Oxford United's continued pursuit of a place in the second tier will continue this weekend, with the U's set to face Shrewsbury Town on Saturday afternoon.
For Shrewsbury, they look destined for a comfortable mid-table finish, but will be keen to stunt the progression of high-flyers Oxford.
Match preview
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A fixture in the playoffs for much of the season, a top-six finish looks increasingly likely for Oxford, who are even targeting a last-minute dash for the automatic spaces.
Seven points behind second-placed Wigan Athletic, it will require a monumental run of form for Oxford, but they will be fancying their chances of taking it to the wire.
With matches against three of the current top six to come, picking up points against sides not in the playoff mix will be of paramount importance to the visitors.
Recent form suggests that the U's could be in line for a profitable afternoon, as four of their last five League One outings have ended in victories.
Bad news for Shrewsbury, who will be looking to end the season on as high a position as possible, after eventually distancing themselves from the relegation scrap.
Seven points clear of 21st-placed Morecambe, it is unlikely the Salop will be dragged into a battle at the bottom, but any dropped points could open the door for the teams below them.
Victories are not a currency Shrewsbury have often traded in this season, as they have taken just one win from their last 12 matches in the division.
With just two wins under their belt in 2022, the prospect of coming up against Oxford will frighten Shrewsbury, who are winless in the last seven against the U's.
Last victorious in April 2018, Shrewsbury will be hoping to avoid their second defeat against Oxford this season, having been beaten 2-0 at the Kassam Stadium in October.
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Team News
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Marcus Browne, Mark Sykes and James Henry were all absent for Oxford's victory over Burton Albion last weekend and the trio will face a race to get fit for the Shrewsbury clash.
Similarly, Alex Gorrin and Jamie Hanson have been missing in recent weeks, but may feature from the bench this weekend.
Going forward, Oxford will look to star man Matt Taylor for the goals, with the 31-year-old having netted 18 times this season.
Having kept back-to-back clean sheets last time out, goalkeeper Marko Marosi will be looking to make it three in a row for Shrewsbury on Saturday.
Ryan Bowman will lead the line for Salop, with width coming in the shape of wingers Daniel Udoh and Tom Bloxham on either side.
Shrewsbury Town possible starting lineup:
Marosi; Flanagan, Ebanks-Landell, Pennington; Nurse, Leahy, Fornah, Bennett; Udoh, Bowman, Bloxham
Oxford United possible starting lineup:
Stevens; McNally, Long, Brown; Sykes, Brannagan, Kane, Williams; Whyte, Taylor, Baldock
We say: Shrewsbury Town 1-3 Oxford United
Oxford will be hoping by the time that next season rolls around they will be plying their trade in the Championship.
For Shrewsbury, League One is as good as it is going to get for now, and they will likely succumb yet again to the promotion chasers.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Oxford United win with a probability of 51.67%. A draw had a probability of 24.7% and a win for Shrewsbury Town had a probability of 23.66%.
The most likely scoreline for a Oxford United win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.51%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.58%) and 0-2 (9.39%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.73%), while for a Shrewsbury Town win it was 1-0 (7.19%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with a 9.6% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Oxford United would win this match.
