Coventry vs Rochdale Predictions

Coventry host Rochdale at St. Andrew’s on Saturday afternoon. The hosts look to make it seven games unbeaten in all competitions, while the visitors will be looking for a second win in six after beating Bradford in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday evening.

Having gone two games in the league without coming out on top, Mark Robins’ men will be chomping at the bit to get going against a struggling Rochdale side. The hosts will also be confident, as they’ve only tasted defeat once at their adopted home this term, winning six of the other eight. Only Wycombe have accumulated more home points than Coventry, who’ve got League 1’s second-best home defensive record.

They’ve not been overly flamboyant at St. Andrew’s, scoring 12 in nine, but what they have done is restrict teams. Coventry have conceded only six goals at their temporary home, while they’ve kept four clean sheets and have conceded more than one goal in just one out of nine. Such defensive stats bode well ahead of a match against a visiting team that has given plenty away on the road.

In terms of results, Rochdale haven’t done appallingly on their travels this term. Saturday’s visitors have won three, drawn one and lost four. Such a record isn’t likely to strike fear into the heart of many opponents, but it does show that Dale have it within them to get a result. Going forward, as a total of 12 goals in eight games suggests, they’ve made their presence, but they’ve found it tough to keep teams at bay. Brian Barry-Murphy’s men have conceded no less than 17 goals away from home this term, shipping two or more in five out of eight.

Not only have Rochdale conceded lots of goals, but they’ve generally given away plenty of scoring chances whenever they’ve played on the road. Moreover, they’ve surrendered lots of shots, giving away more than all but one team in the division.

From a betting point of view, ‘Coventry to Win & Under 3.5 Goals’ looks good. The visitors have often conceded lots of goals on the road, but Coventry have tended to win in solid, low-scoring fashion at St. Andrew’s, scoring three goals on just one occasion. In addition, Rochdale recently failed to score, registering just three shots, against a dominant Oxford side, which bodes well for the hosts, who tend to dictate the play at this venue. Add in the fact that Coventry have surrendered an average of just 2.11 shots on target at their adopted home and backing the hosts to win without running riot appeals.

‘Correct Score’ players are pointed towards a 2-0 win for the hosts, who’ve done an excellent job of restricting teams at St. Andrew’s. A side like Rochdale, who’ve struggled to get going offensively when playing against top teams such as Oxford and Peterborough away from home, are backed to come up short offensively against a very sturdy host.