Fleetwood vs Walsall - preview: Saddlers braced for 'contrasting challenge' in Lancashire
A statistic was doing the rounds on social media earlier this week which only further underlined Walsall's supremacy without the ball.
The Saddlers have emerged as League Two's masters out-of-possession, collecting five wins from their opening seven games with comfortably the lowest possession figures in the division (34.4 per cent).
As the Yellow Ribbon Podcast pointed out, Pep Guardiola would be grimacing at the very sight of 'Sadler ball' but it has proven successful so far this season.
Wild holds the cards in previous battles
Three wins and three clean sheets from the past 270 minutes of football eloquently pays testament to that fact. But the very nature of the last three three opponents, in contrast to Fleetwood Town, who they host on Saturday, will pose a completely different challenge.
Fleetwood are middle of the road in terms of the possession stakes, but Pete Wild has notoriously held the cards in his previous touchline tussles with Mat Sadler.
Two poorly defended set pieces proved to be the Saddlers' undoing on their last visit to the Highbury Stadium in February, and Wild once again capitalised on a lethargic Walsall display in a 2-0 success with his previous employers Barrow in November 2023.
Different challenges for Walsall to overcome
Walsall are clearly a very effective pressing team and are capable of remaining solid out of possession within an organised system.
So it should come as no surprise that they have only won twice in the league with more possession than the opposition during Sadler's reign: 2-0 at Morecambe in February and 1-0 against Tranmere Rovers in December 2023.
The issue, though, has been breaking down opponents that like to defend in a low block, and who opt for a similarly direct route to goal.
That was demonstrated by Walsall's inability to beat Harrogate Town, Newport County and Accrington Stanley respectively in the latter stages of last season, despite averaging over 60 per cent possession.
But as Sadler has stated on countless occasions, last season is in the past, and the trip to Lancashire offers them another chance to showcase the lessons learned.
'Adaptable' Saddlers without key man
One of the biggest strengths in recent weeks has been the Saddlers' ability to adapt. That was demonstrated after going down to 10-men in wins over Swindon Town and Chesterfield, as well as when Evan Weir was forced off injured in the victory at MK Dons.
Now, Walsall will need to show a different side to themselves once again (at Fleetwood) if they're to continue riding on this wave of early season momentum.
They will also have to do so without key man Charlie Lakin who was dismissed for two bookable offences last weekend.
Jamie Jellis (groin) remains an injury doubt along with Priestley Farquharson (also groin), which could present Courtney Clarke with his first league start, and rare minutes for either Jake Hollman or Ronan Maher.
