- Salford have 2 wins, 2 draws, and 1 defeat from their last 5 games. Shrewsbury have 1 win, 2 draws and 2 defeats.
- Salford have won 2 of the last 3 head-to-heads against Shrewsbury, who last won the fixture 2-1 in the 2022-2023 League Two season.
Salford’s pressing style and Shrewsbury’s counter attack could lead to a low-scoring clash
Salford City are 13/25 favourites to win against Shrewsbury Town on Saturday and although The Ammies are present at Peninsula Stadium, England, the visitors are certainly capable of frustrating their hosts at the other end.
Peter Cklamovski's side have a 4-2-3-1/4-3-3 style that is high-tempo, possession-based and pressing. Salford are in good nick, having recorded a solid 3-2 home win over Dundee United FC in their last game, but a 3-0 defeat to Notts County showed that they can be rattled.
Gavin Cowan's Shrews are built on a back three, compact in structure and disciplined in their defensive shape. They'll use the wings to counter-attack at pace and if they can stay compact, they can certainly keep the game tight at Peninsula Stadium, where Salford are yet to lose this season (W3, D2).
Shrewsbury are coming off the back of a defeat though, having lost 1-0 away to Gillingham and then 4-1 at home to West Bromwich, so confidence in the camp will be low. It's just as well that Salford have Adebola Oluwo to get Salford going again as he's the one man that can provide the spark in the hole with two goals in his last five games.
Back under 2.5 goals in the Shropshire derby
Backing Salford to come out on top is a solid play here as they have the home advantage, are in better form and will have more control of the game. However, the odds on offer (13/25) suggest we are unlikely to get much value from a bet on the hosts and the 3/1 on draw looks equally uninspiring.
Shrewsbury look poor away from home and have averaged just 0.20 goals on their travels in all competitions this term, but we think their best chance of getting a result is to keep things tight and hope to nick a goal at the other end. They can't score freely on the move though and their best chances will come from set pieces and second balls.
Therefore, we're going with a low-scoring game here and Under 2.5 goals is the selection in the main bet, while Both Teams To Score, at 9/10, looks the way to go in the direct markets to complete our selections.
