Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Match Preview
A massive top-of-the-table clash awaits at the LNER Stadium on Saturday, 20 December 2025. League leaders Cardiff City travel to face 3rd-placed Lincoln City in a match with huge automatic promotion implications. Cardiff sit top with 41 points but face a brutal turnaround, having played a high-intensity Carabao Cup Quarter-Final against Chelsea just three days ago. Lincoln, sitting on 35 points, have had a full week to prepare and will look to exploit the visitors’ fatigue to close the six-point gap at the summit.
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Match Info
- Competition: League One (Matchday 21)
- Venue: LNER Stadium, Lincoln (Capacity: 10,669)
- Date: Saturday, 20 December 2025
- Kickoff: 15:00 GMT | 16:00 CET | 10:00 ET
- Referee: Ryan Eley (ENG)
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Match Stakes
Lincoln City (3rd — 35 pts):
- Win → Moves to 38 pts; cuts the gap to Cardiff to just 3 points
- Draw → Keeps them in the hunt but allows 2nd place (Stevenage/Bradford) to potentially pull away
- Loss → Gap to leaders widens to 9 points; a significant blow to title hopes
Cardiff City (1st — 41 pts):
- Win → Moves to 44 pts; asserts dominance as the league’s best team
- Draw → A superb result given the midweek fatigue and away atmosphere
- Loss → Momentum check; opens the door for the chasing pack entering the festive period
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Team News
Lincoln City:
- Collins J. — Out (Injury – Top Scorer Missing)
- House B. — Out (Inactive)
- Jackson A. — Out (Inactive – Key CB)
- Thorn O. — Out (Inactive)
- Attack Depleted: With Collins and House out, the scoring burden falls on Freddie Draper and Jovon Makama.
Cardiff City:
- Alnwick J. — Out (Personal Reasons – Starting GK)
- Colwill R. — Out (Injury – Key Creator)
- Tanner O. — Out (Ankle Injury)
- King E. — Out (Knee Injury)
- Fatigue: Most of the starting XI played vs Chelsea on Wednesday; rotation is likely.
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Team Form (Last 5 Matches)
Lincoln City
- 13/12 — 2–2 vs Blackpool (League One)
- 10/12 — 3–1 vs Barnsley (League One)
- 03/12 — 0–2 vs Huddersfield (EFL Trophy)
- 29/11 — 1–0 vs Port Vale (League One)
- 22/11 — 2–3 vs Wycombe (League One)
Cardiff City
- 17/12 — 1–3 vs Chelsea (Carabao Cup)
- 13/12 — 4–3 vs Doncaster (League One)
- 10/12 — 1–0 vs Stevenage (League One)
- 06/12 — 3–2 vs Huddersfield (League One)
- 03/12 — 1–5 vs AFC Wimbledon (EFL Trophy)
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Head-to-Head (Historical)
- Recent meetings are scarce due to Cardiff’s tenure in higher divisions.
- 10/03/2001 — Lincoln 2–0 Cardiff (League Two)
- 22/11/2000 — Cardiff 3–2 Lincoln (League Two)
- 07/02/1998 — Cardiff 0–1 Lincoln (League Two)
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Playing XI (Predicted Lineups)
Lincoln City (3-5-2)
Wickens; Montsma, O’Connor, Hamer; Darikwa, McGrandles, Erhahon, Bayliss, Jefferies; Makama, Draper
Cardiff City (4-2-3-1)
Trott; Ng, Chambers, Fish, Bagan; Wintle, Turnbull; Willock, J. Colwill, Ashford; Robinson
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Impact Bench
Lincoln City: Moylan (Attacking Midfield), Street (Forward option)
Cardiff City: Davies (Pace vs tired legs), Robertson (Midfield control)
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Tactical Analysis
Lincoln City
The Imps will try to set a high tempo from the first whistle. Knowing Cardiff played 90 minutes against Premier League opposition on Wednesday, Lincoln’s wing-backs (Darikwa and Jefferies) will look to stretch the pitch and force Cardiff’s tired legs to cover ground. However, missing James Collins (goals) and Adam Jackson (defensive leader) is a massive spine removal. They must rely on set-pieces, where Paudie O’Connor is a threat.
Cardiff City
Brian Barry-Murphy’s side plays expansive football, top-scoring in the league with 36 goals. Even without Rubin Colwill, the likes of David Turnbull and Chris Willock provide immense quality for this level. Cardiff will likely try to slow the game down, keep possession, and silence the home crowd. Their defense has been leaky (conceding 3 vs Doncaster, 3 vs Chelsea), so they will likely try to outscore Lincoln rather than sit back.
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Key Battles
- Draper vs Chambers — young striker vs veteran Premier League experience
- Erhahon vs Turnbull — battle for midfield supremacy
- Darikwa vs Bagan — Lincoln’s captain driving down the right flank
- Trott vs The Occasion — Backup GK stepping in for Alnwick in a massive game
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Spotlight Players
Lincoln City — Tendayi Darikwa
The captain and right wing-back is crucial to Lincoln’s transition play. With key forwards out, his delivery from wide areas needs to be perfect.
Cardiff City — Callum Robinson
The experienced forward will lead the line. His movement and link-up play are vital to holding the ball up and allowing Cardiff’s midfield to join the attack. He needs to be clinical.
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Prediction
Lincoln City 1–1 Cardiff City
Under normal circumstances, Cardiff’s quality would make them favorites. However, the short turnaround from the Chelsea game combined with the loss of Alnwick and Colwill levels the playing field. Lincoln are missing their main goal threat in Collins, which limits their ability to punish Cardiff fully. A hard-fought draw seems the most logical outcome.
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Betting Insights
- Both Teams to Score — YES
- Double Chance — Lincoln or Draw (Fatigue factor)
- Over 2.5 Goals — Possible (Cardiff involved in high-scoring games recently)
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — Where to Watch
- UK: Sky Sports+ (Red Button)
- International: Cardiff City TV / iFollow
Lincoln City vs Cardiff City — FAQs
Q: When is the Lincoln vs Cardiff match?
A: The match kicks off on Saturday, 20 December 2025, at 15:00 GMT.
Q: Why is Jak Alnwick not playing for Cardiff?
A: He is ruled out due to personal reasons.
Q: Who is favored to win?
A: It is a tight call. Cardiff are league leaders, but Lincoln have the home advantage and are fresher physically.
Call to Action — SportsphereArena Community
Can the Imps close the gap on the Bluebirds?
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