Rochdale vs Ipswich Predictions

When they welcome high-flyers Ipswich to Spotland on Tuesday evening, Rochdale will be hoping to avoid a third consecutive defeat. The visitors did exactly that last time out and will now be looking to go on another winning run.

Rochdale have pulled away from the drop-zone over the last month or so, though it seems that they’re now in danger of slipping back towards the dreaded bottom three. Having lost each of their last two, Dale have gone off the boil a bit, though Tuesday’s hosts probably won’t be feeling too down. They played well when narrowly losing against Bristol Rovers at the weekend, while they’d won two on the bounce at home prior to that.

Under Brian Barry-Murphy, who has continued to promote youth, Rochdale have played a decent game this term, but they’re still blighted by a lack of defensive strength. Only three teams have conceded more goals than dale, who’ve shipped a disappointing total of 27. Even on their own patch, Tuesday’s hosts have found it tough to keep teams at bay. They’ve kept only two clean sheets (in eight games) and have shipped a total of ten goals, seven of which have come in their last five.

While Rochdale have struggled to go without conceding at home, Ipswich, who are the proud owners of League 1’s best away record, have often made light work of shutting teams out on the road, keeping five clean sheets. The Tractor Boys come into this match having conceded just five goals in eight away games, six of which they’ve won. Only one team in England’s third division have conceded less away goals than Ipswich this season.

Going forward, although they’ve certainly offered a threat, Ipswich haven’t often blown teams away on the road, but they’ve been very good at getting the ball in the net when it matters, notching in seven out of eight away matches.

In the betting, it’s difficult to go against an Ipswich side, who simply look stronger than Rochdale at both ends of the pitch. ‘Ipswich to Win & Under 3.5 Goals’ appears to be a solid option for those looking to get involved. Rochdale haven’t been great at the back, but they’ve not often received a battering at this venue, conceding more than twice on just two occasions. Add in that Ipswich have only scored more than twice in two out of eight on the road and backing the visitors to win without running riot appeals.