Five Things To Look Out For In Efl: Old Faces, New Places

Rotting pumpkins and burnt-out sparklers litter nan garden, different world break looms and we're astatine nan extremity of different of those gruelling 'nine-point weeks' successful nan Championship.

By tea-time connected Saturday, almost each EFL broadside will beryllium a 3rd of nan measurement done their play but nan 2025-26 run is turning into nan astir unfastened successful representation crossed each 3 divisions.

We person friends, and immoderate foes, reunited successful nan 2nd tier, sack races heating up and subplots galore, and pinch past weekend's FA Cup first information games done and dusted it's backmost to regular business for League One and Two teams.

Here are 5 things to look retired for crossed nan EFL weekend.

Plastic snakes and spray-painted bedsheets astatine nan ready, each eyes connected Ewood Park connected Saturday lunchtime.

John Eustace discontinue Blackburn past February to return complete astatine Derby, dropping 16 places successful nan Championship array and swapping a play-off push for a relegation scrap

Rovers yet vanished seventh nether Valerien Ismael, missing nan play-offs by 2 points, while Eustace steered nan Rams to 19th, 1 constituent clear of nan drop.

While this 12:30 GMT kick-off is Eustace's first return to Ewood, it is not nan first reunion, nan rock-bottom Rams welcomed immoderate very bitter Rovers fans to Pride Park successful March successful conscionable Eustace's 4th lucifer successful complaint and went 2-0 up wrong 7 minutes connected their measurement to a 2-1 win, his first astatine nan nine aft starting pinch 3 consecutive defeats.

Former Rovers players Andi Weimann, Danny Baath and skipper Lewis Travis person followed Eustace to Pride Park to adhd immoderate much herb to this occasion.

Despite nan subplots, nan fixture besides pits 2 of nan division's in-form sides against 1 another.

Derby's 2-1 triumph complete Hull City connected Tuesday was a 4th consecutive win, while Rovers' 1-0 occurrence astatine Bristol City nan aforesaid evening was their 3rd successful succession.

At slightest 1 of those runs ends here, don't miss this…

Friday marks 1 twelvemonth to nan time since Mark Robins was sacked by Coventry to extremity a seven-and-a-half twelvemonth enactment astatine nan Sky Blues, having steered them to wrong a punishment shootout of promotion to nan Premier League nan erstwhile year.

Frank Lampard was named City leader 3 weeks later while Robins joined nan Potters successful January, and nan rest, arsenic they say, is history.

On Saturday, nan 2 clubs meet pinch Coventry 4 points clear astatine nan apical aft a blistering commencement to nan season, though their unbeaten tally was ended astatine Wrexham past week earlier they bounced backmost to travel from down and hit Sheffield United connected Tuesday.

Three consecutive wins for Stoke, pinch 9 goals scored and conscionable 1 conceded, took them into 2nd up of nan play conflict of nan meanest defence successful nan division, pinch conscionable 9 goals conceded by Stoke successful 14 games, against nan starring scorers, pinch Coventry netting an astonishing 39 goals.

There was a sting successful nan tail for Robins connected his first return to nan CBS Arena past March erstwhile Sam Gallagher's double looked to person ensured nan Potters a precocious 2-2 draw, only for Bobby Thomas to triumph it for Coventry successful nan 97th minute.

What we'd springiness for much play for illustration that connected Saturday.

There's besides different conflict of promotion-chasers connected Saturday which mightiness person crept nether nan radar a bit.

Despite an wounded situation astatine Deepdale, a 2-1 triumph complete Swansea connected Wednesday was Preston's 3rd consecutive triumph and took them 4th up of their 12:30 GMT travel to Millwall, a constituent backmost successful 5th aft a 4-0 drubbing astatine Birmingham connected Tuesday night.

If Paul Heckingbottom's men tin make it 4 consecutive victories they would really leapfrog Stoke into second, for a mates of hours, astatine least.

Quiz time. Of nan 62 teams who some vanished past play and started this 1 successful nan EFL, who has won nan astir points successful 2025 truthful far?

Surely it's Coventry? Nope, not moreover close. It must beryllium Bradford then? No. Wrexham? Afraid not.

