Notts County, Stuart Maynard must solve Doncaster Rovers issue to keep away record | OneFootball

Notts County must shut down Luke Molyneux if they are to maintain their unbeaten away record.

Key Takeaways

Notts County face a difficult test when they return to League Two action next weekend, as they make the short journey over to South Yorkshire to take on Grant McCann’s Doncaster Rovers.

The Magpies are yet to lose away from home in the league this season, but it’s fair to say their upcoming trip to the Eco-Power Stadium will be the toughest test they’ve faced on their travels so far.

Rovers were the form team in League Two at the end of last term, when an incredible 10-match winning run carried them all the way to 5th place and a play-off semi-final, despite having been 20th as recently as 5th March.

That form has carried on into 2024/25 and currently has them sat fourth in the League Two table, only below Notts and Walsall on goal difference.

If Notts are to avoid defeat on 9th November, it’s imperative they find a way to shut down Luke Molyneux. The 26-year-old has started the season in impressive form and is very much picking up from where he left off last term.

Molyneux is Doncaster’s key creator

Notts go into next Saturday’s game as one of just two teams in the entire EFL who remain unbeaten on their travels this season and how they handle Molyneux could be crucial to whether or not that record lives to fight another week.

The wideman already has six goals and three assists to his name from just 13 games so far this season, a tally which gives him the joint-most goal involvements in League Two, alongside Walsall striker Nathan Lowe.

Molyneux’s goal tally becomes even more impressive when you consider that his six strikes in the League have come from an xG of just 3.8. For comparison, out of the seven players who are either level with, or above his total of six, only Chesterfield’s James Berry has a lower xG.

His expected goals on target (which measures whereabouts the ball crosses the goal-line) jumps up to 5.5. This highlights just how good the former Hartlepool and Sunderland man’s finishing has been this season. He’s regularly hitting shots that are likely to find the back of the net, from some fairly average opportunities.

He’s also scored seven goals from outside the box since the start of last season, which puts him among the best in the EFL this term.

In terms of output, his numbers have really flourished in the last season or two. He ended the 2023/24 campaign with 10 goals and eight assists to his name, the most productive season of his career so far, and already looks like bettering that this time around.

Throw in the three goals he scored for Doncaster in the 2022/23 season and his tally from his time in South Yorkshire equals the number of goals he scored across the rest of his senior career combined.

But it’s far from just his goals that make Molyneux a standout for Grant McCann’s men.

Primarily playing on the right side of McCann’s favoured 4-2-3-1 formation (and featuring more centrally on occasion), Molyneux has become a real creative force for the team.

He’s created 19 chances so far this campaign, as well as six big chances (a total good enough for joint-fifth in the league).

With the likes of Joe Ironside and Billy Sharp up front, plus the creative forces of Jordan Gibson, Joe Sbarra and Harry Clifton, McCann’s Rovers side aren’t short of exciting attacking players by any means.

And, while Notts will have to do more than just stop Molyneux if they are to leave South Yorkshire with all three points, keeping him quiet will certainly be very important.

Notts must look to Jacob Bedeau to stop Molyneux

Assuming Stuart Maynard doesn’t revert from his preferred back-three formation, the responsibility to deal with Molyneux will likely fall on the shoulders of Jacob Bedeau.

With Notts wing-backs constantly looking to push high up the pitch, Molyneux will be able to operate in the space left behind by the left wing-back, which could see him regularly attacking Bedeau down the inside right channel.

While Molyneux is a particularly big threat from that position, as it gives him the perfect angle to cut in onto his left foot, Bedeau has proven himself to be the perfect man for the job so far this season.

Only Dan Crowley has won more tackles than Bedeau in this Notts side and the Magpies’ left-sided centre-half possesses the perfect pace and strength to be able to deal with Molyneux effectively and stop him creating for the likes of Sharp.

The effectiveness with which he can shut him down next weekend could make all the difference.