Championship: Fulham, Bournemouth, Blackburn among teams in hunt for promotion to the Premier League | Football News

There is an enthralling race in progress for promotion from the Championship to the Premier League.

Fulham currently lead the way, with Huddersfield behind them in second, and Bournemouth, Blackburn, QPR and Sheffield United occupying the remaining top-six places. Up to nine teams below them will still believe they can make the cut too.

Here, we assess the runners and riders, their form and their remaining fixtures as they bid to break free of the Championship’s clutches and reach the Premier League…

Fulham

Position: 1st
Games played: 34
Points: 73
Sky Bet promotion odds: Currently suspended

To say Fulham have taken the Championship by storm this season would be an understatement of the highest order. Last term ended in another gloomy relegation from the Premier League, with Scott Parker departing in the summer as a result. Player churn was kept to a minimum, with Harry Wilson, Rodrigo Muniz and Nathaniel Chalobah the only outfield incomings.

The Cottagers’ squad was clearly seen as one that could compete and ensure their return to the second tier was short and sweet and Marco Silva – who replaced Parker on a three-year deal after 18 months out of management – has managed to successfully mould it to his needs.

It has not been perfect, and, at times, Fulham have shown they are not infallible – they were forced to navigate a tricky spell from September into early October and did not win any of their last five games in 2021.

But they have been top of the pile since November thanks to some crushing victories, including 7-0 triumphs away at Blackburn and Reading and successive 6-2 home wins against Bristol City and Birmingham just three days apart. At this point, given that Fulham are 17 points clear of seventh-placed Sheffield United and nine points clear at the summit – though Bournemouth have two games in hand – promotion seems an inevitability.

Now, they have the chance to make history. When Steve Coppell’s Reading side won the Championship in 2005/06, they scored a record 99 goals and earned a record 106 points; Fulham have scored 84 goals in 34 games and earned 73 points so far and, based on their current goals-per-game ratio and points-per-game ratio, that could become 114 goals and 99 points.

If that was not enough, star striker Aleksandar Mitrovic has set a new record for the most goals scored in a Championship season since the rebrand in 2004. It is all looking pretty rosy in west London.

Key fixtures: West Brom (A) (March 15, 8pm), Nottingham Forest (H) (March 19, 8pm), QPR (A) (April 2, 3pm), Middlesbrough (A) (April 5, 7.45pm), Bournemouth (A) (April 23, 3pm)

Huddersfield

Position: 2nd
Games played: 36
Points: 62
Sky Bet promotion odds: 7/1

Few would have foreseen Huddersfield challenging for promotion less than a year after retaining their status as a Championship team by just six points. Carlos Corberan – a former protege of ex-Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa, of course – did not enjoy the most successful debut season at the John Smith’s Stadium, but the board remained patient.

And doing so has paid off. Other than three straight wins before the September international break, there was no real rhythm to the way things were panning out and until November, almost every other result was a defeat, yet the Terriers never dropped below 11th.

Now momentum is with them. A 15-game unbeaten run in the league lit up by an impressive victory at Fulham, while a comprehensive 3-0 victory at home to Peterborough on March 4 extended that to 16 and lifted Corberan’s men into the automatic promotion places, which was unthinkable last season.

Key fixtures: West Brom (A) (March 11, 8pm), Bournemouth (H) (March 19, 3pm), QPR (H) (April 15, 3pm), Middlesbrough (A) (April 18, 3pm)

Bournemouth

Position: 3rd
Games played: 32
Points: 61
Sky Bet promotion odds: 1/7

For what seemed like a lifetime throughout the 2020/21 season, Bournemouth looked nailed on to secure an immediate return to the Premier League. In the play-off positions from the first weekend, they had climbed into the top two by Christmas. But then a pretty disastrous start to the year knocked them off course and a six-game winning streak towards the end of the season could not prevent them finishing in the play-offs, where they were knocked out in the semi-final by Brentford.

Remarkably, there was no hangover when they got back under way in August under the guidance of Scott Parker. With 11 wins from their first 15 games and just eight goals conceded in that time, they stormed to the top of the league.

But history was soon repeating itself, to an extent. The Cherries lost 2-1 to Preston prior to the November international break and then dropped off top spot after a shock 3-2 defeat to Derby after its conclusion. The dip continued throughout December and into January, by which point they had dropped, briefly, down to third.

The club’s hierarchy then decided to draft in Deadline Day recruits in order to arrest the slump. Siriki Dembele and Kieffer Moore arrived on permanent deals, while Nat Phillips, Freddie Woodman and Todd Cantwell arrived on loan from Liverpool, Newcastle and Norwich respectively.

