Oxford United vs Southend Predictions

• Oxford are League 1’s third-best team in terms of shots on target conceded per 90 at home.
• Oxford are League 1’s fourth-best team in terms of shots on target for per 90 at home.
• Southend are the sixth worst team in League 1 when it comes to shots on target conceded per 90 on the road.
• Oxford are yet to concede a goal at home against one of the current bottom eight teams.
• Oxford have scored at least three goals in four out of five home games against bottom-eight opposition.

U’s back on the up

After a slight blip that saw them drop out of the play-off places, Oxford, whose goal is still to challenge for promotion, have bounced back in timely fashion over the last few weeks, winning three on the bounce. Thanks to their mini revival, which has seen them score no less than nine goals in 270 minutes of League 1 football, the U’s are now just a point off the top six.

Overall, Oxford have impressed this term, but their best efforts have come at Kassam Stadium. Moreover, they’ve been excellent when facing the lesser teams at home, losing none of their five matches against the current bottom eight, four of which they’ve won. In those five matches, they’ve notched an impressive 14 goals and have conceded zero. Such numbers do not bode well for Saturday’s struggling visitors.

Struggling Shrimpers

After something of a renaissance period in January, rather than kicking on, Southend have moved in the wrong direction, which means that anything other than relegation seems extremely unlikely. Losers of their last five League 1 matches, the Shrimpers are 15 points from safety. League 2 beckons.

Having lost 12 of their 17 travelling matches, playing away from home has been a big problem for Southend this season, while playing away against the top teams has been a disaster. Sol Campbell’s men have lost each of their five away games against teams that currently reside in the top eight, only two of which they’ve found the net in.

Hosts to enjoy themselves

As they edge closer to regaining their play-off position, Oxford couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity to make it four wins on the bounce. Those looking to get involved in this fixture should side with ‘Oxford to Score Over 2.5 Goals’. Southend’s defensive efforts in general have been appalling this term, especially on the road, where they’ve conceded no less than 41 goals in 17 matches, but they’ve been particularly weak against teams of Oxford’s quality, conceding three or more in five of their away matches against those currently in the top half. Similarly, Oxford have notched at least three in four of their five home games against bottom-eight opposition.