An exciting weekend of Championship action will be headlined by league leading Cardiff City playing host to Nottingham Forest.
League leaders Cardiff City will play host to Nottingham Forest in an exciting weekend of Championship action. Second place Queens Park Rangers will play host to rock bottom Preston North End.
In action involving teams around the playoff spots, 3rd place Swansea City will face 7th place Doncaster Rovers in Wales, while 5th place Leeds United travel to 10th place Norwich City.
At the bottom end of the table Crystal Palace travel to Sheffield United, and Middlesbrough will look for a win that draws them level on points with fellow strugglers Millwall. Bristol City face a tough task to climb out of the relegation zone as they play against in-form Leicester City.
Middlesbrough are hovering above the relegation zone. Out of the bottom three on goal difference alone, Boro know a win here will see them climb to level on points with visiting Millwall.
Tony Mowbray could call upon Dutch winger Marvin Emnes, who has returned from a very successful loan spell with high flying Swansea City. Boro will be without Captain Stephen McManus who has been ruled out for four months due to an ankle injury that is worse than first feared.
Millwall are on a four game winless streak and must turn it around to avoid dropping deep into the relegation fight. Millwall have scored only 9 goals in their previous 13 games. The Lions will be hoping the midweek arrival of Crystal Palace striker Calvin Andrew will inject some life into the attack.
Leeds currently occupy 5th place in the table and will look to consolidate their spot in the playoff zone as they travel to face a Norwich City team who are only one point behind them.
Norwich have drawn three consecutive games and know a win here will see them leap frog visitors Leeds in the table. Leading goal scorer Grant Holt will be able to play after having the red card he received in last week’s draw with Reading rescinded.
Leeds are riding a four game unbeaten streak and have scored 12 goals in those four games. South African forward Davide Somma made his international debut in midweek, and will partner Argentine forward Luciano Becchio who scored a hat-trick in last week’s 3-1 win over Bristol City.
Second place Queens Park Rangers will be hoping for three points to continue their promotion charge as rock bottom Preston North End come to Loftus Road.
QPR are unbeaten so far this season and will hope to get a win after consecutive draws at Portsmouth and Nottingham Forest. Leading goal scorer Jamie Mackie scored his first international goal for Scotland in midweek, Mackie will be a key figure in this game.
If they are to climb off the bottom of the table the Preston must not only manage to hand QPR their first defeat, they will have to snap their current four game winless streak.
Under-pressure manager Darren Ferguson has received some family help with a loan signing from his father Sir Alex. Ferguson junior this week tied up the signature of Belgian defender Ritchie de Laet from Manchester United.
Watford and Reading go head to head battling for a valuable three points in their efforts to break into the playoff spots. Neither side is in particularly good form, Reading are on a three game winless streak, while it is five games since Watford last achieved a victory.
Watford will enter this game without Captain John Eustace, who is suspended after picking up his fifth booking in the 3-2 defeat at Burnley. Manager Malky Mackay will be disappointed after describing Eustace to the official Watford website as the club’s “most consistent player.”
Reading forward Shane Long is in good form and will lead the line for the Royals at Vicarage Road. Long netted the equalizer in last week’s 3-3 draw with Norwich, and also scored for the Republic of Ireland in their 2-1 defeat to Norway in midweek.
Hull City climbed out of the relegation zone with an impressive 2-0 win at Preston, they will look to gain another positive result here against playoff contenders Ipswich Town.
Talented youngster John Bostock will return for Hull following suspension, and Paul McShane could also be back from injury. Liam Rosenior and Daniel Ayala are injury doubts for the Tigers.
Ipswich will travel to the KC Stadium looking to turn their form around after back to back defeats. The Ipswich attack will be led by Hungarian international Tamas Priskin, who scored in his nations’ midweek victory over Lithuania. Goalkeeper Marton Fulop also played for Hungary in the 2-0 win.
Celtic loanee Darren O’Dea is a doubt for the Tractor Boys after joining an injury list that also includes Luke Hyam, Mark Kennedy and Gareth McAuley.
