Ipswich may be at the wrong end of the Championship table, but they are rated a value bet to beat Middlesbrough, judged on our Trueform chart. The Tractor Boys have only lost one of their last four matches and are unbeaten in five league games at Portman Road this term.
Joleon Lescott earned 26 England caps as a defender and served Wolves, Everton and Manchester City with great distinction. We ask him about how his former clubs are faring this season.
Stoke have struggled to adapt to life in the Championship but are fancied to prove a cut above Rotherham, judged on our Trueform ratings. These teams were in the Premier League and League One respectively last season, so the hope is that the Potters are still a class apart at this stage.
The launch of the latest installment of the world’s biggest football video game is upon us, armed with new gameplay features, like ‘dynamic tactics’ and ‘timed finishing’, but what most gamers will be more worried about is assembling their Ultimate Team starter squad. Where are you going to be able to find players that will be competitive without costing an arm and a leg? We’ve been digging into the stats to find some clues.
Across Europe, certain clubs have built up a reputation for bringing through players who go on to shine elsewhere. We’ve analysed every current top-flight club in England, Spain, Italy, Germany, France and Belgium over the last decade to see how many of the players in those divisions this season have passed through their ranks.
Bristol City are regularly tracking above Wigan on our Trueform chart and even impressed in Tuesday night’s 4-2 Championship loss at West Brom. However, the likeable Latics are unbeaten in four home matches this term, picking up 10 points out of a possible 12 at DW Stadium.
QPR have recovered well from a poor start to the Championship campaign and are fancied to maintain the momentum by beating Millwall. Steve McClaren’s side have picked up seven points from their last three games and achieved a high Trueform rating for Saturday’s triumph at Bolton.
Real Madrid begin their quest for a fourth straight Champions League triumph by taking on last season’s beaten semi-finalists Roma at the Bernabeu. The Whites will this time have to do it without key figures Cristiano Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane to rely on for inspiration but can still shine.
Stoke were slow to adapt to life in the Championship but are now enjoying more good days than bad and are fancied to see off Swansea. The Welsh outfit have produced several poor Trueform ratings of late due to struggling up front and lost twice to the Potters in the Premier League last term.
Blackburn and Aston Villa are very closely matched on our Trueform ratings over the last four rounds of Championship fixtures. Both teams are in mid-table with nine points and looking to bounce back from suffering heavy defeats prior to the international break.
Martin O’Neill will take a depleted Republic of Ireland squad to Poland for Tuesday’s international friendly and we fear more misery for the men in green. Robert Lewandowski is poised to celebrate his 100th international cap for the hosts, who will be keen to make the occasion even more memorable with a win.
Michael O’Neill called Northern Ireland’s Nations League defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina “a sore one” and Israel may feel the backlash at Windsor Park. The hosts are 66 places above their opponents in the FIFA rankings and are traditionally strong when playing in front of their own fans.
We’re continuing our series of analytical summaries for the EFL, covering three teams from each of the Championship, League One and League Two. Rather than starting alphabetically we’ve selected clubs at random and identified their top three strengths, weaknesses, goalscorers and creators.
Leeds and Middlesbrough are joint-top of the Championship table after five rounds of fixtures but United have been more impressive so far. New manager Marcelo Bielsa has brought high-tempo tactics to Elland Road and that can give them the edge over the more pragmatic game-plan of Tony Pulis.