Barnsley vs Walsall Predictions

Gillingham would’ve been hoping to be the first team to get the better of Barnsley this season when they travelled to Oakwell last Saturday, though as has often been the case, the Tykes had too much in the locker. Having gained another confidence-boosting victory, Daniel Stendel’s men will be looking to close in on the top two by winning when they welcome Walsall to Oakwell on Saturday afternoon.

Barnsley, who’ve made their best league start for 15 years, continued to look very strong last weekend. It’s still early days, but it’s hard to be impressed with the way the Tykes have started the campaign. Daniel Stendel seems to have the perfect blend of defensive solidity, tactical nous, creativity and end-product, so much so that it’s already tough to see Barnsley finishing anywhere other than comfortably inside the top six.

In terms of their offensive output, Barnsley look by far the strongest team in the division. They’re the most creative, as the expected goals for table suggests, while they’ve scored the second most goals, notching an impressive 14 in six matches. Players such as Thiam, Moncur, Mowatt and Potts all offer a real threat in terms of their link up and when in possession in the opponents’ half, while in man-mountain Kieffer Moore Barnsley have a potent force in front of goal. The goal-getter has bagged six goals already in the league and if his side continue to create, then the big man is likely to continue filling his boots.

On the face of it, Walsall have also started the season in fine attacking form, though unlike Barnsley, they’re punching above their weight somewhat. By no means have Dean Keates men been poor, but they’ve not been as strong offensively as the league table suggests, while they’ve also looked weak at the back. Saturday’s visitors have kept just one clean sheet this season, while they currently sit third from bottom in terms of expected goals against.

Walsall’s form is good, and they do find themselves sitting in a lofty position at present, though their defending needs to improve if they’re to maintain that. They may have kept a clean sheet last weekend, though Blackpool ought to have scored, while they’d not looked like shutting a team out prior to that. With that in mind, it’s tough to see the visitors keeping a rampant Barnsley side at bay on Saturday.

From a betting point of view, the selection that stands out at the prices is ‘Barnsley to Score Over 2.5 Goals’. Walsall are yet to concede three goals in a game this season, though how they’ve fared overall at the back suggests that they’ll find it very tough to contain the strongest attack in the division. A repeat of pretty much any of their attacking efforts this season would likely see the hosts run riot.