Doncaster Rovers are outside of the playoff zone on goal difference only, they will hope to break into it with a win but face a tough task to do so against third place Swansea City.
Rovers could be boosted by the return of striker Billy Sharp, but Shelton Martis, George Friend and Simon Gillett will all miss the game with injury.
Swansea beat Middlesbrough 1-0 last week and will be looking for a win that keeps the pressure on Cardiff City and Queens Park Rangers, who currently occupy the automatic promotion spots.
Swansea will be without Marvin Emnes who had been in good form and scored the decisive goal in their recent win over league leaders Cardiff City. The Dutch wingers’ loan period has expired and he has returned to Middlesbrough.
Bristol City fell into the bottom three last week when they were beaten 3-1 by Leeds united, they will be looking to climb back out of it with a positive performance against in-form Leicester City.
Jon Stead will lead the line for this game, but City may soon be boosted by the return of last season’s leading goal scorer Nicky Maynard, who has missed all season so far with a knee injury. Maynard told BBC Sport he expects to be back in action within “a few weeks.”
Leicester City are on a four game unbeaten streak and have enjoyed an upturn in form since the arrival of Sven Goran Eriksson. Striker Steve Howard cited the defensive stability shown since the arrival of Eriksson as a key behind their success. The Foxes have managed to record three clean sheets in their last four games.
Playoff contenders Nottingham Forest face a tough trip to Wales to face league leaders Cardiff City. Cardiff reclaimed top spot in the Championship with a 4-2 win at Scunthorpe last week. Striker Jay Bothroyd, who made his England debut in midweek, scored two goal and created one in that game. The powerful forward will be a key figure again here.
Last week Nottingham Forest knocked Queens Park Rangers off top spot in the league by holding them to a 0-0 draw, they will be looking for a similar performance here. Kevin Wilson is an injury doubt for Forest, while David McGoldrick and Karl Darlow are ruled out.
Sixth place Burnley will travel to Coventry to the Ricoh Arena to face off against fellow playoff contenders Coventry City. Coventry had been in the playoff spots but a three game losing streak has saw them slide down the table.
Coventry manager Aidy Boothroyd hopes his team will bounce back from the recent disappointments. “You sometimes get a slap in the face in football and we’ve just had three in a week so hopefully that can spur us in to good results in our next three games.”
Burnley have climbed into the playoff spots courtesy of a four game winning streak, they will look to stay there with a win here. The Clarets will be without defender Danny Fox, who will not be facing his former club due to an ankle injury.
Barnsley will return home to play Portsmouth after winning back to back away games. Barnsley have benefitted from the play of Birmingham loanee Garry O’Connor, who has scored in the back to back wins at Ipswich and Preston.
Luke Potter will miss the game after being ruled out due to knee surgery. Fellow defenders Matt Hill and Jay McEveley are also on the injury list.
Portsmouth will travel to Oakwell looking to snap a three game winless streak. Liam Lawrence has performed well since joining Pompey from Stoke City. Pompey have also added to their personnel by extending the loan stay of Wolves defender Greg Halford.
Derby County received a setback last week when they were beaten 2-0 by East Midlands rivals Leicester City. The Rams remain in fourth place and will look to return to winning ways here with the visit of Scunthorpe United.
Derby received a boost in midweek when goalkeeper Stephen Bywater returned to reserve action after a long layoff. Miles Addison remains on the injury list for County.
Scunthorpe are in a four game losing spiral that is seeing them be sucked down into the relegation mire. They will need to be in good form to break that streak and get back on track at Pride Park.
Scunthorpe fans did receive a boost this week with the news that Kevin McDonald, who scored in last week’s loss to Cardiff has extended his loan stay from Burnley.
Crystal Palace climbed off the bottom of the table last week with a 2-0 win over Coventry City. They now have the opportunity to overtake Sheffield United in the table with a win at Brammall Lane.
A goal by Andy Reid gave Sheffield United an important win at Millwall last week, they will be looking for back to back victories here against fellow relegation strugglers Palace. A strong defensive performance will be key to any success for the Blades, their leading goal scorer Mark Yeates has only four goals.
