West Bromwich Albion vs Charlton Predictions

West Brom will be looking to keep themselves out in front when they welcome Charlton to The Hawthorns on Saturday afternoon. The visiting side will be hoping to propel themselves into the top six.

It looked as though West Brom were down and out on Tuesday night, but the Baggies showed why it is that they’re at the head of affairs, as they fought back from two goals down to rescue a point. Slaven Bilic’s men seem to have an excellent blend of physicality, technical quality and fighting spirit, which makes them a formidable opponent.

Somewhat strangely, the league leaders have taken more points on the road than they have at home, but they’ve been by no means poor at The Hawthorns, where they’ve won three and drawn three. From a defensive point of view, the Baggies haven’t exactly kept things tight, conceding a hefty ten goals on home soil. Fortunately, their attacking play has often made up for that, as they’ve scored 15.

Bilic’s main concern moving forward will be the lack of defensive solidity shown at home. It’s not that West Brom have always conceded an abundance of chances, but when push comes to shove, they’ve offered little resistance, conceding in each of their six home games. As touched on above, they’ve got the forward-line to make up for it, but eventually, they’ll need to tighten up.

Like West Brom at home, Charlton have both scored and conceded their fair share on the road. The Addicks come into this game having kept just one travelling clean sheet, while they’ve shipped a total of seven in five. At the other end, they’ve scored eight, scoring at least twice in four of their five away games.

Not only have they both scored and conceded quite a few on the road, but Lee Bowyer’s men have also delivered contrasting performances in terms of creativity. On the one hand, as they’ve posted an average of 1.49 expected goals for, they’ve done a good job of getting at teams, but on the other, they’ve struggled to prevent their opponents from forging scoring opportunities, surrendering an average of 1.68. Additionally, they rank 7^th in terms of shots on target for away from home, but 15^th when it comes to shots on target against.

Given the respective home and away performances of this pair, ‘Over 2.5 Goals & Both Teams to Score’ makes plenty of appeal. Both have shown lots going forward, but a lack of defensive structure at the same time. What’s more, when we combine their expected goals for averages of 1.58 and 1.49 the price on offer starts to look a tad generous.

‘Correct Score’ punters are steered towards a 2-1 win for the hosts. Charlton have the tools to some damage at The Hawthorns on Saturday, but as the league table suggests, the hosts have more in the locker in terms of firepower, which is why they’re averaging almost a goal more at home than the Addicks are on the road.