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Dan Childs: Free football tips & predictions for Saturday's EFL matches

Wycombe can put things right at The Valley

Gareth Ainsworth can guide his promotion-chasing Wycombe team to victory at Charlton
Gareth Ainsworth can guide his promotion-chasing Wycombe team to victory at CharltonCredit: Plumb Images

Free football tips, best bets and expert accumulator advice for Saturday's EFL matches.

When to bet

Kick-offs 3pm

Best bets

Wycombe draw no bet
1pt 13-10 BoyleSports

Bradford
1pt 15-8general

Northampton draw no bet
1pt 6-4 bet365

Oldham or draw double chance
1pt 8-11general

Charlton v Wycombe

Wycombe have stayed in the thick of the League One promotion race because they have a habit of responding quickly to setbacks and they can wipe the slate clean from their 1-0 reverse at Ipswich on Wednesday by defeating Charlton at The Valley.

Chairboys' manager Gareth Ainsworth was unable to take his place in the dugout at Portman Road, but his players delivered a decent performance, winning the shot count 12 to seven, and were unlucky to come away empty handed.

There was a 'nearly' moment for Wycombe towards the end when centre-back Anthony Stewart wasted a glorious chance, but they are in sixth place and will be looking to close the five-point gap to the top two.

Charlton are 13 points worse off and look unlikely to contend for promotion, although manager Johnnie Jackson has promised his team will be pushing hard to climb the table.

Jackson inherited a team in the relegation zone and has done a superb job, steering his team to six league wins, two draws and two defeats.

However, there was a noticeable dip in performance when Charlton lost 1-0 at Plymouth last time out and a subsequent Covid outbreak caused the postponement of their last two scheduled matches.

Jackson's team should come good but they may need time to get back to the standards they were setting a few weeks ago and any rustiness could be exploited by a Wycombe team eager to reassert their promotion claims.

Barrow v Bradford

League Two draw specialists Bradford have racked up 11 stalemates in 21 games and not won a match since October. But they are still determined to have an impact on the promotion race and can start 2022 in the right manner with a win over Barrow.

Bradford have missed their last three matches but manager Derek Adams has spoken of having some good training sessions this week.

It is always hard to judge how a team will perform after a long break – it has been 18 days since their last fixture – but Bradford may be in better shape than Barrow, who laboured to a 0-0 draw at home to Oldham on Wednesday.

Barrow went into the Oldham game as warm favourites but lost the shot count 14 to nine and failed to show composure when good chances came their way.

Bluebirds manager Mark Cooper wants to sign a striker but his team lack a cutting edge at the moment and may fall to a tenth league defeat of the season.

Swindon v Northampton

Second-placed Northampton had to pause their League Two promotion charge but they can return to action with a victory over eighth-placed Swindon at the County Ground.

The Cobblers missed their last three scheduled matches of 2021 because of a high number of Covid cases, denying them the chance to build on a four-game winning streak.

However, confidence within the squad should remain high and Jon Brady's side have a decent chance of beating Swindon, who are going through their poorest spell of the season.

Swindon have not won in four league games and were lucky to scrape a 0-0 draw at home to lowly Stevenage on Wednesday after being on the back foot for most of the contest.

Ben Garner is having to get creative with team selection due to a combination of injuries and Covid but he may struggle to come up with a winning formula.

Hartlepool v Oldham

Oldham are facing a huge battle to stay in League Two but they can give their survival hopes a boost by avoiding defeat against Hartlepool at The Suit Direct Stadium.

Selim Benachour remains in caretaker-charge of the Latics, having stepped up from his role with the academy, and he has presided over some reasonable performances.

Three weeks ago Benachour's team came from 4-1 down to draw 5-5 at home to leaders Forest Green, and they showed a steely side on Wednesday to draw 0-0 at Barrow.

Oldham are are least becoming tougher to beat and their increased resilience can earn them a point or three against mid-table Pools, who have lost six of their last eight league matches.

Accumulator

Burton 4-5, MK Dons 11-20, Rotherham 4-9, Leyton Orient Evs
£1 acca returns £8.04 with BoyleSports

First scorer

Matty Taylor Oxford v Cheltenham
at 7-2 general

The Oxford centre-forward has been on fire in recent weeks, scoring nine goals in his last 12 appearances, and looks a likely deadlock-breaker against Cheltenham at the Kassam Stadium.


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