Accrington Stanley
- Accrington Stanley sit in mid-table with about 46 - 47 points.
- John Doolan’s Accrington are set up in a 4-5-1 or 4-4-1-1, they are a compact, hard-working team with a defensive mindset.
- The home team aim to be solid, counter attack when they can and create from set pieces.
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The hosts have mostly been involved in low-scoring matches; they have won at home against Cheltenham (3-1) and Salford (1-0), but lost away at Grimsby and Bromley.
- Cheltenham (3-1)
- Salford (1-0)
- Lost at Grimsby
- Lost at Bromley
Chesterfield
- Chesterfield sit in a play-off place with around 55 - 56 points.
- Chesterfield, under the guidance of Paul Cook, are in the play-off places of League Two and a victory for the visitors on Saturday would be a massive step in their push for the finals.
- Cook has been pragmatic during his tenure at Chesterfield and they are a team that plays on the front foot, they have a 4-2-3-1 formation with wide overloads and a proactive pressing game.
- Chesterfield have the favourites tag ahead of this one, and rightly so, they have the superior record, have the better position in the league and have scored more goals than Accrington this term.
Key Players
- Isaac Heath, on loan, has been a great acquisition for Accrington this year; his goals have been complemented by his ability to play in multiple attacking roles.
- Dilan Kumar Markanday is the creative force behind Chesterfield’s best work this year and he ranks highly in both goals and assists for the Spireites.
- Will Grigg’s experience and finishing prowess could be the difference for the away team as he has been used both as a starter and off the bench, and has the quality to make an impact in either role.
Betting Insights
- The bookies have Chesterfield as narrow favourites at 1.97, Accrington are 3.7 and the draw 3.4.
- Given the two sides’ league positions, scoring records and the odds, I will take Chesterfield to edge this one, but the recent head-to-head record and Accrington’s home form suggest it will be a tough match.
- The Over 2.5 goals and both teams to score markets are at 1.93 and 1.73 respectively and I’m going for both.
Prediction
I expect this to be a close game as Accrington will want to spoil the play-off party, but if there is to be a winner, I think it is more likely to be the away side.
