Bristol Rovers vs Tranmere Predictions

Another away trip brought about another afternoon of misery for Bristol Rovers’ travelling fans, who saw their side slump to defeat in Birmingham. Now back on their own patch, Graham Coughlan’s men will be looking for their first three points. Tranmere collected their first three points since returning to League One on Saturday, which means that Micky Mellon’s men will to Memorial Stadium feeling upbeat.

Not only did Bristol Rovers’ winless run extend on Saturday, but their goal drought also continued. Three matches into the new campaign and the Pirates are still looking for their first goal. Bolton, a team with very clear excuses, are the only other side still searching for their first league goal of the season.

It’s not that Rovers have been overly outplayed during the early weeks; they remain a reasonably disciplined side that is tough to break down, while they’ve battled throughout, though a lack of both creativity and end-product is clearly holding them back. Fans will be hoping that Johnson Clarke-Harris, who recently returned from a spell out, re-finds the form that saw him notch on a regular basis last term now that he’s had his first start of the campaign.

Scoring goals was anything but a problem for Tranmere, who notched five on Saturday, as they took full advantage of facing a hugely inexperienced Bolton side. Micky Mellon’s men showed that they’ve got the tools to score goals if teams aren’t going to provide reasonable resistance, though scoring a glut of goals against a side that is almost certainly on the way down isn’t overly impressive.

On the opening day, Tranmere offered a reasonable threat against Rochdale, as they scored twice and created 1.54 expected goals for. However, each of their two scoring efforts have come at Prenton Park. In their first away match, Rovers struggled to get going offensively, as they created only 0.39 expected goals for. They did of course face a Portsmouth side that is strong, though Bristol Rovers, for all their offensive flaws, aren’t the easiest side to break down, so it’s not terribly difficult to envisage Mellon’s men having a tough time on Tuesday evening.

In the betting, ‘Both Teams to Score – NO’ stands out as viable option. Bristol Rovers may soon find the net, but their attacking problems are there for all to see, though they’re not the easiest team to breach, which bodes well for punters ahead of this match. The visitors showed plenty going forward on Saturday, but their previous away-day effort was poor, as they mustered a measly 0.39 expected goals for. Add in the 0.48 produced by the hosts in their first home game and the price on offer seems a tad generous.