And it has been so far, so good since. They may have exited the FA Cup fourth round at the hands of non-League Boreham Wood, but four of the last five league games have ended in victory and the Cherries still have up to four games in hand on the teams around them.

Key fixtures: West Brom (A) (April 5, 8pm), Sheffield United (A) (April 9, 3pm), Middlesbrough (H) (April 15, 3pm), Fulham (H) (April 23, 3pm), Blackburn (A) (April 30, 3pm), Sheffield United (A) (May 7, 12.30pm)

Blackburn

Position: 4th
Games played: 35
Points: 57
Sky Bet promotion odds: 4/1

Everyone loves an underdog, don’t they? Tony Mowbray’s men have certainly taken that label this season. There have been glimpses of their attacking capabilities over the last three campaigns, but two 15th-placed finishes and one 11th-placed finish were nothing to write home about, let alone enough to suggest a sustained promotion push.

Even until November, there was no real sign of what was to come, following an indifferent start. But a 7-0 defeat to Fulham at Ewood Park on November 2 caused a shift in momentum. Rovers went on to win eight of the next 10 games, conceding just three goals in the process, to firmly ensconce themselves in the top-two race.

There is no doubting the evolution of run-of-the-mill Championship forward Ben Brereton into deadly No 9 and Chile international Ben Brereton Diaz has been key in their exploits this season. The 22-year-old – who has become a cult hero in the South American country – has scored four goals in his 12 caps since his debut last June has gone on to hit 20 league goals for his club side so far.

Since the turn of the year, however, victories have not been quite so forthcoming. Mowbray’s men have won three of their 11 league games in 2022 and are now five points outside the top two after putting pressure on Fulham and Bournemouth for a lengthy period. The fact Brereton Diaz looks to be sidelined until after the international break is a blow, too.

There remains cause for optimism, particularly with a relatively kind fixture list in the final months of the campaign, but given their lack of consistency of late, vast improvement is required if Blackburn are to take their best chance of returning to the Premier League after a decade away.

Key fixtures: Millwall (H) (March 8, 7.45pm), Coventry (A) (April 2, 3pm), Blackpool (H) (April 9, 3pm), Bournemouth (H) (April 30, 3pm)

QPR

Position: 5th
Games played: 35
Points: 56
Sky Bet promotion odds: 16/1

Since QPR were relegated from the Premier League in May 2015, they have found it difficult to break into the top half of the Championship, meaning any chance of troubling the promotion picture has been extinguished fairly early. Under Mark Warburton, though, there is a project in place which has brought year-on-year growth since his appointment in 2019.

In 2019/20, the Rs finished 13th and in 2020/21 they finished ninth, which represented their highest finish in six seasons. And so in the summer there was some shrewd transfer business, which included the return of Charlie Austin to the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.

Though QPR went unbeaten in their first six, there have been peaks and troughs throughout the campaign – with a notable blip through September and October – which sent signals out that they were on a play-off hunt as opposed to a quest to challenge local rivals Fulham for a top-two spot.

Ever the entertainers, they had scored at least once in every single away game until a shock 1-0 defeat to basement club Barnsley at Oakwell put paid to any hopes of extending that enviable streak, three days before a 2-0 loss at Millwall. A draw with Hull and defeat at Blackburn, either side of victory over Blackpool, has seen the Rs suffer further blows in recent weeks.

Seventh-placed Sheffield United are just two points behind with a game in hand – but QPR hold onto a play-off spot for now.

Key fixtures: Nottingham Forest (A) (March 16, 7.45pm), Fulham (H) (April 2, 3pm), Sheffield United (A) (April 5, 7.45pm), Huddersfield (A) (April 15, 3pm), Sheffield United (H) (April 30, 3pm)

Middlesbrough

Position: 6th
Games played: 34
Points: 55
Sky Bet promotion odds: 10/3

Shortly after guiding Middlesbrough towards the play-offs following an indifferent start, Neil Warnock broke the record for the most games managed in English professional football in November and then, within days, left the Riverside.

It was clearly not a snap decision, as Chris Wilder was installed as his successor the very next day. The former Sheffield United boss had the November international break in which to get his methods across and, despite a draw and a loss in his first two games, soon had Boro ticking along nicely.

In the 17 league games since he took charge, Boro have taken 33 of the 51 points on offer, scored 26 goals and kept five clean sheets; in the 17 games Warnock oversaw, they earned 22 points from the 51 on offer, scored 19 and kept six clean sheets. Things are clearly heading in the right direction.

