Charlton vs Rochdale Predictions

Charlton’s position in the top six has been secure for some time, though they will have been keen to bounce back after they slipped up away against Oxford a few weeks ago and bounce back is exactly what they’ve done. They battered Scunthorpe when last in action at this venue, while they made light work of getting the better of Gillingham away from home. The Addicks will be confident of finishing the regular season on a high ahead of the play-offs.

Barring their defeat at Oxford, where they still played well, Charlton have been excellent of late. Saturday’s hosts have won six of their last seven, while it’s now 14 matches since they tasted defeat. During that time, they’ve shown that they can both blow teams away and grind out victory, while they’ve looked very strong at both ends of the pitch. Their recent victory against Luton also proves that they can get the better of the very best at this level, so it’s fair to say that Lee Bowyer’s men will go into the play-offs full of confidence.

Their efforts at home this season have been nothing short of excellent, so much so that they ought to make light work of beating Rochdale, who’ve not exactly thrived on the road. Charlton, who’ve won each of their last five at The Valley, have accumulated more points at home than all but the top two in League One this season, while they’re also the holders of the best home defensive record.

In contrast, Rochdale have the joint-worst defensive record away from home in League One. Saturday’s visitors have simply given far too much away on their travels, especially against the top teams. Away against Portsmouth recently, Dale’s back-line caved, conceding four goals, while they’ve shipped at least four goals in three of their five away games against the current top six. Of those five matches, they’ve won none, drawn none and lost five, conceding a total of 17 goals and scoring just three in the process.

From a betting point of view, even though they don’t need to win this game, the hosts are hard to overlook. At the prices, the best option is ‘Charlton to Win & Over 1.5 Goals’. The hosts have offered considerably more (at both ends) at home than Rochdale have on the road, so much so that they look a good bet to both win and score twice in the process against a visiting side that has really struggled against the top sides and that has surrendered an average of 2.09 goals and 1.81 expected goals for on the road.