This weekend, Burnley could confirm promotion with a home win over Middlesbrough, although Derby will be expected to delay the party, as they will be heavy favourites against out-of-form Huddersfield. Big spenders QPR and Nottingham Forest go head-to-head in the early game, while Leeds and Blackpool look to break out of their respective slumps, not helped by off-field drama. In a battle of the south-west, surprise play-off challengers Bournemouth can continue their remarkable form, and nudge Yeovil a step closer towards League One. Here’s a preview of the games.
QPR vs. Nottm Forest
Saturday’s early kick-off sees two of the Championship’s biggest underachievers meet. These clubs have spent more than anyone else, but due to injuries and a lack of consistency in team selection, both are a long way off the automatic promotion places. The focus has been on Benoit Assou-Ekotto over the last week, regarding his racial beliefs. It will be interesting to see how much Harry Redknapp is prepared to defend him, because on-field Assou-Ekotto has had a poor season, considering his Premier League experience. Coming back from 3-1 down in the closing stages, 10-man Nottingham Forest managed a draw against Sheffield Wednesday on Tuesday, thanks to a Jamie Paterson goal. QPR’s home record is as good as Burnley’s, so I’d tip them to get a narrow win. 2-1.
Bolton vs. Barnsley
Barnsley’s away record had been the worst in the Football League until recently, but they have won their last two on their road. Now, their next two games are away, with relegation rivals Charlton away on Tuesday night. The Tykes must be going out to win both matches, yet now is hardly a good time to need three points against Bolton. Having struggled in the winter months, the Trotters have now lost just once since mid-February. They have benefitted largely from a more consistent back four lately, as Hutton, Knight, Wheater and Ream are gelling together well. Bolton to keep another clean sheet, and push Barnsley in the direction of League One. 2-0.
Brighton vs. Charlton
Brighton are likely to be unchanged after their shock 4-1 win at Leicester in midweek. Dale Stephens bagged himself three assists, so Oscar Garcia will be hoping he will provide Brighton that attacking spark in midfield, which has been missing at times. Marvin Sordell was man of the match in Charlton’s 3-2 win over Yeovil, and his return has boosted the Addicks, who have lacked goals throughout the season. I would not read too much into Brighton’s win at Leicester, simply because the goals had more to do with awful defending from the home side, than Brighton being particularly menacing. Charlton to pick up a point. 1-1.
Burnley vs. Middlesbrough
After Leicester last week, another promotion can be confirmed this weekend, after what has been a rather predictable few months at the top of the Championship. Burnley will go up if they win, and Derby fail to beat Huddersfield. However, if they want to do the job this weekend, they will need to beat a solid Middlesbrough side who have won their last three matches, and seem to be finishing their season on a high. For this match, Boro will be without Kenneth Omeruo and Ben Gibson, due to sendings off against Birmingham on Tuesday. Both have been key players under Aitor Karanka, and both play at centre-back, which means the Spaniard will need to re-think his defensive options. Burnley have key players coming back into the squad after injury now, and that will see them over the line. 1-0.
Derby vs. Huddersfield
Derby should provide a minor delay to Burnley’s promotion party. They are unlikely to drop points this weekend, at home to a completely out of form Huddersfield side. The Terriers cannot find a win for toffee at the moment, and are seeing out their season in disappointing fashion. The interesting thing about this match, is that both teams rely on one player on each flank for width. In Huddersfield’s case it’s wingbacks Adam Hammill and Paul Dixon, for Derby its attacking fullbacks Andre Wisdom and Craig Forsyth. Both teams look to overload the central areas, and this will create some interesting encounters out wide. I would expect Derby to prevail, so Sean Dyche may need to put the champagne bottle in the ice bucket for now. 3-1.
Ipswich vs. Doncaster
The concerning thing about Doncaster’s 2-1 defeat to Bolton, was that for both goals they gave their opponents time on the ball. They have always looked to defend deep, and that has sometimes invited too much pressure, and meant that defensive mistakes are more costly. Ipswich are at the heart of the play-off race after a 2-0 win at Huddersfield, thanks to goals from Paul Anderson and Rhys Murphy. The former netted only his fourth goal of the season, yet remains Ipswich’s highest-scoring midfielder, which tells its own story. We can expect Paul Dickov to set his team up to defend for a point, so if Ipswich had more pace out wide and creativity in midfield, I would back them to break Doncaster down. The problem is, they do not always have the quality to really stretch teams, which is why I think this might be goalless. 0-0.
Leeds vs. Blackpool
Two sets of fans enduring dramatic issues off-field, and poor form on it. A group of Blackpool fans have written a letter to the club bemoaning a lack of passion among players, but they should be angrier with chairman Karl Oyston. He has made some strange managerial appointments, and has re-invested very little of the money gained from selling the club’s biggest assets in recent years. Leeds cannot stop losing, and have failed to score on three consecutive occasions. In midfield, they have remnants of the Neil Warnock days in Michael Tonge and Michael Brown, both are big earners who the club needs to get rid of. Neither side has much of an attacking spark going forward, the obvious exception being Ross McCormack for Leeds, so this is likely to be a drab affair. 1-1.
Millwall vs. Watford
Just a week ago, the great escape looked nigh on impossible for Millwall, but back-to-back away wins against the Championship’s better sides have given them hope. Theoretically, you would think that playing a safe, midtable side at home would be a favourable fixture at this stage. However, Watford are more in the Middlesbrough category of finishing the season strongly, than ‘on the beach’, like Huddersfield or Leeds. Ikechi Anya added to a promising season with a goal and assist in a 3-0 win on Tuesday. The Scotsman always seems to excel when played in a more advanced central role, and you’d think with his pace and skill, he is the right man to play behind Troy Deeney. Millwall will attack in desperate need of a win here, and that might leave gaps open at the back for Watford to exploit. 1-2.
Sheff Wed vs. Blackburn
After Leicester’s recent defeat, Blackburn are now the longest unbeaten side in the Championship, six games without defeat. They have scored some seventeen goals in that time too, even if a large proportion of those were thanks to talisman Jordan Rhodes. Sheffield Wednesday’s season is plateauing a little bit. Having been on great form over the winter months, in the final third of this campaign they have become something of a Jekyll & Hyde team. Right-back Lewis Buxton scored in the Owls’ 3-3 draw at Nottingham Forest, but he was arguably at fault for all of the goals. And, contrary to an ironic chant dubbing him the ‘White Cafu’, I’m not sure how much he offers Wednesday going forward. With Blackburn enjoying the services of an in-form left winger in Craig Conway, I’d fancy Rovers to record a win, to keep their feint play-off hopes intact. 1-2.
Yeovil vs. Bournemouth
With a gap of twenty-six points between these two freshly-promoted sides, there’s no prizes for guessing which club has adapted better to life in the Championship. Realistically, Yeovil need a miracle of at least four wins from their remaining five games to have any hope of survival, but many Glovers fans seem resigned to the drop. When Bournemouth were getting good results in March, you had the feeling they were simply ending the season positively. Now, they have caught us all by surprise, and must be seen as serious contenders for the final play-off place. The impressive Matt Ritchie netted a brace, as Eddie Howe’s side played some fantastic football in the 3-1 win against Reading – the side who occupy the aforementioned play-off spot. Bournemouth to win this West Country clash, and it could be a complete annihilation. 0-3.
Last time…
See what Gabriel's predictions were for the previous round of Championship matches.
*1pt for correct result, 3pts for exact score
Correct Results – 3
Exact Scorelines – 1, Barnsley 0-1 Burnley
Points – 6