League Two outright predictions: Winner, relegation & more
Before becoming a Sports Journalist for Free Super Tips, Aaron spent three years studying Sports Journalism at the University of Sunderland while taking in the Black Cats' 'glory years' under Martin O'Neill. Now back in Northern Ireland he turns niche stats into predictions for FST, while he's one of the few people on this island who is equally comfortable at Windsor Park and the Aviva.
The EFL rarely fails to disappoint and last season’s League Two campaign ended with the title, promotion and the playoff places on the line. The top 10 all had something to fight for with just 90 minutes to go.
It’s not easy to see how things will play out in a division which is that open, but here we’ve taken a look at the 2021/22 League Two campaign after analysing the summer moves, the League One relegated quartet and the two new sides coming up from the National League.
Don’t forget to take a look at our upcoming league previews in our outright predictions schedule, which lists all of our preseason preview articles.
League Two 2021/22 winners prediction
Salford to win League Two at 6/1
Salford finished two points outside the playoffs last season, but their progress since becoming an EFL club is undeniable. Last term they won their rearranged EFL Trophy final, but that didn’t save Richie Wellens’ job. Gary Bowyer stepped in, he won over half of his games and pushed Salford close to the playoffs.
Salford have made a big push since then to strengthen their squad, picking up two players from playoff finalists Newport, midfielder Matty Lund from League One Rochdale and Conor McAleny from Oldham. McAleny scored 17 goals at this level last term, so adding that ability in front of goal to a stronger side should really improve them.
Salford have been consistently put at the front of the betting in League Two in the last two seasons, but they finally seem worthy of being favourites. They’ve made real strides with this squad, they’ve improved in the dugout and they won the club’s biggest trophy so far earlier this year. Given that, we’re backing Salford to go up as champions at 6/1.
League Two 2021/22 relegation predictions
Swindon at 4/1 & Hartlepool at 11/2
One key factor to consider when looking at sides who will struggle is preparation time. Teams who have shorter preseasons to prepare for the coming campaign usually struggle, which has informed our two League Two relegation selections.
First up, Hartlepool won the National League playoffs while Euro 2020 was being played. They’ve had under two months to prepare for their return to the EFL, which doesn’t bode well. While League Two newcomers tend to survive, this is an unprecedented challenge and we’re backing them to struggle.
Meanwhile, Swindon have had a nightmare preseason which has left the club in disarray. They’ve got a squad of just 12 players days before the season kicks off. That’s going to leave them up against it from day one, which makes their price of 4/1 to go down look really tempting.
League Two 2021/22 top goalscorer prediction
Ian Henderson (Salford) at 13/2
Salford’s promotion hopes are boosted by their good options going forward, with Ian Henderson a standout for us this term. He scored 17 times in League Two last term, which was a solid haul. However, the former Rochdale man scored 15 goals in 31 League One games the season before, having hit 48 goals in three seasons in the third tier before that.
Henderson should be even better having fully settled at Salford, with the fact that six of his 17 goals came in the final nine matches suggesting he can improve on that tally this season. With Salford looking stronger, back Henderson to prove that he’s too good for this level by finishing the season as top scorer.
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