League Two predictions, betting odds and tips: New-look MK Dons can nail down playoff berth

Already advised by Aaron Ashley

Stockport to win League Two
2pts each-way 6-1 general

Gillingham to be promoted
2pts 11-4 bet365, Coral, Hills

Crawley to be relegated
2pts 7-2 bet365

Barrow +23 on handicap
1pt each-way 18-1 bet365

A Cook top League Two goalscorer
1.5pts each-way 12-1 bet365, Boyles

M Eisa top League Two goalscorer
1pt each-way 16-1 general

D Johnson top League Two goalscorer
1pt each-way 20-1 general

Notts County top Midlands club
3pts 4-5 bet365

Salford top-seven finish
2pts 6-4 general

Barrow to finish in the top half
2pts 13-8 Hills

New recommendations

MK Dons to finish in the top seven
2pts 5-6 general

Paul Mullin top goalscorer
1pt each-way 10-1 bet365

Forest Green to finish bottom
1pt 7-5 Hills

League Two predictions

Three-way title heat on the cards

Mansfield’s 2-0 success at Stockport on New Year’s Day saw the Stags usurp the Hatters as League Two title favourites and left them two points behind the leaders with two games in hand.

Stockport remain at the summit despite a recent dip in form during which they have dropped points in six of their last eight league games.

That has also opened the door for Wrexham, who have lost only two of their last 15 league fixtures to move within two points of Stockport.

It is 33-1 bar those three in places and the chase is led by Barrow, who were blown away 4-1 at Wrexham on New Year’s Day to suggest they may have to ultimately settle for a position in the playoffs.

Big Kick-Off followers are in a healthy enough position, having sided with Stockport at 6-1 with three places on offer, although injuries are not helping their cause.

The top three should all have resources available to them to strengthen but at this stage Mansfield certainly warrant favouritism.

Nigel Clough’s side have lost only once in 24 league outings and their expected-goals figures mark them out as comfortably the best team in the division, although with 22 games to give, 6-4 looks short enough.

MK Dons look set to finish with a flourish

It is hard to envisage any of the current top three slipping out of the playoff spots while Barrow are in a commanding position, which may only leave three places up for grabs.

Notts County, among the ante-post title favourites, will still believe they have what it takes to finish in the top seven, especially with the goals and creativity of Macaulay Langstaff, Daniel Crowley and David McGoldrick. The prospect of losing manager Luke Williams to Swansea adds a curveball, though.

Sixth-placed Crewe struggling with inconsistency, with only one win in seven, while AFC Wimbledon have star striker Ali Al-Hamadi and fellow forward Omar Bugiel heading to the Asia Cup to represent Iraq and Lebanon.

That could do their top-seven push some damage over the course of the next month or so and, of the chasing pack, MK Dons are the team most likely to prosper.

The Dons have excelled since appointing former Gateshead manager Mike Williamson as boss, helping them move from 16th to eighth since the middle of October.

Williamson’s first game in charge at Accrington and his most recent trip to Doncaster are his only two defeats in 11 league outings, and they have claimed maximum points seven times.

Williamson has a relatively big squad for this level, complemented with the right blend of youth and experience, and has a young goalscorer going places in Max Dean.

Wrexham star Paul Mullin could fill his boots in the second half of the campaignCredit: Katharine Lotze

Wrexham hotshot Mullin could make hay 

Macaulay Langstaff has taken no time to adjust to life in the Football League and the Notts County sharpshooter is already an even-money shot to reproduce last season’s heroics in the National League.

Langstaff struck 42 goals for County in securing promotion last term and is already blazing a trail in League Two having bagged 19 times in 26 appearances, leaving him three clear of Jake Young who has been recalled from Swindon by Bradford.

The 26-year-old is going to be a difficult man to catch, and an unfortunate injury or a move away looks to be all that could stop him.

That makes it a difficult market to play in but bet365 are offering four places at a quarter of the odds, so there may be in each-way value in Wrexham’s Paul Mullin, who last season finished only three goals behind Langstaff.

Mullin missed the start of the campaign through injury and, despite being restricted to only 17 appearances in League Two this term, has nine goals at an average of every 157 minutes.

He is on penalty duty for Wrexham, who are in contending for the title, so there is potential for that number to grow rapidly and he scored 32 times in 46 appearances for Cambridge in League Two in 2020–21.

Deeney has a tall order to keep Forest Green up

Colchester and Salford are two sides sinking like a stone in League Two, and their demise may have given Sutton and Forest Green renewed hope in their scrap for survival.

But Salford’s riches could save them while Colchester, also on the hunt for a new manager, are remaining competitive in games and scoring plenty of goals, so the bottom two face an uphill battle.

Sutton’s performances have improved since they parted ways with Matt Gray and they are tough to budge at home, whereas Forest Green have a nine-game winless run to snap and manager Troy Deeney has yet to prove his credentials.

Rovers have a horror run-in, in which they face five of the current top eight in their final six fixtures, so they may need to arrest their slump quickly if they are to avoid finishing bottom.

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