Cambridge United aim to return to winning ways at the Cledara Abbey Stadium this weekend as they take on a Shrewsbury Town side sitting two points and two places below them in the Sky Bet League One table…
How to Watch
As ever, demand is high for Saturday’s meeting at CB5, with another near-capacity crowd anticipated for the 3pm kick-off.
Avoid disappointment by purchasing your tickets online at cufctickets.com, over the phone by calling 01223 566500 (option 1) or by visiting the Ticket Office. All prices increase by £2 when buying in-person on the day.
Unable to attend? Be sure to back the boys from home via your CUFC TV account. Overseas supporters can stream the game live, whereas UK U’s can tune into audio commentary.
Opposition Focus
Experiencing mixed fortunes since their formation in 1886, Town moved to Gay Meadow in 1910 and joined the Football League in 1950 following a successful election campaign. Just shy of three decades later, they made the second division for the first time in their history. Although they dropped down the leagues slightly from here, they’ve established themselves as a no-nonsense third tier outfit ever since their promotion from League Two in 2015, even making the play-off final in 2017/18 after a superb campaign, but fell short to Rotherham United at Wembley. First, Steve Cotterill laid stern foundations for Salop in recent years, firing them to 12th two seasons ago – their best showing in five years – but the new era stagnated under Matt Taylor and Paul Hurst in his second spell. Now under the tutelage of motivational and savvy operator Gareth Ainsworth, who knows exactly how to recapture an underdog spirit, the Shrews are in the right hands for their survival pursuit.
Occupying the basement of the third division, seven points adrift with 31 plundered – the most of any – the visitors know a fourth victory of the season would leapfrog the U’s and generate momentum, which they’ve lacked throughout a stale start. From their opening seven, they registered six defeats and just the sole win, which came on home soil against Leyton Orient, a creditable 3-0. Form slightly improved going into October as they took a point off Rotherham United and Bolton Wanderers and gained a dramatic 3-5 triumph at Crawley Town, but four losses on the trot signalled a change of management. Ainsworth impressively masterminded an eye-catching 3-2 win against Birmingham City two weeks ago, but on Wednesday night suffered a come-from-behind 1-2 loss against Blackpool.
Anticipated to stick to a 4-3-1-2 setup, Shrewsbury have former Accrington Stanley glovesman Toby Savin between the posts, with a physical duo of Toto Nsiala and Aaron Pierre ahead of him, who are as no-nonsense as you can get. Luca Hoole and Mal Benning have been regulars on the flanks and will hope to chip in with deliveries. Alex Gilliead, Carl Winchester and Taylor Perry are all robust midfield options and have tallied hundreds of League One appearances between them, so will relish the battle. 19-year-old Chelsea loanee Leo Castledine is an exciting prospect, he creates space and floats in the lone role behind Tom Bloxham – at the club since 2020 – and the prolific John Marquis, who’s scored three so far this campaign and crucially boasts that clinical edge.
Form Guide
- 02/11/2024 – Salford City 2-1 Shrewsbury Town – Emirates FA Cup First Round
- 09/11/2024 – Burton Albion 2-0 Shrewsbury Town – Sky Bet League One
- 12/11/2024 – Walsall 3-0 Shrewsbury Town – Vertu Trophy Group Stage
- 23/11/2024 – Shrewsbury Town 3-2 Birmingham City – Sky Bet League One
- 04/12/2024 – Shrewsbury Town 1-2 Blackpool – Sky Bet League One
The Amber Angle
A disciplined and brave response is a must for the U’s after they suffered a comprehensive 3-0 defeat at in-form Reading in midweek, which stretched their winless run to six matches in all competitions.
Following a low-key first half, where Vicente Reyes kept the hosts at bay with important stops and United failed to capitalise on the moments they created, the Royals came out of the blocks firing. A devastating 15-minute spell saw Ruben Selles’ men cruise to victory courtesy of Mamadi Camara’s goal either side of two expertly-taken long-range strikes from Lewis Wing.
Analysing the defeat in Berkshire, Garry Monk admitted: “In the first half I felt like we had some really good situations, we were well in the game… And then that’s a hugely disappointing first 20 minutes of the second half – it cost us dearly. Before you know it, we’re three goals down.”
United will hope that, with the backing of their home faithful, they can navigate the six-pointer in a professional manner. The Head Coach is determined to ensure his side do not fall further adrift from safety, which reads at five points, saying: “There’s more than enough in that changing room in terms of attitude… We have the type of group that is capable of doing that and we know every game is huge, but Saturday is even bigger now. We’ve got to go and put a response in.”
Form Guide
- 16/11/2024 – Cambridge United 1-1 Barnsley – Sky Bet League One
- 23/11/2024 – Northampton Town 0-0 Cambridge United – Sky Bet League One
- 26/11/2024 – Cambridge United 1-1 Bolton Wanderers – Sky Bet League One
- 30/11/2024 – Cambridge United 1-2 Wigan Athletic – Emirates FA Cup Second Round
- 03/12/2024 – Reading 3-0 Cambridge United – Sky Bet League One
Head-to-Head
- Cambridge United Wins: 13
- Shrewsbury Town Wins: 15
- Draws: 11
Last Time We Met
Saturday 3rd February 2024 – Shrewsbury Town 1-2 Cambridge United – Sky Bet League One
Our last encounter saw the U’s secure their first victory on the road in the league since August as they battled to a clinical 1-2 comeback success at the Croud Meadow. A thrilling start to proceedings saw Daniel Udoh draw first blood, only for opposite marksman Lyle Taylor to immediately level matters and then secure his brace, and the points, moments into the second period as they showed impetus to dig in and frustrate the ten-man Shrews. The line-up on that afternoon: Stevens, L. Bennett, R. Bennett, Morrison, Andrew, Digby, Cousins, Kaikai, Kachunga, Lankester, Taylor.
Boot in Both Camps
A well-known figure within the game, notably as a successful manager, David Moyes enjoyed a strong career as a centre-back prior to making the switch to the dugout. Born in Glasgow in 1963, he started his career with giants Celtic before clocking just shy of 100 appearances with the U’s, Bristol City and Shrewsbury Town in the 80s. Handy at both ends of the pitch, Moyes would go on to accumulate plenty of appearances and goals with Dunfermline Athletic and Preston North End, with whom he started his coaching days after retiring in 1998. A prominent rise started with the Lilywhites and a successful spell with Everton was rewarded with a year at Manchester United in 2013. Short stints at Real Sociedad and Sunderland followed, with the Scot most recently tasting European glory with former club West Ham United, where he left in the summer.
Officials
- Referee: Alex Chilowicz
- Assistant Referee: Leigh Crowhurst
- Assistant Referee: Stephen Finch
- Fourth Official: David Hutton