Charlton vs Rotherham Prediction: Cagey affair expected at The Valley

Charlton Athletic welcome Rotherham United to The Valley on Saturday (15:00, Sky Sports+) in League 1, with both sides having huge aspirations for the season. The hosts started well with three wins before losing to Reading last time out.

The Millers secured their first win of the campaign against Huddersfield Town last weekend, and they will be hoping that they can start to find a rhythm now. Read on for my Charlton vs Rotherham prediction, including match odds and team news.

Charlton vs Rotherham Odds

*Please click on the link above to be taken to the main Charlton vs Rotherham page on betfred.com (or app) for all the live betting prices on this match.

Charlton are 5/4 to win this match, giving them an implied probability of 44.4%. Rotherham are valued at 2/1 for the away victory, which gives them a 33.3% chance. The draw can be backed at 21/10 (32.3%).

Over 2.5 goals is available at 1/1 and both teams to score is on offer at 4/5.

Charlton's Matt Godden has netted one goal so far this term in the league, and he is 9/4 to score anytime on Saturday. Rotherham's Jonson Clarke-Harris and Malik Wilks have both scored once, and they are 21/10 and 18/5 respectively to find the back of the net at any stage of this match.

Football Odds

Team News

Charlton are missing Josh Edwards due to the injury he picked up against Leyton Orient last month. Other than that, Nathan Jones has a fit squad to choose from at The Valley, but he may freshen things up after their first defeat of the season against the Royals last weekend.

Karoy Anderson, Allan Campbell, Godden and Chuks Aneke were several of the players on the bench in that loss, and they could be in contention to start here to offer the Addicks a different dynamic.

Rotherham duo Sean Raggett and Joe Rafferty remain sidelined through injury. Steve Evans finally secured the Millers' first league win of the season against promotion rivals Huddersfield Town, and the win from behind should have given them some confidence.

Evans could opt to go with the same XI as last week as to not disrupt things now that they have finally got a victory on the board. Two-time League 1 Golden Boot winner Clarke-Harris will be hungry for more after opening his account from the penalty spot against the Terriers.

Under 2.5 goals @ 8/11

The Addicks have been a tough side to beat so far, so you have to give credit for their triumph last week, but in their winning streak, Charlton weren't blowing teams away. All four of their matches so far have seen less than three goals scored, which is why I think we might see the trend continue on Saturday.

Jones is excellent at setting up his teams to frustrate the opposition, nullify their threat and then nick a goal or two. Interestingly, under 2.5 goals has also landed in three of Rotherham's matches this term, with last week's win over the Huddersfield the only one to break the mould.

Given that both these teams will have aspirations to finish at the top end of the table come May, they will both feel that they cannot afford to drop points in this clash. I predict it will be quite a cagey affair as a result of the two styles on offer, and I do think goals will be sparse as a result.

Charlton to win @ 5/4

With two promotion hopefuls going up against each other, you may think a result is best to avoid when betting on this contest, but I am sticking my neck out. Yes, Charlton suffered their first defeat last week and the visitors picked up their first win, but the hosts have started the season much better of the two.

Charlton have won their two previous home matches in the league, so Jones and his men are already making The Valley a fortress, and it will be a challenging place for the Millers to visit. I think the home advantage will come into play here and Rotherham are deep into a terrible run on the road.

They have lost their last 12 away matches in league fixtures, and I think this run can continue in south-east London on Saturday.

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