team.
His first professional appearance for AC Sparta Prague B came on the 11th of June, 2011, in a 1-2 home loss against FK Varnsdorf. He went on to ply his trade-in Czech football for the next six years before moving to Gillingham in England on the 20th of January, 2017, on a two and a half year contract. Gillingham's manager praised the 2.06m tall goalkeeper's "large presence" and "ball-kicking ability," stating them as reasons behind his recruitment. In his time at Gillingham, Holy made 107 appearances and kept 25 clean sheets in all competitions.
On the 24th of May, 2019, Holy joined Ipswich on a free transfer and made an immediate impact. He kept six clean sheets in his first ten league games for Ipswich, including a run of five consecutive clean sheets, a club record. Internationally, Holy has capped at the under-16, under-17, and under-18 level for his country but is yet to receive a call up for the first team.
Highlighted Team (Cambridge United):
Cambridge United are an English football club that compete in League Two. The U’s play their home games at Abbey Stadium, the venue which was built back in 1923. Owned by Grosvenor Estates, Cambridge United’s home ground can hold up to 8,127 spectators.
The U’s wear amber and black jerseys and black shorts when playing in front of home fans, while white and blue are the dominant colours of their away kit. Cambridge United won the FA Trophy in 2014, with the team making it to the FA Cup quarter-finals two times (1989/90, 1990/91). In the 1968-69 season, the U’s clinched the Southern League Cup title.
Cambridge United recorded their biggest league win in March 2007 as they outclassed Weymouth 7-0, and they repeated the success against Forest Green (2009) and Morecambe (2016). Peterborough United are regarded as the club’s main rivals, but they maintain rivalries with Northampton Town, Colchester United, Luton Town, Stevenage, and Histon as well.