Nicknames (s) : The U's, United
Current League Position : 7th (P8 W4 D1 L3 GS7 GA7 GD0 PTS13)
Form : W-W-L-W-D
The Gaffer
Nottingham born Shaun Derry is the man at the helm having been appointed in November 2015. Derry arrived at the Abbey Stadium to embark on his second managerial role, having previously been in charge of Mansfield's rivals Notts County, the club with whom he started his playing career. Derry guided the Magpies to League One safety in 2014, but was sacked the following season after a poor run of 3 wins in 24 games. He has steered the U's to successive top half finishes and will be hoping to go one better this time around. Fans expectations seems to be more of the same as Derry's two previous seasons, with pressure sure to build if he drops below those forecasts. The sale of star player Luke Berry will surely not have helped the manager in achieving his aims.
Shaun Derry's Managerial Record (Cambridge) : P97, W41, D21, L35, Win Ratio 42%
Strengths
When assessing Cambridge's start to the season, the first noteworthy fact is the four clean sheets kept so far. In fact, 3 of the 7 goals conceded came in just one game, their away defeat at Barnet, where ex-Stag Shaq Coulthirst was on the scoresheet. Veteran keeper David Forde, last season a title winner with Portsmouth, has made an impressive start to life in Cambridgeshire, playing a huge part in his teams defensive solidarity, along with captain and fans favourite Leon Legge. Mitigating slightly, those clean sheets came against four teams placed no higher than 15th.
In Jabo Ibhere (3 goals) and Uche Ikpeazu (2 goals), The U's boast a strike partnership which possesses height, strength and pace, and has chipped in with 5 of the 7 goals Cambridge have registered this season. Diminutive winger Piero Mingoia created two goals in last weekends win, crosses from alternate flags providing one each from the heads of the aforementioned pairing. He will need to be watched closely, as will fledgling talent Jevani Brown.
Weaknesses
Whilst Cambridge have showcased a tight defence, they are rather lacking in the goal scoring department at present. The strikers appear to be playing their part, however only two other squad members have registered as of yet. Whilst 'The two I's' will no doubt be a handful, only bottom of the league Port Vale have hit the back of the net fewer times. Shaun Derry has a reputation as a cautious manager and will need to get his team firing more regularly if he is shake off that tag, although there have been signs in recent weeks that he may be beginning to achieve the balance he has been striving for.
Derry has employed a 4-4-2 diamond system in recent weeks, similar to the one favoured by Steve Evans, with Gary Deegan holding, Mingoia and George Maris box-to-box and Jevani Brown playing off the strikers. There have been doubts from Cambridge fans as to whether this system leaves the midfield too open and could perhaps be an area for the Stags to exploit.
Another possible area for Mansfield to attack is down the left hand side. Cambridge have conceded 3 of their goals from left wing crosses to the back post, and will potentially be without regular left back Harrison Dunk through a hamstring strain. With on-loan Stag George Taft is unavailable for selection and another ex-Yellow Greg Taylor expected to move to full back, it may pave the way for a Cambridge debut and Field Mill return for Kyle Howkins, who as we saw last season can be error-prone at times.
Statistics
Goals/Shots Attempted (for) : 7/93 (35 on target)
Average Shots per Game : 12
Average Shots on Target per game : 5
Goals/Shots Attempted (against) : 7/97 (38 on target)
Average Shots per Game : 12
Average Shots on Target per game : 5
Goal Periods (for) : 0-15mins 2 goals 16-30mins 0 goals 31-45mins 1 goal 46-60mins 0 goals 61-75mins 3 goals 76-90mins 1 goal
Goal Periods (against) : 0-15mins 2 goals 16-30mins 0 goals 31-45mins 2 goals 46-60mins 1 goal 61-75mins 1 goal 76-90mins 1 goal
Average Corners per Game (for) : 5
Average Corners per game (against) : 5
Average Possession : 49%
Prediction
Whilst Cambridge currently lie 7th, at the risk of putting the mockers on this weekends clash, it would appear they are in a slightly false position at the moment, and I would expect the Stags to take this by one or two goals. Six of eight teams faced by The U's are in the bottom half of the table, but they did dispatch Coventry at the weekend despite the stats suggesting the Sky Blues deserved at least a draw. I expect Derry's men to be a mid-table to top half side but Mansfield should be taking all three points if they harbour serious automatic promotion ambitions. 2-0 Stags.
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