Birmingham's back-to-back 4-0 location wins this past week took them up to 83 points and counting this year.

League One leaders Stockport are 2nd pinch 78 while it's small aged Charlton who are third, a further 3 points back, aft their last-gasp triumph complete West Brom astatine The Valley connected Tuesday.

In a world wherever Sunderland person bounced consecutive from nan Championship play-offs into nan apical 4 of nan Premier League, is it really beyond nan imagination to expect newly-promoted League One sides to beryllium competing astatine nan apical of nan second-tier?

There was a spot of power connected Chris Davies little than a fortnight agone aft a meek 1-0 conclusion astatine Bristol City, a 4th conclusion successful 5 distant games without scoring.

However they caput to Middlesbrough connected Saturday brimming pinch assurance sat conscionable 2 points extracurricular nan play-off places, and having scored arsenic galore goals successful nan past 2 matches arsenic they did successful nan erstwhile 11 mixed successful each competitions.

The broadside successful sixth they are chasing? That would beryllium Charlton, who alternatively edged done nan nervy League One play-offs past twelvemonth but person taken to nan Championship for illustration a, erm, Addick to water, pinch conscionable 3 defeats successful their opening 14 matches and nan 2nd champion defence successful nan convention pinch conscionable 11 conceded.

That grounds will beryllium tested connected Saturday (15:00 GMT) arsenic Nathan Jones heads backmost to his homeland to sojourn Wrexham, a nine he antecedently referred to arsenic "a circus" earlier backing down a bit, not that Phil Parkinson was buying it.

His Red Dragons person besides recovered their feet pursuing promotion, losing conscionable 1 of their past 8 games and going unbeaten successful 4 astatine home, inflicting a first conclusion connected leaders Coventry past clip retired astatine nan Racecourse to thief them beryllium 5 points extracurricular nan play-offs themselves.

Popcorn astatine nan ready, who tin support up pinch nan Championship Joneses?

You tin propulsion your headdress complete half a twelve sides astatine nan apical of League One pinch 3 points separating nan apical six sides going into nan weekend, but those names are not needfully nan ones you mightiness expect to beryllium starring nan conflict for promotion.

Cardiff are nan only squad relegated from nan Championship to beryllium successful nan heavy of things, pinch Luton floundering successful 10th and pinch Jack Wilshere freshly astatine nan helm up of their travel to chap Hatters Stockport, who went into nan play apical of nan pile.

Before nan play not galore would person picked Peterborough and Blackpool to beryllium successful nan bottommost half, fto unsocial dress up nan bottommost 2 astatine this stage, while Reading are fifth-bottom and for illustration nan erstwhile 2 person besides sacked their manager, swapping Noel Hunt for Leam Richardson successful an effort to boost their fortunes.

Another 2 sides expected to situation for promotion were Huddersfield and newly-relegated Plymouth, who meet connected Saturday (15:00 GMT) pinch Lee Grant's Terriers already six points disconnected nan play-off gait and Tom Cleverley's Greens third-bottom pinch 9 defeats successful their opening 14 games.

You consciousness area emblem pictures mightiness already beryllium waiting successful draught folders successful this sadistic division.

Death... taxes... League Two being utterly bonkers.

Just 5 points abstracted nan apical 13 sides successful nan 4th tier and you mightiness forgive Walsall fans for emotion a spot of deja vu.

After a tally of 19 points from 7 games took them apical of nan table, wherever they were for nan mostly of past play earlier capitulating, Mat Sadler's men person taken a azygous constituent from their past 3 games against Crawley, Barrow and Cheltenham, each struggling successful aliases adjacent nan relegation area astatine nan time.

The Saddlers caput to rock-bottom Newport connected Saturday (15:00 GMT) and, should they suffer for a 3rd consecutive game, could find themselves arsenic debased seventh by nan full-time whistle of Cheltenham v Notts County connected Monday night.

You tin travel nan full EFL programme arsenic it happens connected nan BBC Sport website and app, starting pinch unrecorded matter sum of Watford v Bristol City on Friday (20:00 GMT).

We will person unrecorded matter commentary connected the Championship, League One and League Two campaigns each play on BBC Sport.