Sabasports Match Preview
English League 1: Shrewsbury Town vs Exeter City
Kickoff Time: 2024-10-18 03:00 (HKT)
Source:REUTERS/Lee Smith
Shrewsbury Town defeated Crawley Town 5-3 in the last away match, finally ending a seven-match win-less streak across all competitions, which has greatly boosted the team’s morale. Currently, Shrewsbury is in 21st place on the league table with a record of two wins, two draws, and seven losses, and they still face significant relegation pressure. Shrewsbury primarily employs a 3-4-1-2 formation, focusing on a counter-attacking style of play. When facing stronger opponents, Shrewsbury often opts to tighten their defense, limiting the attacking space for their rivals through close defense. Once the opponent’s offensive momentum falters, they quickly launch counter-attacks, utilizing the speed of their forwards and the breakthrough ability of their wingers to create threats. However, Shrewsbury’s overall defensive capability and the forwards’ ability to capitalize on chances are quite average.
Exeter City won 1-0 at home against Cambridge United in the last match, achieving an unbeaten record of four wins and one draw in the last five games, indicating relatively good form. Currently, Exeter City sits in seventh place on the league table with a record of five wins, one draw, and three losses. Exeter City also employs a 3-4-2-1 formation at home, with a tactical approach centered on counter-attacks. They mainly apply pressure on their opponents through quick wing attacks and strong pressing in the midfield and forward areas. It is worth noting that while Exeter City’s defense is solid, their attacking front appears somewhat lackluster, having scored only 10 goals in the league so far, placing their offensive firepower in the lower-middle tier of the league. Additionally, Exeter City’s away performance is significantly weaker than their home form.
Although Exeter City is in better form than Shrewsbury Town, their away performance and attacking strength are rather mediocre. In contrast, Shrewsbury’s recent victory has revitalized them, and they will be playing at home in this match, which adds to their motivation. Furthermore, Shrewsbury’s attacking firepower is more prominent compared to Exeter City. Given these factors, it would be reasonable to expect Shrewsbury, who has bounced back in the last match, to keep unbeaten at home successfully.
Shrewsbury Town’s Last 5 Games: WLDLD
24-10-12 Crawley Town 3-5 Shrewsbury Town
24-10-09 Shrewsbury Town 0-4 Birmingham City
24-10-05 Bolton Wanderers 2-2 Shrewsbury Town
24-10-02 Shrewsbury Town 0-2 Stockport County
24-09-28 Shrewsbury Town 1-1 Rotherham United
Exeter City’s Last 5 Games: WWDWW
24-10-05 Exeter City 1-0 Cambridge United
24-10-02 Leyton Orient 0-1 Exeter City
24-09-28 Wigan Athletic 0-0 Exeter City
24-09-25 Exeter City 2-0 Tottenham Hotspur U21
24-09-21 Exeter City 2-0 Stevenage
Head To Head Record:
24-03-13 Shrewsbury Town 0-3 Exeter City
23-11-29 Exeter City 0-0 Shrewsbury Town
23-02-15 Exeter City 0-0 Shrewsbury Town
22-09-14 Shrewsbury Town 3-2 Exeter City
15-04-11 Shrewsbury Town 4-0 Exeter City
Prediction: Shrewsbury Town to win or Draw