MX23RW : Thursday, March 28 21:47:05| >> :120:36462:36462:
[monks data]
Shrewsbury Town
League One | Gameweek 23
Dec 18, 2021 at 3pm UK
Greenhous Meadow
Cheltenham Town

Shrewsbury
3 - 1
Cheltenham

Udoh (10', 48'), Davis (78')
Bloxham (40')
FT(HT: 1-1)
Williams (16')
May (25'), Hussey (40'), Chapman (45')

Preview: Shrewsbury Town vs. Cheltenham Town - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's League One clash between Shrewsbury Town and Cheltenham Town, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Shrewsbury Town come into their final League One fixture before the Christmas break desperate for a win when they welcome Cheltenham Town to New Meadow on Saturday.

The Shrews are narrowly above the relegation line at the moment, possessing a better goal difference than Morecambe, while the Robins are winless in four straight matches in all competitions but have a chance to move into the top half of the table with a win this weekend and some help.


Match preview

Callum Lang pictured playing for Shrewsbury Town in January 2020© Reuters

It seems as though Shrewsbury need a break to recharge their batteries as the club from the West Midlands have failed to find much consistency of late, winning only one of their last six domestic contests.

The month of December has been an incredibly demanding one for them thus far, with three games in a week before their 1-0 defeat to Doncaster Rovers last weekend.

Hanging on has become an all too common theme for them recently as they have not fired more than three shots on target in their previous seven matches played in all competitions and are often on their heels, having to defend for long stretches.

Steve Cotterill has not minced words about his team's performances in recent weeks, though he did say following their defeat to the Rovers that they could have earned three points if they had played that game in front of their home fans.

We will never know if that result would have been the same or not at New Meadow, but they are clearly a different team at home than on the road, unbeaten in their last five matches played in Shrewsbury.

Technically speaking, they have struggled in their passing and build-up play as this team have rarely been able to put together a lot of flow, often clicking with a pass accuracy in the 60-70% range.

Cheltenham Town's manager Michael Duff and Sean Long after the match in February 2021© Reuters

Following their League Two triumph from a season ago, Cheltenham have been able to remain safe from the threat of relegation throughout most of 2021-22 by riding a wave of positive and negative momentum, not winning more than two consecutive domestic fixtures, but at the same time, their longest losing streak was a mere three games.

The big flaw that manager Michael Duff needs to address at the moment is how poor his players have been at the back, conceding the fourth-most goals in the league so far (37), allowing 13 in their last four matches in all competitions.

A 5-0 defeat to Cambridge United was a reality check for this team, who still conceded twice to Lincoln City, but fought hard to pick up a 2-2 draw, scoring in the fifth minute of injury time after Teddy Bishop put the Imps ahead four minutes earlier.

The Robins like to stretch the field and play out wide as much as possible, which has often enabled them to unsettle the opposition block, scoring multiple goals in four of their last five games in all competitions.

They possess a good mix of youth and experience along with a coach who has done a tremendous job of getting the best out of his players.

You can never criticise this group for not working, as they have almost always been able to stay in matches this season, losing only five times by more than one goal in this current domestic campaign.

Shrewsbury Town League One form:
  • D
  • L
  • D
  • W
  • L
  • L

Shrewsbury Town form (all competitions):
  • L
  • D
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • L

Cheltenham Town League One form:
  • D
  • W
  • W
  • D
  • L
  • D

Cheltenham Town form (all competitions):
  • W
  • W
  • D
  • L
  • L
  • D



Team News

Shrewsbury Town's Aaron Pierre celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates and Shrewsbury Town manager Sam Ricketts on January 14, 2020© Reuters

Shrewsbury should get a much-needed boost to their midfield this weekend as David Davis is eligible to return from his four-match suspension, although it is unknown whether Ethan Ebanks-Landell, Aaron Pierre or Ryan Bowman will recover from their injuries in time for this encounter.

The only change to their starting 11 last Saturday was in attack as Tom Bloxham replaced the injured Bowman, who scored his team-leading fifth goal this season in their 2-1 defeat to Wigan Athletic.

Goalkeeper Marko Marosi has done a marvellous job of keeping his team in their recent matches, having faced 17 shots in his previous four games played in all competitions, conceding four times.

Cheltenham recently locked up defender Sean Long to a new contract extension that will see the Irishman stay with the Robins until the summer of 2024, as he has been one of their regulars at the back, starting in 10 successive matches.

Alfie May, who had the only goal for his side when they nearly upset Manchester City in the FA Cup last season, scored his team-leading seventh of this campaign last weekend, while Matty Blair equalised in the dying moments versus Lincoln City, his third domestically in 2021-22.

In their last meeting with Shrewsbury, the Robins got contributions from alternate sources, with Conor Thomas notching his only goal to date this year from the penalty spot and Kyle Joseph scoring the winner in the second half.

Shrewsbury Town possible starting lineup:
Marosi; Nurse, Leahy, Pennington; Ogbeta, Davis, Bennett, Daniels; Udoh; Cosgrove, Bloxham

Cheltenham Town possible starting lineup:
Evans; Raglan, Pollock, Long; Blair, Sercombe, Chapman, Wright; May; Williams, Joseph


SM words green background

We say: Shrewsbury Town 2-2 Cheltenham Town

The Robins still have plenty of room for improvement defensively, while the Shrews do not have a ton of quality in attack, but should have their share of opportunities to score in this one.

Expect an exciting back and forth game from these sides who work extremely hard and can create surprising results against the stronger sides in League One.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 1.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 1.5:data



ID:473098:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect12425:

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Shrewsbury Town win with a probability of 42.32%. A win for Cheltenham Town had a probability of 31.4% and a draw had a probability of 26.3%.

The most likely scoreline for a Shrewsbury Town win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.64%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.8%) and 2-0 (7.49%). The likeliest Cheltenham Town win was 0-1 (8.89%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.5%). The actual scoreline of 3-1 was predicted with a 4.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Shrewsbury Town would win this match.


Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


Game History

How you voted: Shrewsbury vs Cheltenham

Shrewsbury Town
46.2%
Draw
23.1%
Cheltenham Town
30.8%
13
Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Sunderland's Nathan Broadhead celebrates scoring their first goal against Wigan Athletic in the EFL Cup on September 21, 2021
Read Next:
Saturday's League One football predictions including Sunderland vs. Plymouth
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free daily transfer newsletter! Sent twice a day during the transfer window.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Portsmouth392411463323183
2Derby CountyDerby402461069353478
3Bolton WanderersBolton39228971432874
4Peterborough UnitedPeterborough38218974462871
5Barnsley382011770482271
6Oxford UnitedOxford Utd391891262521063
7Stevenage3917111151401162
8Lincoln CityLincoln3916131056332361
9Blackpool391791357421560
10Leyton Orient391610134444058
11Northampton TownNorthampton40158175160-953
12Wigan AthleticWigan39177155348550
13Wycombe WanderersWycombe381311145049150
14Bristol Rovers38148164857-950
15Exeter CityExeter39138183352-1947
16Charlton AthleticCharlton391015145758-145
17Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury39135212955-2644
18Reading39139175557-242
19Burton Albion39109203151-2039
20Cambridge UnitedCambridge38109193255-2339
21Port Vale3899203661-2536
22Cheltenham TownCheltenham3798203050-2035
23Fleetwood TownFleetwood39713194161-2034
24Carlisle UnitedCarlisle3959253569-3424


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!