AFC Wimbledon vs Notts County Prediction: Another Dons clean sheet?

AFC Wimbledon have put themselves in a fantastic position to reach Wembley as they came away from Meadow Lane with a 1-0 win. Now they know they only have to draw with Notts County when the two meet at 12:30 on Saturday - with the game live on Sky Sports Football.  

Below you can find my AFC Wimbledon vs Notts County predictions featuring team news and betting tips. 

Team News

AFC Wimbledon will surely name the same XI as they did in the first leg, bearing in mind that they only need to keep a clean sheet to progress to the final. The 3-5-2 seemed to work a treat, with on-loan goalkeeper Owen Goodman putting in a terrific first-leg display. 

Riley Harbottle got the vital only goal of that game and will play at centre-back along with Joe Lewis and Ryan Johnson. Isaac Ogundere did well off the bench and is pushing for a start along with Omar Bugiel, but I think Johnnie Jackson will want to stick rather than twist. 

That means Marcus Browne will partner Matty Stevens in attack, with Jake Smith and Alastair Smith alongside Myles Hippolyte in midfield. Wing-back Josh Neufville and James Tilley were on top form and will play a key role once again. 

Notts County’s nightmare first leg culminated in front man Alassana Jatta getting shown a straight red card for a lunging challenge late on. That means he will miss this game, while David McGoldrick seemingly came off with cramp late on, but needs to be checked over by the medical staff. 

It means Will Jarvis may start up top for Stuart Maynard, with Mai Traore another option in the final third. Conor Grant should provide some attacking thrust while it feels like Jodi Jones will have a big part to play from wing-back, if he can get into attacking areas. 

There’s the potential that Maynard may even choose to move away from his back three later on, and with Jones a key attacking threat, he could get to play in his natural winger role. Rod McDonald could also come into the back three from the start but all eyes will be on the attack as County chase the goal they desperately need.

AFC Wimbledon vs Notts County Odds

AFC Wimbledon are 13/10 to win this game in 90 minutes, and 1/5 to win the tie. That gives them a 83% chance of reaching Wembley, while a draw can be backed at 23/10. 21/10 is the price for a Notts County win on the night, which is what they need to at least force extra time. 

Over 2.5 goals is 6/5, BTTS is 10/11 and Stevens is the favourite to open the scoring at 11/2. 

AFC Wimbledon to keep a clean sheet @ 13/8 

We nailed the first-leg predictions where I tipped up under 1.5 goals and AFC Wimbledon to win to nil, even suggesting the 1-0 away win might be the way to go. I’m going back to the well and tipping the Dons to keep another clean sheet given their astonishing defensive record and what we saw in the the first leg. 

They conceded 10 goals fewer than any other team in League 2 in the regular season, letting in just 35 in 46 games while their first-leg clean sheet brought their tally to 22 for the campaign. Even with County throwing everything at them, I think their lack of strikers will seriously impact their attacking quality and am more than happy to back this Wimbledon backline to keep them out. A 23rd clean sheet for the season will mean a trip to Wembley. 

AFC Wimbledon 0-0 Notts County @ 8/1 

I’ll back a result that will see Wimbledon to Wembley at a decent price. I’m already backing the hosts to keep their second consecutive clean sheet against County, so it makes sense to back the 0-0 with the same reasoning. The Dons haven’t been a great attacking team this season and I’m pretty sure that their gameplan will be to grind out a 0-0 draw. 

I’m happy to back them to do it given their strong defence, and while Stevens is a threat up top, they only managed to score 56 goals in 46 league fixtures this term. It’s that goalkeeper and back three that has carried them to this stage, and two more clean sheets could take them all the way to League 1. 

Offers

Acca Flex: Place a pre-match 5+ leg Football accumulator and get a CASH bonus up to 100% if all of your selections win or your money back as CASH if one leg lets you down