Rochdale vs Barnsley Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Previews

After a pleasing start to the campaign, Rochdale have dropped off a bit over the last few weeks. The hosts were beaten comfortably by a rampant Peterborough side on match-day two, and while their draw away at Fleetwood last time out was an improvement, they’ll be hoping to do much better when they welcome Barnsley to Spotland on Tuesday evening.

Rochdale manager Keith Hill may have been disappointed to once again witness his side concede multiple goals, though after losing by four goals to one on match-day two, he will have been pleased to avoid defeat, while he’ll also be pleased that his side showed character to come back from a goal down not once but twice. The Dale once again offered a threat going forward, so if they can sharpen up at the back, then they’ll do reasonably well. That said, facing Barnsley is likely to be a strain on their already leaky back-line.

They way that Rochdale have played over the last few weeks hasn’t been too bad; they’ve looked reasonable in possession, they’ve created some good chances, while in Ian Henderson they have an experienced striker who knows where the net is. However, they’re being let down by a weak back-line, while they’re not exactly doing a good job of nullifying the threat of their opponents before it becomes serious. With that in mind, a match against an offensively strong Barnsley side could bring about yet more defensive issues for the hosts.

Despite drawing 0-0 at the weekend, Barnsley rate as one of the strongest attacking teams in the division. Over the first few weeks, the Tykes looked very threatening, both in terms of creativity and end-product, and while they did fail to find the net against a defensively astute Wimbledon side last time out, they still performed with promise. Against a more open Rochdale side, the visitors can do better.

As things stand, only Southend have a better return than Barnsley in terms of shots on target accumulated, while Barnsley also rank highly (5^th) in terms of shots taken overall. Having made light work of creating opportunities and then sticking the ball in the net against both Oxford and Bradford, Daniel Stendel’s men ought to fancy their chances of regaining the scoring thread in this fixture.

At the end of the day, Barnsley have offered more than enough in attack to suggest that they can really get at a Rochdale side that has conceded the second most shots on target this season, not to mention seven goals. Add in that Barnsley have generally threatened as much as anyone, coupled with the fact that the visitors have accumulated the second most shots on target in the division, and ‘Barnsley to Score Over 1.5 Goals’ stands out.