Salford City have dropped further away from the playoff places following a narrow 2-1 defeat to Port Vale at the weekend.
The Ammies were second best in the contest which saw them 2-0 down after 52 minutes – resulting in the club fall to ninth in the league.
Karl Robinsons’ side came into the fixture with only one win in five, hoping to turn the tide and close the gap to the home side who sat two places above them.
However, this was not going to be an easy task with Port Vale being in impressive league form, going without a defeat in the division since December 29.
Manager Darren Moore has his side ticking, helping The Valiants climb to sixth in the league, three points off second with a game in hand.
The two sides were separated by a single goal and started the weekend only two places away from one another, a win for either team being another huge step in the chase for promotion.
The game began with both sides have equal chances and share of the ball – and the Ammies had multiple chances to take the lead.
But Port Vale also were asking questions of the Salford City defence, with Antoine Hackford being presented with an excellent opportunity to put Vale in front in the 30th minute.
The Port Vale forward met the cross from George Byers, directing the ball towards goal, before being denied by a fantastic Jamie Jones save.
However, the keeper’s acrobatics would not be enough to keep Hackford quiet, as in the 43rd minute of the game, Jon Taylor was shrugged off the ball resulting in a Port Vale attack.
Ronan Curtis was able to dispossess the Ammies midfielder, carrying the ball forward before slipping through Antoine Hackford, who poked it past the Salford keeper.
The late goal in the first half was certainly going to change Karl Robinsons’ team talk, however, with only a goal between the two teams there was still a chance to secure points away from home.
Although, it would seem that the break wouldn’t help the Ammies as they would then trail by two, when Curtis Tilt and Negru crossed paths in the box – with the defender mix up leading to the ball falling for Rekeem Harper, who lashed it into the top corner.
Despite goalkeeper Jamie Jones getting a hand to the ball, it was not enough to deny The Valiants from a 2-0 lead in the 52nd minute.
Two goals down, the Ammies would have to do something special to walk away with maximum points.
And with the away side only managing one shot on target from a possible eleven throughout the 90 minutes it would seem like quite the effort.
However, Salford were given a lifeline in the 77th minute when Mnoga was brought down by George Byers in the box.
The penalty was awarded, with Adelakun calmly stepping up to the spot to roll the ball down the middle beyond the anchored Amos.
A glimmer of hope with minutes remaining…
2-1 | #PVLSAL pic.twitter.com/OzI1aGtRId
— Salford City FC (@SalfordCityFC) February 22, 2025
But despite Salford City’s best attempts they were unable to break through for a second, with Kylian Kouassi having a late chance to snatch a point but off-balance he fired the ball over the goal.
With the scoreline settled, the game would not finish without drama – with Ronan Curtis being shown red following an altercation between himself and defender Stephan Negru.
The Port Vale would be shown red in the 90+6 minute of the game, with not enough time for the Ammies to capitalise on the man advantage.
Karl Robinson will now travel back to the Peninsula Stadium this weekend, where they will have another tough promotion battle against Bradford City.
The early kick off against the Bantams will be real test for Salford City, as they will hope to keep their playoff and promotion dreams alive – with more information here.
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