The richest game in football is here again, with Brentford in it for the second season in a row after their Championship play-off final defeat to Fulham a year ago. Swansea are looking for a Premier League return after a three-year absence, in a re-run of last year’s semi-final.
It is advantage Bournemouth as they continue to bid to bounce straight back from last season’s relegation, but we feel Brentford may be a value bet to turn around a 1-0 deficit in the second leg of this Championship Play-offs clash and qualify for a trip to Wembley.
Swansea’s Andre Ayew struck the only goal in the first leg at Oakwell and Steve Cooper’s side will be looking to build on their slender advantage. The Swans have won all three encounters against Barnsley this season and are now strong favourites to book a place in the Wembley final.
Brentford are 6/4 favourites to win the play-offs in bwin’s Championship promotion odds after Watford joined Norwich in securing an immediate return to the Premier League. Watford’s win against Millwall was enough to secure a top-two finish and means Brentford must again try and go up through the play-offs.
Swansea have struggled for consistency of late but only need a draw when visiting Reading to be assured of a place in the Championship play-offs. The Royals are just outside the top six and could still sneak in if closing the season with a trio of wins, but whether they have the quality is open to question.
Watford have set their sights on an immediate return to the Premier League, having won all their games in March and their Good Friday clash with Sheff Wed. The Hornets’ six-match winning run was only ended last weekend when Middlesbrough scored 12 minutes from time to earn a 1-1 draw.
Watford can edge closer to securing automatic promotion from the Championship by winning at Middlesbrough, as well as putting pressure on Norwich in the title race. The Hornets are chasing a seventh straight victory while Boro’s top-six hopes have been rocked by losses either side of the international break.
The international break came at a good time for both of these teams and they will be looking to get their promotion bids back on track in Friday’s clash. Barnsley’s 12-match unbeaten run ended with a derby defeat against Sheffield Wednesday, while Reading have gone three matches without a win.
Brentford head into their final nine matches of the season trailing both Watford and Swansea in the race for the second automatic promotion place behind Norwich. After two successive draws and just three wins from nine matches, the pressure is on if they are to avoid having to go through the play-offs again.
Swansea’s Championship promotion push has suffered a bit of a blip but they are fancied to get back on track when visiting Birmingham. The Swans have been beaten by fellow top-six hopefuls Bournemouth and Cardiff but should find the relegation-threatened Blues more conducive company.
Huddersfield and Cardiff could both be involved in exciting ends to the season but for very different reasons ahead of Friday night’s Championship clash. The Terriers have been sucked into the relegation battle after a dismal run of results, while Cardiff have surged up the table under Mick McCarthy.
There will be important points at stake as well as the Brian Clough Trophy when Nottingham Forest make the short trip to Derby. Unfortunately for neutrals, the bitter rivalry between these teams often means it is a scrappy affair and seven league meetings in the last four seasons have produced just eight goals.
The race for the Premier League hots up on Friday night when the top two teams in the Championship meet in south Wales. Norwich lead the way as they seek an immediate return to the Championship but have failed to score in their last three games in all competitions.
Watford have looked like genuine contenders for a quick return to the Premier League of late and are taken to prove too strong for QPR at Vicarage Road. Rangers are rated a solid, but unspectacular mid-table Championship outfit at best, so this is the kind of test the Hornets should safely negotiate.