Crawley vs MK Dons predictions: Dons can make quality count in first leg
- MK Dons have won four of the teams' last six meetings, with one draw
- Crawley have won only one of their last five matches
-Recommended bet: MK Dons to win
The League Two play-offs kick off with the first leg of the semi-final between Crawley and MK Dons at the Broadfield Stadium on Monday afternoon.
Seventh-placed Crawley are in the EFL play-offs for the first time in their history, while fourth-placed MK Dons are looking to bounce back to League One at the first attempt after relegation last season.
Team news
Crawley have a full squad available after Kellan Gordon and Harry Forster returned to training.
Matthew Dennis is likely to remain sidelined for the Dons after missing the last seven games through injury while Joe Tomlinson should keep his place after returning from injury in the draw against Sutton.
The stats
Both teams have scored in five of Crawley's last six matches
Crawley lost eight of their 12 games against teams who finished in the top six in League Two
Both teams scored in eight of MK Dons' nine away wins in the league this season
The Dons have lost only thee of their last 11 matches
Crawley have scored in 10 of their last 12 games
There have been 21 goals in MK Dons' last three fixtures
Prediction
MK Dons missed out on automatic promotion in their first season after relegation from League One but they still have a chance to get back to the third tier at the first attempt and can take charge of their semi-final against Crawley by winning the first leg on the road on Monday.
The Red Devils were among the favourites for relegation having only just escaped the drop last year, but they have had a fantastic campaign under manager Scott Lindsey and surged into play-off contention with a tremendous run of eight wins in 11 games in February and March.
Their campaign ended in a more shaky spell and they had not won for four games before a 2-0 home victory over Grimsby on the final day secured their play-off place.
The Dons finished seven points ahead of all of their play-off rivals and should have the quality required to establish a first-leg lead in West Sussex.
They have lost only one of the teams' last six meetings - although that was a 2-1 defeat at the Broadfield Stadium in August - and they won the teams' most recent encounter 2-0 in December.
The Dons have lost only three of their last 11 games and two of those were to promoted pair Mansfield and Stockport, but they have taken seven points from their three away trips since their loss against the champions.
The Dons are not the most consistent of sides - they lost 5-0 and won 5-0 in consecutive games in March - but on the balance of form they should have the edge in this match.
Some bettors may prefer to take over 3.5 goals to picking a winner as there have been 43 scored in the Dons' last eight matches, with seven of those games generating at least four goals.
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