Scunthorpe United v Charlton
Charlton take on Scunthorpe United - a side with very different ambitions to those of the Addicks - in their latest Championship fixture on Saturday (3pm).
Alan Pardew's men have been in fine form in the last few weeks, taking seven points out of a possible nine since the defeat to Colchester United to lie in a healthy fifth place in the Championship table.
And despite the loss of skipper Andy Reid to Sunderland on Thursday's transfer deadline day, a squad bolstered by the recruitment of loan defender Greg Halford and loan winger Lee Cook will make the Addicks' first trip to Glanford Park.
The Iron currently lie one place off the bottom of the table, and three points for Charlton could see them move to within a point of the summit, and the knowledge that a home win against Crystal Palace next Friday might then put the club at the top of the table.
On Tuesday, Charlton sealed a deserved 1-0 win over fellow promotion hopefuls Stoke City at The Valley, thanks to Lloyd Sam's 83rd-minute strike.
Pardew was buoyant after the victory over Tony Pulis' side - indeed, it was a fixture Charlton may have struggled to take something from not so long ago.
Charlton were more than a match for Stoke's physical approach, with goalkeeper Nicky Weaver and the back four of Yassin Moutaouakil, Madjid Bougherra, Paddy McCarthy and Kelly Youga all performing superbly.
The midfield of Sam, Matt Holland, Zheng Zhi and Darren Ambrose all worked tirelessly, while the front two of Chris Iwelumo and Andy Gray, making his full debut, were unlucky not to get on the scoresheet. Substitute Luke Varney came on to good effect, setting up Sam for the winning goal.
The opposition
Charlton meet a Scunthorpe side struggling at the wrong end of the table.
Just one win in their last 17 games - a 1-0 triumph at Preston North End on Boxing Day - has seen the Iron slip to 23rd place in the Championship.
Following their promotion last season as League One champions, Scunthorpe started the season brightly, earning a 1-1 draw against the Addicks on the opening day of the season at The Valley and going on to win four out of their next eight games, with Charlton loanee Youga at the heart of their success.
But things soon started to go wrong, and Nigel Adkins' outfit desperately needs to start picking up points to avoid an immediate return to League One.
After the loss of key man Billy Sharp, Scunthorpe started strengthening their squad for the new season by signing Kevan Hurst permanently for a club record £200,000 from Sheffield United. The midfielder has made 29 first-team appearances this season.
The Iron also signed Paul Hayes from Barnsley, but the striker has scored just three goals this term, losing his place in recent weeks to former Millwall hitman Ben May.
Adkins' third summer signing was Izzy Iriekpen from Swansea City on a two-year deal, the defender netting on his debut in the draw at The Valley.
Other notable signings included Martin Paterson from Stoke, Jonathan Forte from Sheffield United and Chelsea youth-team captain Jack Cork, while veteran Geoff Horsfield joined just before the transfer deadline as Adkins bids to boost a goal-shy frontline.
Youga, who missed the Valley clash in August under the terms of his loan move, is expected to line up against the manager Pardew recently praised for having such a good impact on the player's development, after the left-back returned to SE7 just after Christmas.
Past meetings
It's almost 35 years since Charlton last won away at Scunthorpe, but given that the match between the two sides at The Valley in August was their first meeting for 34 years, there is an easy explanation.
On the most recent occasion, Iriekpen cancelled out Marcus Bent's opening goal as the match finished all square.
Before that encounter, you have to go back to the 1972/72 season to find the last time the teams went head to head, with Charlton winning both (old) Division Three games 2-0.
Keith Peacock and Bob Curtis found the net at the Old Show Ground in February 1973, while Peacock again and Arthur Horsfield were on target in the meeting in SE7 the previous September.
In total, Charlton have won five out of 16 games against Scunthorpe, but the Addicks have only been beaten twice on their travels to face the Iron. United have taken victory four times, with seven games ending in a draw.
Team news
Transfer-deadline day signings Halford and Cook could both make their Charlton debuts at Glanford Park, although Pardew may be loath to change a winning team, especially after such a convincing display against Stoke.
Both players joined in training on Friday morning after completing their switches the previous day, but Cook in particular has yet to play first-team football this season after being hampered by injury, and may be eased into the Addicks squad.
With Reid unlikely to have featured this weekend as he was due to continue his recovery from his own knee injury, there is no loss to Pardew's recent party for matches, and the manager's main decision may concern his partnership up front.
There is little question that the height of Iwelumo was preferred against the Potters as Pardew sought to ensure his team could compete physically against Stoke, and the forward persevered manfully in attack as well as defence.
Varney's introduction in the second half therefore came against a defence that had been on the back foot for most of the game, and the striker had a telling impact, helping to create the winning goal.
Scunthorpe, as they showed at The Valley in August, like to play football, so it would be no surprise if Varney came in for Iwelumo.
There will definitely be no place for Chris Dickson after the striker suffered a knee injury in a freak accident at the club hotel on Tuesday, ruling him out for a possible three months, while Sam Sodje is still sidelined after sustaining a nasty cut on his arm.
Elsewhere, any dramatic changes would be a surprise, with Chinese midfielder Zheng Zhi due to head off to Dubai straight after the game to represent his country against Iraq on Wednesday night.
Tickets
Tickets for the match are priced £18 adults and £11 over 60s and U21s, and will be available from Glanford Park ahead of kick-off. More than 1,000 Charlton fans had booked seats by the end of Thursday.
All five Valley Away coaches to Scunthorpe sold out on Thursday.
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