Colchester United v Crewe Alex 25-26 Preview - Don't Panic!

I'm going to try and not make a point of it all the time, but so many games this season seem to involve me thinking "man, the Alex did not do themselves justice in this fixture last season". The games against Gillingham and Swindon were examples of that and unfortunately, both have gone the same way this season.

Colchester away last season was another that fits into this category. I'm hoping it's not the 3rd game in a row where it repeats itself this season. Here is my preview of their trip to Essex:

Don't Panic

I am on my knees begging Lee Bell to not change the shape of the team. Yes, the way Swindon picked holes in the 4-2-3-1 the Alex deployed last week was concerning, as was everything else about the way they played. But if Bell is thinking about going to a back 5 for this game, I implore him not to. Why?

First, that formation got them 4 wins from their first 5 games and had them be pretty competitive in the 5th. Only in game 6 did it not work. But I hope they can chalk that down to a 1 off really bad day at the office.

Second, there is no need to change based on the opposition. Look at the team Colchester played against Barnet. Ok, Samson Tovide is a unit. But elsewhere. Arthur Read, Teddy Bishop and Jack Payne in midfield aren't tall and physical. Nor are wingers Harry Anderson and Owura Edwards.

For me, to move to a system they haven't practiced aside from parts of the last 2 games, to no real benefit, would be such a mistake. Thankfully it seems like he won't be doing that, as he mentioned after the Chesterfield game that he wasn't going to rip everything up. Stick to the system, maybe tweak it slightly and change some players around, but don't panic whatever you do Lee!

Struggles

I had high expectations for Colchester this season. After missing out on the play-offs by just 3 points last season, thanks to just 2 wins from their final 9 games, I thought they would really kick on this season. And of course, the season is still early, so they still can. But the early signs have been concerning, especially at home.

Through 3 home games, they have 1 point and that was a dramatic late comeback against Tranmere on the opening day. They let a lead slip to lose against local(ish) rivals Cambridge and then fell to a flat 2-0 defeat against Barrow. Away from home and it isn't much better, with them currently sat 17th after 6 games. I hope the Alex's aren't about to give them their first home win of the season and can jump on what might be a jittery and nervous crowd.

Short

Part of Colchester's issues could be the lack of proven attacking talent in the squad. They for some reason let Lyle Taylor go and aside from Will Goodwin, their only other additions upfront were inexperienced players in Jayden Williams, Adrian Akande, Makise Evans and Micah Mbick. They have scored 6 goals through their first 6 games and it says a lot that their top scorers are youngster Kyreece Lisbie and defender Jack Tucker.

They are 21st in xG, 14th in shots on target per game and 17th in big chances. I would really hope after struggling against a strong attack in Swindon last week that the Alex can look a bit more solid defensively in this one.

Goals

But speaking of struggling in attack, the fact is the Alex have had attacking struggles of their own in the league recently. Ok, they had enough chances against Gillingham to warrant a goal, but against Swindon they didn't. The addition of Dion Rankine helps, but the loss of joint top scorer Calum Agius to the Wales U21s doesn't.

I know I said above that I didn't want to see a formation change and I don't, but losing Agius means they are now going to need to find a player to start on the LW. Regardless of who steps in for Agius, the management will need to help this group rediscover the goalscoring touch which has been lacking in the league recently.

Ref Watch

Greg Rollason

Hmnm. I'm not entirely sure it will be Rollason who takes charge of this game. If you look on the EFL's referee announcements page, it listed a different ref for the Chesterfield game on Tuesday, but in the end Rollason took charge. I doubt he does 2 Crewe games in a row, so this will possibly change.

2025-26 Record: 5 games(2 League Two, 2 EFL Trophy, 1 National League), 14 yellows

Last Game: Crewe Alex 7-1 Chesterfield, EFL Trophy, 2nd September 2025, 1 yellow

Crewe Alex Record: 1-1-0, 1 yellow

Injuries/Suspensions

Colchester United

Missing long term for Colchester is Ellis Iandolo(knee) and Ben Perry(ACL). Josh-Kymani Gordon withdrew from their squad last weekend against Barnet and Will Goodwin is touch and go to return in time from a muscle injury. So they are missing a small number of players.

Crewe Alex

Calum Agius is away with the Wales U21s, so he won't feature. We haven't yet heard about the injury status of Conor Thomas or Matus Holicek, so we don't know if either will feature. Aside from those 2, I'm hoping there are no new undisclosed issues.

Team

Assuming Bell sticks to what he talked about post game on Tuesday and doesn't change the system too much for this game, for me the team stays mostly the same as last week, except for two changes. March moves to the LW to replace Agius, Moult comes in upfront and Tezgel drops into the number 10 role, with Owen Lunt dropping back into midfield. Jack Powell then drops to the bench.

I know moving March to the wing isn't ideal, but I'm not starting Rankine just yet and I don't see anyone else who can play there. Starting all 3 of March, Moult and Tezgel does feel like it will leave them short on attacking depth, but with Rankine, Thibaut and maybe Holicek in there, they should still have some options available if needed. I wonder if Bell will start Mingi straight away against his former team or whether Golding will come in for Connolly, who was poor last week?

I will say that Bell has a tough job picking an 18 man squad and not leaving out several players, especially if Thomas and Holicek are fit. If I was picking the team and went for the above, I'd put Booth, Golding, Mingi, Holicek, Powell, Rankine and Thibaut on the bench, which does unfortunately mean Finney and Croker miss out, as do Armstrong and Moore.

Score Prediction

As much as the win on Tuesday was a nice palate cleanser after the horror show last Saturday, the fact is they do need a positive result in this game. However, it's a long trip to a ground where they often struggle, against a side that are hard to break down and difficult to play against. For that reason, whilst I'd obviously be delighted with a win, I'd take a battling point as well.

Colchester United 1-1 Crewe Alexandra