Gabriel's Championship Predictions: 15th March

This weekend, the attention turns to South London, where there is more than just local pride at stake. Both Millwall and Charlton have recently changed their manager, both of whom are yet to win over the fans, as both sides are in danger of relegation. Going higher up the league, a Derby side who seem destined for a play-off place, travel to Reading, who are looking to secure theirs. Middlesbrough fans make the long journey to Bournemouth, while there’s a match-up between the highest and lowest wage bills in the Championship, as mega-bucks QPR host plucky Yeovil Town. Here’s a preview of the games.

Bolton vs. Brighton

Joe Mason

Bolton picked up a respectable point at Derby on Tuesday, and looked well organised. It is easy to point out the number of goals that Bolton have scored in the last few weeks, but it’s also worth noting that they have only conceded one goal in their previous four. The Trotters could see Joe Mason come back into the side, as the in-form striker was not selected for the Derby match in midweek. Brighton beat QPR 2-0 on Tuesday. Although their opponents had the majority of the play, Brighton did not allow them to create obvious goalscoring chances, and restricted QPR to long shots.  Brighton have more to play for and are higher in the table. On the other hand, Bolton are unbeaten in four and have home advantage, so these factors may negotiate themselves into a draw. 1-1.

Bournemouth vs. Middlesbrough

Spare a thought for the hard-core Middlesbrough fans. They will be making the eleven hour round trip to Bournemouth and back, as these clubs’ respective grounds are the longest distance apart in the Championship. Boro fans might be pleased to see Mustapha Carayol back in the starting eleven recently, and he scored against Forest on Tuesday. In wide positions, he seems to offer more of an attacking threat than the likes of Adomah and Kamara have since the turn of the year. Bournemouth have now won their last three games, keeping clean sheets in each of them. Lewis Grabban scored the winning goal for Bournemouth in away wins at Blackpool and Blackburn. The striker is now on fifteen goals for the season, and he has taken to his first season back in the Championship admirably. 2-1.

Burnley vs. Leeds

Brian McDermott

Burnley conceded a late equalizer at Birmingham on Wednesday, but they still have an eight point cushion in the promotion race. At the moment, if Burnley do drop points it is not necessarily a disaster, because both Derby and QPR are in poor form. Leeds have conceded nine goals in their last two, they are still uncertain about the club’s future – and that of Brian McDermott - due to the ownership situation. On the face of it, Leeds do not look capable of ending Burnley’s unbeaten home record. Yet by all accounts the Leeds players do want to play under McDermott, and it is possible that they will come out fighting, and put in a committed performance in a bid to keep him as their manager. Leeds may not crumble at the back like they have of late, but it would take a top performance to halt Burnley’s surge towards promotion. 1-0.

Huddersfield vs. Blackburn

Jordan Rhodes should enjoy an amicable return to the Galpharm, as his £8 million sale to Blackburn in 2012 gave Huddersfield a strong financial boost. However, the Scot will want to improve his current form, with just one goal since New Years Day. At the moment, Huddersfield could do with his finishing quality. Although they beat Barnsley 5-0 two weeks ago, goals are currently an issue, with three blanks in their last four games. They signed a number of strikers in the summer, and added Nahki Wells in January. But, partly due to fitness problems with James Vaughan and Jonathan Stead, they seem to be counting on big contributions from midfield. The main concern for Blackburn will be the fitness of captain Grant Hanley. The centre-back limped off during the defeat to Bournemouth, and that was his second injury in the space of a month. Huddersfield to pick up a ninth home win of the season. 2-1.

Ipswich vs. Wigan

Aaron Cresswell

Ipswich have only lost one of their last ten at home, and remained in the play-off picture thanks to a 1-0 win at Yeovil on Tuesday. According to statistics, 59% of their play in that match went down the left side, which suggests the Tractor Boys are still relying on left-back Aaron Cresswell to provide creativity. Wigan have won each of their last seven games, after Jordi Gomez’s late penalty gave them three points against Sheffield Wednesday. The Latics controlled that match, and they seem to have maintained the defensive solidity they had at the beginning of the season, despite a more adventurous approach under Rosler. They conceded just two goals in their last five league games, while in the FA Cup, limiting Man City to just one goal at the Etihad is no mean feat. Ipswich are rarely beaten at home, yet it’s hard to see anybody stopping Wigan at the moment. 0-2.

