Blackpool will want to respond after their shock midweek defeat as they face Shrewsbury at Bloomfield Road

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Blackpool suffered their first defeat since early February in midweek and they will want to respond as they face Shrewsbury this weekend.

The Seasiders went on a 16-game unbeaten run in League One before their shock away loss to strugglers Rochdale in midweek with fatigue and a long injury list becoming a concern, but they will see home comforts as the perfect place to right some wrongs.

Whilst one run came to an end, Blackpool are still unbeaten at Bloomfield Road since October, with a staggering number of clubs failing to breakthrough a resilient Tangerine rearguard.

Neil Critchley will see Saturday as a perfect opportunity to bounce back against a Shrewsbury side that have lost three games in a row, yet it is probably too late in the day for them to be dragged into a relegation battle.

Without much to play for, the visitors will look to play with more freedom and potentially open up more than they would have if something was on the line, although a victory on the Fylde Coast would all but seal their place in League One for another campaign.

The well-documented health concerns of Steve Cotterill have disrupted what was a great start to his time in charge of the club as he dragged them from an ominous position into a relatively safe comfort zone, with their home form at the time contributing heavily.

Shrewsbury controlled the reverse fixture between the two sides at New Meadow with Cotterill new into the job at that point, securing their first home victory of the season through Dan Udoh and they will hope for a similar performance this time around.

For the hosts, they will be without Daniel Gretarsson whose luck with injuries continues to fall on the negative side as a dislocated shoulder sees him missing action for a couple of weeks which will probably see his campaign end, returning post-season for the play-offs.

Those woes in the defensive areas have been boosted by the re-emergence of Marvin Ekpiteta into the frame, with the defender being one of the brightest plus points of the season for Critchley’s side as he will be looking to reintroduce him as soon as possible.

Gary Madine remains a long-term absentee alongside Keshi Anderson and CJ Hamilton after the ex-Cardiff striker has suffered a number of setbacks since his injury first arose.

Chance creation has been an issue in recent weeks for the Seasiders, with similar performances to that which saw the loss in midweek, also coming at home against Accrington and Sunderland, albeit the side still had enough to take four points out of those games.

Whilst play going forward has been quite stagnant, defensive solidity regardless of personnel has been a major bonus for Critchley with his side only shipping the odd goal in most fixtures since the turn of the year.

With just five games of the normal season remaining, it is important that momentum is efficiently re-established in order to take that form into the play-offs should the Seasiders qualify, but it will be in the back of Critchley’s mind whether the long injury list and hard schedule is beginning to take its toll.

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