With the permanent signings of Caolan Boyd-Munce and Riley McGree adding to the loan captures of Folarin Balogun from Arsenal and Aaron Connolly from Brighton, an already strong squad that has performed admirably over the past few months looks capable of keeping Boro in the promotion mix for some time to come.

Key fixtures: Sheffield United (A) (March 8, 7.45pm), Fulham (A) (April 5, 7.45pm), Bournemouth (A) (April 15, 3pm), Huddersfield (H) (April 18, 3pm)

Sheffield United

Position: 7th
Games played: 34
Points: 54
Sky Bet promotion odds: 9/4

There was plenty of promise when Slavisa Jokanovic was handed the reins at Bramall Lane last summer, but there were few signs the Blades were capable of launching a promotion and the Serb was sacked on November 25.

Paul Heckingbottom was promoted from his role as U23 manager shortly afterwards and has since lost just two of his 15 league games in charge and lifted his side into the top 10 for the first time this season, with the help of veteran frontman Billy Sharp, who has scored nine of his 14 goals since Heckingbottom took charge.

United climbed into the top six in late February, and were swiftly replaced when a 1-0 defeat to Millwall at The Den brought a nine-match unbeaten streak to its conclusion. They returned there following a gripping 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest on Friday night, but were swiftly knocked back off their perch on Saturday.

Key fixtures: Middlesbrough (H) (March 8, 7.45pm), Coventry (A) (March 12, 3pm), Stoke (A) (April 2, 3pm), QPR (H) (April 5, 7.45pm), Bournemouth (H) (April 9, 3pm), QPR (A) (April 30, 3pm), Fulham (H) (May 7, 12.30pm)

Luton

Position: 8th
Games played: 34
Points: 54
Sky Bet promotion odds: 12/1

Luton have recovered from being at rock bottom. From financial crisis and dropping out of the EFL – 10 years ago they were in their third season in the Conference – the bounce back has been nothing short of stunning, with a lot of time and hard graft invested along the way.

To an extent, you could say they are still riding the wave that has come with it. But there’s no denying the Hatters are here on merit.

Nathan Jones – who returned to Kenilworth Road just under two years ago, after an ill-fated spell at Stoke – is an optimistic manager and, at the tail end of 2021, gave a glimpse in to what he and his side are targeting this term.

“We have been able to maintain and establish but now we want to really challenge for certain things,” he said. “A lot of people would look and say that’s unrealistic given where we are budget-wise but we don’t rely on budget. We rely on work, recruitment and the process of what we do here.

“If we can sell that, and players buy into it, then we are able to compete with people with greater resources.”

The run-in will certainly provide a stern test as to whether or not they are able to continue this challenge, but Luton have won five of their last seven games and have arrived into the play-off mix at just the right time, it seems.

Key fixtures: Middlesbrough (A) (March 5, 3pm), QPR (H) (March 13, 12pm), Huddersfield (A) (April 9, 3pm), Nottingham Forest (H) (April 15, 3pm), Fulham (A) (April 30, 3pm)

The chasing pack

It would not be a regular Championship season if there was not a ridiculously congested promotion picture, would it? The top six have been covered, but there are plenty of teams just outside the play-off places vying to break through.

There’s Nottingham Forest (7/1 for promotion), who were inexplicably sat bottom of the Championship for much of the first month of the season. Chris Hughton was then replaced by former Swansea boss Steve Cooper, who has drastically transformed their fortunes; they lost just one of his first 15 games in charge and have won four of the last six.

The Reds even crept into the top six after a 2-0 win at Blackburn on February 9, only to be swiftly replaced when they drew 2-2 with Stoke three days later. With just one defeat in their last nine, it seems to be only a matter of time before they return.

Meanwhile, West Brom (12/1) started well on their return to the second tier, but became inconsistent from October onwards, which ultimately led to Valerien Ismael losing his job. Five of the Frenchman’s final seven games in charge in all competitions ended in defeat, with the Baggies dropping out of the top six for the first time all season when they lost 2-0 at Millwall on January 29.

Steve Bruce took over on February 3 and endured four defeats from his first five, with his side scoring just one goal in that stretch. The 2-0 win at Hull on March 5 was their first in eight, leaving them down in 13th as things stand.

Millwall (16/1) – who missed out on the play-offs by three points in 2017/18 and two points in 2019/20 – are in the mix after five straight wins, as are Coventry (16/1) who occupied a play-off spot from the start of the season until late November.

Preston (100/1) and Blackpool (250/1) are still in touch, too, though the Sky Bet odds suggest promotion is unlikely from this point on.