Victory for Palace will be only their second away win of the season, but they will be heartened by the presence of influential midfielder Darren Ambrose. Ambrose has scored 4 goals in 6 games since his return from injury.
In action involving teams around the playoff spots, 3rd place Swansea City will face 7th place Doncaster Rovers in Wales, while 5th place Leeds United travel to 10th place Norwich City.
At the bottom end of the table Crystal Palace travel to Sheffield United, and Middlesbrough will look for a win that draws them level on points with fellow strugglers Millwall. Bristol City face a tough task to climb out of the relegation zone as they play against in-form Leicester City.
Middlesbrough are hovering above the relegation zone. Out of the bottom three on goal difference alone, Boro know a win here will see them climb to level on points with visiting Millwall.
Tony Mowbray could call upon Dutch winger Marvin Emnes, who has returned from a very successful loan spell with high flying Swansea City. Boro will be without Captain Stephen McManus who has been ruled out for four months due to an ankle injury that is worse than first feared.
Millwall are on a four game winless streak and must turn it around to avoid dropping deep into the relegation fight. Millwall have scored only 9 goals in their previous 13 games. The Lions will be hoping the midweek arrival of Crystal Palace striker Calvin Andrew will inject some life into the attack.
Leeds currently occupy 5th place in the table and will look to consolidate their spot in the playoff zone as they travel to face a Norwich City team who are only one point behind them.
Norwich have drawn three consecutive games and know a win here will see them leap frog visitors Leeds in the table. Leading goal scorer Grant Holt will be able to play after having the red card he received in last week’s draw with Reading rescinded.
Leeds are riding a four game unbeaten streak and have scored 12 goals in those four games. South African forward Davide Somma made his international debut in midweek, and will partner Argentine forward Luciano Becchio who scored a hat-trick in last week’s 3-1 win over Bristol City.
Second place Queens Park Rangers will be hoping for three points to continue their promotion charge as rock bottom Preston North End come to Loftus Road.
QPR are unbeaten so far this season and will hope to get a win after consecutive draws at Portsmouth and Nottingham Forest. Leading goal scorer Jamie Mackie scored his first international goal for Scotland in midweek, Mackie will be a key figure in this game.
If they are to climb off the bottom of the table the Preston must not only manage to hand QPR their first defeat, they will have to snap their current four game winless streak.
Under-pressure manager Darren Ferguson has received some family help with a loan signing from his father Sir Alex. Ferguson junior this week tied up the signature of Belgian defender Ritchie de Laet from Manchester United.
Watford and Reading go head to head battling for a valuable three points in their efforts to break into the playoff spots. Neither side is in particularly good form, Reading are on a three game winless streak, while it is five games since Watford last achieved a victory.
Watford will enter this game without Captain John Eustace, who is suspended after picking up his fifth booking in the 3-2 defeat at Burnley. Manager Malky Mackay will be disappointed after describing Eustace to the official Watford website as the club’s “most consistent player.”
Reading forward Shane Long is in good form and will lead the line for the Royals at Vicarage Road. Long netted the equalizer in last week’s 3-3 draw with Norwich, and also scored for the Republic of Ireland in their 2-1 defeat to Norway in midweek.
Hull City climbed out of the relegation zone with an impressive 2-0 win at Preston, they will look to gain another positive result here against playoff contenders Ipswich Town.
Talented youngster John Bostock will return for Hull following suspension, and Paul McShane could also be back from injury. Liam Rosenior and Daniel Ayala are injury doubts for the Tigers.
Ipswich will travel to the KC Stadium looking to turn their form around after back to back defeats. The Ipswich attack will be led by Hungarian international Tamas Priskin, who scored in his nations’ midweek victory over Lithuania. Goalkeeper Marton Fulop also played for Hungary in the 2-0 win.
Celtic loanee Darren O’Dea is a doubt for the Tractor Boys after joining an injury list that also includes Luke Hyam, Mark Kennedy and Gareth McAuley.
Doncaster Rovers are outside of the playoff zone on goal difference only, they will hope to break into it with a win but face a tough task to do so against third place Swansea City.
