Burstow starts: The predicted Charlton Athletic XI to face Cheltenham on Saturday | OneFootball

After making such a promising start to his tenure at The Valley, Johnnie Jackson has encountered his first difficult spell as manager at Charlton Athletic and will be hoping to get back on track tomorrow afternoon.

The Addicks have a good opportunity to do just that against recently-promoted team Cheltenham Town – and they will have no shortage of motivation to pick up three points as they sit just one point behind Michael Duff’s men.

Recording three consecutive league defeats though, with their latest League One loss coming against relegation-threatened Crewe Alexandra, Jackson will have a huge job in picking his players up for what could potentially be a crucial tie in their quest to push towards the top six.

Quiz: Can you name which club Charlton Athletic signed these 28 defenders from?

1 of 28

Akin Famewo

Chelsea Manchester United Norwich City Newcastle United

They have already given themselves a mountain to climb in this mission to force their way into the play-offs after a poor start to the season under Nigel Adkins – but their late-season form during the 2020/21 campaign will give them real hope that they secure a respectable finish at the end of this term.

Losing just one of their latter 15 league games of last season, a run like that could worry the likes of Oxford United, Plymouth Argyle and Portsmouth who are all currently in and around the play-off mix.

Looking less at the bigger picture and more at the short term though, we have predicted the Charlton lineup current manager Jackson may go tomorrow with as he bids to change his side’s fortunes.

After failing to make the squad for Crewe due to family reasons, Craig MacGillivray could potentially reclaim the number one spot from Stephen Henderson with a new voice at the back helping to freshen things up.

Shaking things up may be important for Jackson as he looks to turn around their fortunes – and there are two changes in the back five as Ryan Inniss comes in to replace Sean Clare as a more natural centre-back option and Wales international Chris Gunter makes his way into the 11 having played regularly at right wing-back before.

Not only did he famously play in that position for Wales at Euro 2016 – but he also played there at Reading under Jaap Stam and this should give him the confidence to take to this position without any worries.

Many people would argue that a younger and quicker option should take this position, with Clare a potential option, but round pegs in round holes could help to get Charlton out of their current predicament.

The midfield pairing does stay the same with George Dobson and Alex Gilbey to provide some sort of stability in this changed lineup, but Albie Morgan comes in for loanee Elliot Lee in an advanced midfield role in a bid to improve their attacking form.

Their lack of goals has been one of the most problematic factors in their recent run of form.

Up top, the ever-present Conor Washington remains as a starter but Mason Burstow replaces Jonathan Leko with the former coming on to score on Wednesday night, as Jayden Stockley continues to be out of action.