Shrewsbury host Wimbledon on Saturday as the Blues continue their push to be League 1 champions. Shrewsbury is in great form as the team is undefeated in their last five matches.
The Blues have won 36 of 51 points at New Meadow Stadium this term, and this weekend's fixture will be a chance for Shrewsbury to do a double over Wimbledon.
Wimbledon have not had much success against Shrewsbury in recent years. Dating back to 2012, Wimbledon have won just once in six tries. When the two sides met in August, just one goal separated them after 90 minutes.
Shrewsbury's Alex Rodman scored the match's only goal in the eighth minute of play. Rodman has gone on to tally five goals this season, and two of which have come in his last four League One matches. The promotion chasers are led by goal scorer Stefan Payne who has scored nine times this season. However, Payne has hit a dry patch of late. The striker has only found the back of the net twice in his last 10 matches in all competitions.
Shrewsbury don't score many goals, especially for a team currently sitting second in the league. Shrewsbury has tallied just 50 goals as the Blues rely heavily on their defence to keep from dropping points. Shrewsbury have allowed the second fewest goals with just 28 conceded.
Blues' goalkeeper Dean Henderson has recorded a League One leading 13 clean sheets. He has been nearly automatic at keeping shut outs against teams in the lower half of the table this season. Shrewsbury's success has been built on their defence. The backline has been so good, the team has suffered just six defeats in the extremely competitive League 1.
Wimbledon come into Saturday's fixture in desperate need of points. The club is hovering near the relegation zone and just two points separate Wimbledon and 21st place Northampton. The team picked up a massive point against fellow relegation strugglers Rochdale in midweek and now manager Neal Ardley hopes the club can push on to survival.
Wimbledon's biggest problem this term has been their goal scoring. The club has scored the fifth fewest goals in the league (37) and Wimbledon have registered a –11 goal difference.
Lyle Taylor has scored 12 goals for Wimbledon, but a third of those have come in his last six matches. Those six fixtures have seen a slight improvement from Wimbledon. The team had an awful run of losses in early February. However, since February 17th, the side has improved, losing once in five league matches.
Although Ardley's team has seen some improvement, Wimbledon haven't played well against the promotion contenders in 2017-18. The team's form against those sides should continue on Saturday as Shrewsbury win and strengthen their case to be League One champions.