Leicester vs. Blackpool

It’s finally happened. After an eighteen game wait, Blackpool won a football match. The Tangerines beat Millwall 1-0, and goalkeeper Matt Gilks made up for giving away the winning penalty against Bournemouth on Saturday, by saving a penalty on Tuesday. As for Leicester, it is a question of when they will get promoted, rather than if. A man of the match performance from Jamie Vardy gave the Foxes a third consecutive 3-0 win, at Barnsley. Despite the recent win, Blackpool’s defence has looked a touch sloppy lately, and that is where Vardy’s relentless energy will come in useful for Leicester. Nigel Pearson side should record a comfortable win. 3-1.

Millwall vs. Charlton

Martyn Woolford

A South London derby with huge significance. For Charlton, this is Jose Riga’s second game in charge, and after a 0-0 draw with Huddersfield on Tuesday, we still do not know how he will impact Charlton. A win here might help him start to build a relationship with the Charlton fans. Millwall’s home form is not as good as it had been in the first half of the season, with just one win from their last six at the Den. A big problem is that the goals seem to have dried up somewhat, so bigger contributions are required from the likes of Steve Morison and Martyn Woolford. This will be a nervy game between two teams who have struggled to score of late, and a goalless draw is on the cards. 0-0.

Nottm Forest vs. Doncaster

Forest fans will be pleased to see Andy Reid back in the squad after an injury, and it was his cross which created Darius Henderson’s controversial goal at Middlesbrough. Doncaster picked up back-to-back home wins on Tuesday, not for the first time this season, and are now seven points above the bottom three. It was a match against Nottingham Forest almost three years ago, that Billy Sharp scored for Doncaster, before commemorating his passed away son with a T-Shirt message. Sharp is now back at the Keepmoat Stadium, and marked his return with a last minute winner against Watford. Already he has made the impact Paul Dickov will have wanted, and Doncaster might battle for a point. 1-1.

QPR vs. Yeovil

Harry Redknapp

Yeovil lost 1-0 at home to Ipswich on Tuesday. They remain in the hunt for survival, just two points off safety with a game in hand, but they now embark on three unenviable away games, at Wigan, Leicester, and Saturday’s opponents QPR. The Rs lost 2-0 at Brighton on Tuesday. They did have a lot of possession in that match, but in many ways it was the same story – they did not create enough. Yeovil’s plan away from home is often to defend deep, and allow their opponents plenty of time on the ball, but condense the forward areas. This might just work against QPR, who are struggling to break teams down at the moment. Yeovil to put in a backs-to-the-wall performance, and attain a valuable point. 0-0.

Reading vs. Derby

It seems remarkable to think that, not long ago, Derby were by far the highest-scorers in the division. Now, however, they have only scored three goals in their last six, and the goals seem to have dried up Steve McClaren’s side. Perhaps they have been hindered by the suspension to top scorer Chris Martin. Striker Connor Sammon has been uninspiring when he has come in. His hold-up play has been decent yet his finishing quality seems limited, so Rams fans will be thankful that Martin returns for this match. Reading will not want to change too much of the team which hit four goals past Leeds in midweek, and Hal Robson-Kanu could remain up front. Reading have more momentum, and arguably more to play for with the play-off race hotting up, so I would back them to win. 2-1.

Sheff Wed vs. Birmingham

Michail Antonio

Birmingham came from behind three times to pick up a great point against Burnley on Wednesday. Lee Clark seems to have a habit of changing his team to accommodate the opposition. That has often worked away from home, where he tends to condense the midfield with three men in the centre. Blues often make it difficult for teams to break them down when playing on the road, evidenced by the fact that no side in the bottom half have conceded less away goals than them. Sheffield Wednesday seem to be taking their foot off the gas a little bit. They have lost four of their last six games, and are not playing with the same attacking intent that they did when Stuart Gray first came in, and they were in a serious relegation battle. Birmingham need the points that little bit more, and they might just grind out a narrow win. 0-1.

Watford vs. Barnsley

Remarkably, Watford have only conceded once in eight home games since Giuseppe Sannino took office. In those matches, they restricted their opponents to an average of just two shots on target, which is further evidence of how organised the Hornets have become at Vicarage Road. Barnsley have only taken seven points on the road this season, and have the worst away record in the entire Football League. The Tykes are struggling to score goals. A few weeks ago, the partnership of Chris O’Grady and Nick Proschwitz looked capable of dragging them out of trouble, but neither have scored in the last five games. Watford are likely to hold onto a clean sheet, and get a comfortable win. 2-0.