Charlton v Leyton Orient

Charlton vs Leyton Orient Preview

Charlton Athletic will kick off their League One campaign with an all-London affair against newly promoted Leyton Orient at The Valley on Saturday afternoon as the hosts look to get off the mark straight away against the newcomers to the third tier.

Charlton bring a two-match unbeaten run from the end of last season's campaign into this new season following a 3-2 home win against Port Vale and picking up a point on the final day of last term with a 2-2 draw away from home at Cheltenham Town.

The bigger picture shows that The Addicks lost just three of their final 12 league matches of last season's League One run-in, two of which were away from home with losses at Bristol Rovers and Ipswich Town, while losing just once at home which came in the form of a 3-2 defeat to Morecambe.

Within this period though, Charlton Athletic also picked up six wins which included victories on home soil at The Valley against Shrewsbury Town 6-0, Burton Albion 3-2 and the aforementioned victory over Port Vale, so the hosts will be quietly confident that they can continue this momentum in this season opener.

Just four years ago, Leyton Orient were plying their trade in the National League but The O's have enjoyed something of a renaissance in recent seasons which has seen them capture promotions up to League Two and at the end of last season, automatic promotion up to League One.

Manager, Richie Wellens, has worked wonders at Leyton Orient especially last term as they finished six points clear at the top of the League Two table despite being handed a heavy 3-0 defeat at home to Stockport County in their penultimate game of the season.

Although we shouldn't read too much into pre-season friendlies, Leyton Orient have struggled for results in the lead up to this new campaign in the English third tier as The O's have managed to register just one win from their eight warm-up games which was a 3-1 win away at non-league Brentwood Town.

Interestingly, one of these pre-season friendlies was against their upcoming opponents on Saturday, Charlton Athletic, whom they drew 1-1 with but since that result, Leyton Orient have lost four of their subsequent five games.

Charlton Athletic v Leyton Orient Verdict

Results at home last season were largely pretty inconsistent for Charlton Athletic but The Addicks did finish the season in strong fashion at The Valley as they lost just once in their final six games of the campaign.

It's another big step up for newcomers, Leyton Orient, and although The O's should be able to hold their own in this division, it may take a little time to adjust to third tier football again after an eight-year absence at this level.

Therefore, our main bet will be Charlton Athletic win @ 1.60

Other side bets worth considering:

Charlton Athletic win & Under 2.5 goals @ 5.00

Correct score: Charlton Athletic 2-0 @ 11.00