Crewe Alexandra are the visitors to Vale Park on Monday night as the sides meet in a Sky Bet League Two clash.
After our eleven-game unbeaten run came to an end at Gillingham, the Valiants returned to winning ways last weekend as we beat Morecambe 1-0 in a cagey affair at the Mazuma Mobile Stadium.
Ethan Chislett’s 83rd-minute winner earned Vale’s sixth victory on the road this season and cemented our place at the top of the table.
Gaffer's Thoughts:
Here’s what the gaffer had to say ahead of Monday’s clash with Crewe Alexandra:
“It’s an excellent game for plenty of reasons, where both clubs sit in the league and the forms that both teams have been showing. It’s a local game so it’s great for the local community in terms of both sets of fans.”
“It’s a game at Vale Park that we’re really looking forward to. It’s a game at Vale Park where there is anticipation and an appetite for the game. There’s a feel-good factor around the game and that’s simply because of the work that’s been done at the start of the season and where we see ourselves as a football club.”
“It’ll be a good test for us on Monday, but a test that we’re really looking forward to it. From myself, the staff and the players were really looking forward to the game and hopefully, the game will be a wonderful advert for League Two football.”
Player's Thoughts
Vale defender, Conor Grant, made 17 appearances for Crewe during a loan spell in the 2017/18 season. He also spoke to the media ahead of Monday night’s fixture:
“These are the best sort of games, especially at home under the lights. As it works out it’s going to be 1st versus 2nd or 3rd so it’s all set for a brilliant match, and it’s on telly which is a bonus.”
“There’s a lot of build-up and outside noise ahead of the game, but we have to prepare and be as detailed as we are, like we are for every game. There’s a little bit more emotion to these games so it’s important that you’re calm and not getting sent off! I just try to be calm and think about what I need to do in the game that’ll enable me to perform well.”
The Opposition
Crewe are one of the more in-form sides in the league, they come into the game on a seven-game unbeaten run in the league which is made up of four wins and three draws.
The Railwaymen currently occupy 5th place in League Two with 28 points from 15 games, five points less than the Valiants.
In their last outing, the Alex beat Notts County 2-0 at the Mornflake Stadium. Shilow Tracey opened the scoring with a solo run then saw him travel with the ball from his own box before slotting through the legs of the keeper in the 40th minute. Crewe doubled the lead just after the hour when Ryan Cooney dispatched a penalty after Omar Bogle was fouled in the box.
From a Crewe perspective, the only downside to this win was that they finished the game with ten men as Chris Long was sent off within a minute of coming on as a substitute.
After losing in the Play-Off Final last season, Crewe are looking to go one step further this year and their positive start to the season is certainly doing them no harm.
Who’s in Charge?l
A product of Crewe’s academy, Lee Bell’s journey at the club began when he was just 14 years old when he signed a schoolboy contract.
Since then, Bell has made 136 appearances for the club spanning over two separate spells. The 41-year-old has done it all at the club, from player to U18’s manager, U23’s manager, assistant manager and now first team manager.
Bell took charge of the Alex in 2022 after Alex Morris left the club to join Stoke City. After becoming the club’s permanent manager in December 2022, Bell guided his side to a midtable finish. In his first full season in charge, Crewe finished 6th in League Two before losing to Crawley Town in the Play-Off Final.
In his 109 games as manager of the club, Bell has won 43, lost 36, and drawn 30, giving him a win percentage of 39%.
Player to watch
Mickey Demetriou has been the club's stand out player this season. The Crewe skipper recently made his 50th start for the Railwaymen in what has been a successful stint to date.
Last season, Demetriou played a vital role in Crewe’s road to the Play-Offs. The centre back scored nine goals and got six assists from his defensive position. At the End Of Season Awards, he picked up the club's Players’ and Supporters' Player of The Season and was also named in both the EFL and the PFA’s League Two Team of the Season.
Another player to watch is the in-form Shilow Tracey. With five goals in his last seven league games, Tracey has been Crewe’s biggest attacking threat so far this season.
With four goals and five assists this season, Ryan Cooney is another player to keep an eye on. The Crewe full-back has five goal involvements in his last five games and will provide a threat down the right side.
Last Time We Met
Port Vale 1-0 Crewe Alexandra, Tuesday 5th September 2023.
Despite being a league apart, the sides met twice last season. Once in the Carabao Cup when the Valiants progressed following a penalty shootout. It was 0-0 after ninety minutes so the game went straight to penalties. Crewe missed all three of their spot kicks which meant that with James Wilson and Ollie Arblaster scoring, Vale progressed into the next round.
The second meeting between the sides came at Vale Park in Group B of the EFL Trophy. The only goal of the game came in the 18th minute, when Tom Sang’s cross found Ben Garrity who beat his man and fired past Tom Booth in the Crewe goal to earn Vale all three points in the EFL Trophy. Ryan Cooney was sent off in added time after he received a second booking following an altercation with Mitch Clark.
Fixture Throwback
Port Vale 1-0 Crewe Alexandra, Saturday 6th April 2019
The sides last met in the league at Vale Park back in April 2019 and it was the Vale who picked up what turned out to be a vital three points.
In the first half, Anthony Kay and Tom Conlon both had good opportunities saved by Ben Garratt in the Crewe goal. Three minutes before the break, Vale had Nathan Smith to thank when he was in the right place at the right time to clear Jordan Bowery’s effort off the line with his chest.
In the 72nd minute, Anthony Kay had a low effort cleared off the line when the ball fell kindly to him following a corner.
Six minutes later, a deep cross was fired back across goal by Montano and it fell perfectly onto the left foot of Tom Pope who curled a half-volley into the far corner to give Vale the lead.
It should’ve been 2-0 just three minutes later when David Worrall raced through on goal, but Ben Garratt came out on top to deny him in a one-on-one situation.
