Matt Taylor must fight to stop Walsall's rot reaching seven

After a run of sixth straight League Two defeats, they simply cannot afford to make it seven in succession.

Beating the division’s basement boys is the only real option – a draw hardly seems enough at this rate.

Victory for Scunthorpe United, dare it be said, would surely be too much for Walsall to ignore, given they are already sliding towards the drop zone.

So, here it is, a meeting of the two sides who are at the bottom of the form table.

The Saddlers have lost their last six, while the Iron have fallen to seven losses in a row.

Walsall have scored just twice in their last six, while Keith Hill’s men have netted twice in their last seven.

Both as bad as each other, pretty much, and now the Saddlers must turn the tide. They need to give Taylor a performance as this is very much last-chance saloon.

As far as the boss is concerned, he is particularly keen for his forwards to offer more, having felt there was a lack of fight at the top end of the pitch in Saturday’s 1-0 loss to Northampton Town.

Conor Wilkinson and George Miller were put together amid a switch to a 3-5-2 formation – which you would expect Taylor to stick with – but failed to make it stick.

Taylor said: “It’s not good enough. It’s a reflection of where we are in terms of who’s fit and available.

“It’s also understanding there’s a lack of confidence as we haven’t scored and because we haven’t won as a group for a while.”

Taylor, in an ideal world, would have Devante Rodney able to come in up front for his debut, but the January signing remains a doubt.

Asked if he will be able to feature, Taylor said: “I don’t know.

“We need him as soon as possible. I’ll be pushing for Devante, but it’s a difficult one as he had an injury and it takes a certain amount of time to heal.

“I’m not sure at the moment. I’ll do everything I can because we need Devante. But whether he will be available, I’m not sure.”

Walsall will be without midfielder Jack Earing after he took a nasty bump to his head against the Cobblers – the club following concussion protocol.

Manny Monthe, though, returns from a seven-match ban and is expected to come straight back in at the heart of the defence.

Meanwhile, Scunthorpe chief Hill, who made several signings last month in a desperate bid to get out of trouble, said on tonight’s crucial affair: “There’s always a ray of sun to look forward to and we’ll turn the form around, hopefully starting with Walsall.

“We have to challenge our own psychology and make sure we come out not just determined, but with a real personality and desire to step on the front foot and take the game to the opponents.”