Blackpool vs Northampton Town Prediction: Bruce looks to play his cards right

Seventeenth face 18th in League 1 this weekend as Northampton Town make the trip up to the Fylde Coast to take on Steve Bruce’s Blackpool. After a rapid start with the Tangerines, things have somewhat slowed down for the former Newcastle United and Sunderland boss, and he saw his side get beaten 3-0 by Leyton Orient last time out in the league. 

Now they must turn their attention back to Bloomfield Road, where they will host Northampton at 15:00 on Saturday. Below you will find my Blackpool vs Northampton predictions featuring team news and betting odds. 

Team News

Skipper James Husband returned to the Blackpool team for their 2-2 EFL Trophy draw with Harrogate Town on Tuesday night and he will hope to get a league start this weekend. “I would say so,” Bruce commented when asked if he was ready for a full 90 minutes. “You need experienced players to get the blend right, so it’s good to see somebody like him up and about, ready for action.”

The experienced duo of Jordan Rhodes and Ashley Fletcher also started in midweek, after a disappointing showing from Kyle Joseph and Dom Ballard against Orient. Bruce’s big decision will be how to balance his forwards here, with Rhodes and Fletcher boasting experience but Joseph being first-choice for most of the campaign. Ollie Norburn remains out, as does Elkan Baggott who has suffered another setback in his recovery.

For Northampton Town, Jon Brady will be without Cameron McGeehan in midfield after he picked up his fifth booking of the season against Birmingham City. Tom Eaves remains out after suffering a serious face injury last month but the manager will be able to call upon Martyn Waghorn, who joined on a short-term deal and bagged his first goal in midweek. TJ Eyoma has also joined on a free transfer and played 40 minutes against Blues last weekend. 

Blackpool vs Northampton Town Odds 

Blackpool are priced at 8/15 to win this game, with Northampton the outsiders at 4/1. That gives the home side an implied win probability of 65% while a draw can be backed at 3/1. Over 2.5 goals is 4/6, BTTS is 8/11 and Jordan Rhodes is the favourite to score first at 4/1. 

BTTS Yes @ 8/11

These are two teams who feature quite highly in the BTTS table, so it makes sense that this is our first selection. Both Blackpool and Northampton have seen both teams find the net in nine of the 14 league matches so far, giving them a BTTS success rate of 64 per cent. It’s a total that only three teams (Peterborough, Lincoln and Birmingham), can beat in the third tier, and both teams have plenty of attacking options. 

Rhodes and Waghorn are two hugely experienced strikers with plenty of games played at a higher level. They may be coming towards the end of their careers but they still have the ability to score goals in League 1, while Joseph and Fletcher also boast individual quality. I don’t think we will see a lack of goals here, so have plumped for BTTS as my first selection.  

Blackpool to win and BTTS @ 21/10

Sorry if this is a bit repetitive, but I truly believe that both teams will find the net in this game. I also think Blackpool, looking at their odds, are heavy favourites to win this one and believe Bruce’s men will get over the line in front of their own fans. They’ve got a decent amount of individual quality and will want to find a win at Bloomfield Road given they have won just twice in the league there this season. 

Northampton have only won once on the road however and I cannot see that record changing against a Blackpool team that will be deseperate to start climbing the table and pushing towards that top six. Home win and BTTS gives us good value in my eyes. 

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