Bradford vs Southend Predictions

Prior to last weekend’s tough match against a very strong Barnsley side, Bradford had been doing well, so David Hopkin’s men probably won’t be too disheartened by the fact that they were quite comfortably beaten at Oakwell. Now back on their own patch, the Bantams will fancy their chances against a Southend side that has been very hit and miss this season.

There’s no point in dressing it up, Bradford failed to compete in all areas against Barnsley last weekend, though there’s not much shame in floundering away from home against a side that won’t be too far away from automatic promotion this season, while the Bantams know that they can really get at teams at Valley Parade.

On their own patch, Bradford have looked very strong of late; they’ve won each of their last four at home, scoring 11 goals and conceding none in the process. Such stats are outstanding considering that the Bantams appeared to be heading nowhere but down a few months ago. Not only have Hopkin’s men won each of their last four at home without conceding, but they’ve bettered their opponents in terms of expected goals in each of those four. This tells us that they’ve been creating more than their opponents, which is something that Southend have often struggled to do away from home.

While Bradford have been thriving at home, Southend have struggled to get going on the road. The Shrimpers have won just one of their last six away matches. During that time, they’ve scored just two goals and have kept just one clean sheet, shipping a total of nine goals. What’s more, Chris Powell’s men have been bettered in terms of expected goals in four of their last five travelling matches, so it’s not difficult to see why they’ve been struggling to pick up results. If you’re regularly creating less than your opponent, then wins are going to be hard to come by.

If we look at the recent performances of Bradford at home and the recent travelling performances of Southend, there’s a clear disparity in quality. The Bantams have simply offered more (at both ends of the pitch) on their own patch than the Shrimpers have on the road, so much so that the hosts make plenty of appeal at the current prices. With the way things have gone, Bradford could easily be shorter (and may well be by the time this match kicks off), so punters could do a lot worse than get behind David Hopkin’s men on Saturday afternoon.