Stockport County
- Stockport County have been running neck and neck with Lincoln City in League One for most of the 2025-2026 campaign and the Boxing Day fixture should be a hard-fought encounter, with a victory for the home team edging them closer to the automatic promotion spots and a win for Lincoln cementing their top-two status.
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Key stats:
- 5th-6th, around 35 points from 21 games, three points below 2nd-placed Lincoln (38 points from 21).
- Won two, lost two and drawn one of their last five in all competitions.
- The Hatters are a shape-shifting unit, capable of playing with a back-three or back-four depending on the demands of the day, but their principles of organisation, pressing and creating overloads on the wide areas remain constant.
Lincoln City
- Lincoln City are one of the more progressive and high-energy teams in the division, with Michael Skubala’s compact defensive structure, high-pressing style and intricate set-piece routines allowing them to play an attacking brand of soccer that is easy to enjoy.
- Tom Bayliss and Conor McGrandles are the linchpin duo in midfield, with both providing the energy to press and the ability to link the defence with attack, which is key to Skubala’s transition-focused tactics.
Head-to-Head
The two clubs are familiar foes in this division, with Stockport edging the overall head-to-head 7-5 , but Lincoln took the spoils in this fixture back in October 2024 ( 2-1 ) and the Hatters won the return game in a five-goal thriller at Edgeley Park in April ( 3-2 ).
Key Players
- Jack Diamond has emerged as the focal point of Stockport’s attack, providing the winner at Mansfield in their 2-1 away victory, but Kyle Wootton remains their most reliable option up front, always a threat to score and holding defenders at bay to create space for others to operate.
- Jack Moylan is Lincoln City’s most creative force, directly involved in goals during December’s action and always looking to hurt the opposition from midfield or wide areas.
- Freddie Draper’s goals have been crucial to their form in the league.