Rovers could be boosted by the return of striker Billy Sharp, but Shelton Martis, George Friend and Simon Gillett will all miss the game with injury.
Swansea beat Middlesbrough 1-0 last week and will be looking for a win that keeps the pressure on Cardiff City and Queens Park Rangers, who currently occupy the automatic promotion spots.
Swansea will be without Marvin Emnes who had been in good form and scored the decisive goal in their recent win over league leaders Cardiff City. The Dutch wingers’ loan period has expired and he has returned to Middlesbrough.
Bristol City fell into the bottom three last week when they were beaten 3-1 by Leeds united, they will be looking to climb back out of it with a positive performance against in-form Leicester City.
Jon Stead will lead the line for this game, but City may soon be boosted by the return of last season’s leading goal scorer Nicky Maynard, who has missed all season so far with a knee injury. Maynard told BBC Sport he expects to be back in action within “a few weeks.”
Leicester City are on a four game unbeaten streak and have enjoyed an upturn in form since the arrival of Sven Goran Eriksson. Striker Steve Howard cited the defensive stability shown since the arrival of Eriksson as a key behind their success. The Foxes have managed to record three clean sheets in their last four games.
Playoff contenders Nottingham Forest face a tough trip to Wales to face league leaders Cardiff City. Cardiff reclaimed top spot in the Championship with a 4-2 win at Scunthorpe last week. Striker Jay Bothroyd, who made his England debut in midweek, scored two goal and created one in that game. The powerful forward will be a key figure again here.
Last week Nottingham Forest knocked Queens Park Rangers off top spot in the league by holding them to a 0-0 draw, they will be looking for a similar performance here. Kevin Wilson is an injury doubt for Forest, while David McGoldrick and Karl Darlow are ruled out.
Sixth place Burnley will travel to Coventry to the Ricoh Arena to face off against fellow playoff contenders Coventry City. Coventry had been in the playoff spots but a three game losing streak has saw them slide down the table.
Coventry manager Aidy Boothroyd hopes his team will bounce back from the recent disappointments. “You sometimes get a slap in the face in football and we’ve just had three in a week so hopefully that can spur us in to good results in our next three games.”
Burnley have climbed into the playoff spots courtesy of a four game winning streak, they will look to stay there with a win here. The Clarets will be without defender Danny Fox, who will not be facing his former club due to an ankle injury.
Barnsley will return home to play Portsmouth after winning back to back away games. Barnsley have benefitted from the play of Birmingham loanee Garry O’Connor, who has scored in the back to back wins at Ipswich and Preston.
Luke Potter will miss the game after being ruled out due to knee surgery. Fellow defenders Matt Hill and Jay McEveley are also on the injury list.
Portsmouth will travel to Oakwell looking to snap a three game winless streak. Liam Lawrence has performed well since joining Pompey from Stoke City. Pompey have also added to their personnel by extending the loan stay of Wolves defender Greg Halford.
Derby County received a setback last week when they were beaten 2-0 by East Midlands rivals Leicester City. The Rams remain in fourth place and will look to return to winning ways here with the visit of Scunthorpe United.
Derby received a boost in midweek when goalkeeper Stephen Bywater returned to reserve action after a long layoff. Miles Addison remains on the injury list for County.
Scunthorpe are in a four game losing spiral that is seeing them be sucked down into the relegation mire. They will need to be in good form to break that streak and get back on track at Pride Park.
Scunthorpe fans did receive a boost this week with the news that Kevin McDonald, who scored in last week’s loss to Cardiff has extended his loan stay from Burnley.
Crystal Palace climbed off the bottom of the table last week with a 2-0 win over Coventry City. They now have the opportunity to overtake Sheffield United in the table with a win at Brammall Lane.
A goal by Andy Reid gave Sheffield United an important win at Millwall last week, they will be looking for back to back victories here against fellow relegation strugglers Palace. A strong defensive performance will be key to any success for the Blades, their leading goal scorer Mark Yeates has only four goals.
Victory for Palace will be only their second away win of the season, but they will be heartened by the presence of influential midfielder Darren Ambrose. Ambrose has scored 4 goals in 6 games since his return from injury.
