EFL Tips: Gab Sutton's Championship, League 1 & League 2 Tips for Boxing Day
There's a Boxing Day bonanza to look forward to this week, with a full schedule of EFL fixtures across the three divisions.
Gab Sutton, our Free Bets EFL expert, has lined up his top EFL betting tips for the best of the action.
EFL Betting Tips
Here are Gab's five betting tips for the weekend - ideal for an EFL acca - along with the best prices and latest odds from our top UK betting sites.
Norwich vs Charlton - Norwich to win
After a disastrous first third of the season under Liam Manning, with nine points from their first 15 games, Norwich have turned their fortunes around under Phillippe Clement, accruing the same number of points from seven since the Belgian was appointed.
Clement’s experience, nous and, crucially, authority in the dressing room, has proved crucial for the Canaries, who look almost entirely transformed, although such a poor start means, even with this turnaround, they remain 23rd.
There’s been an improvement in performances though, perhaps even greater than the improvement in results, with the Canaries coming tantalisingly close to victories against Oxford and PNE, but for injury-time equalizers.
Vladan Kovacevic has been an imposing presence in goal, Ruairi McConville has shown talent in defence, Pelle Mattsson has covered every blade of grass in midfield, Jacob Wright has the Yellow Army questioning why he was out of the team under previous management, and Jovon Makama remains one of the few recruitment success stories in attack.
Bradford vs Wigan - Bradford to win
Bradford’s 2-1 loss at Leyton Orient at the weekend was only their third league defeat of the campaign, as Graham Alexander’s side continue to defy expectations by challenging at League One’s summit.
Defeat interrupts a three-game winning streak for the Bantams, who have benefited from excellent summer recruitment from Director of Football David Sharpe.
Defenders Matt Pennington and Joe Wright, wing-backs Josh Neufville and Ibou Touray, midfielder Max Power and forward Stephen Humphrys have slotted in nicely for the West Yorkshire outfit, while Sam Walker, Antoni Sarcevic and Bobby Pointon have stepped up to the level admirably.
Visitors Wigan make the jaunt across the Pennines off the back of a defeat, with the 2-0 home loss to neighbours Blackpool seeing Ryan Lowe’s side conclude their seven-game unbeaten run in the league, dropping to 14th – and Lowe called out boos from supporters at full-time.
Luton vs Wycombe - Double Chance: Wycombe/Draw
Luton’s 3-2 loss at Reading last Thursday saw Jack Wilshere’s side go from being four without defeat, to four without a win, in a mixed start to the former Arsenal midfielder’s tenure as head coach at Kenilworth Road.
Being five points off the Play-Offs isn’t what the Hatters had in mind for this season in League One, having played Premier League football as recently as 2023-24, but the board, and CEO Garry Cook, have put a lot of money into the new stadium project, which has seen first-team performance move to the back-burner.
Despite their chronic inconsistency, Town welcome a Wycombe side in far better form, under a more established head coach in Michael Duff, as clear favourites, albeit at odds-against, which could prove a miscalculation from the traders.
The visitors have only lost two in 13 since Duff took the reigns, to implement some sterner foundations to the side, helping them move from 19th to 9th within three months, and on the coat-tails of the Play-Off scramble.
Gillingham vs Cambridge - Cambridge draw no bet
With just five defeats in their first 21 league games, Cambridge have been as reliable as anyone in League Two.
Neil Harris’ team have accumulated a steady flow of points, and have never really been out-of-form this season, and now they’re unbeaten in seven with one of the division’s best defences.
It was another clean sheet for the U’s on Saturday, beating Accrington Stanley 2-0 as Kelland Watts continues to star at the back, with the goals coming from James Gibbons and Sullay Kaikai.
Harris is surely out to prove to the Gills what they’re missing, having fired the former Millwall boss back in 2023 with the team in a competitive position, and they’ve since acquired the habit of seeing solid starts fade into midtable.
That trend looks set to continue under Gareth Ainsworth, who has had some health challenges that have impacted his involvement, with the Kent outfit winless in six following a 2-1 loss at Fleetwood last time out.
Since September’s 3-1 victory at Newport, the last game before Ainsworth departed for health reasons, prior to returning to the building, Gillingham have taken just nine points from 12 games, with their Play-Off prospects fading and fast.
Tranmere vs Fleetwood - Fleetwood draw no bet
Fleetwood have emerged as clear Play-Off credentials in the run-up to Christmas.
Pete Wild’s side began with 11 points from six, before four points from five set them back across September but, mid-October onwards, it’s 21 points from 11 as the team continues to carry a serious threat.
The Fylde coast outfit boast one of the best midfields in the league, in Matty Virtue, Elliot Bonds and Mark Helm, while Ryan Graydon is one of the most complete strikers in the division as well.
With Ethan Ennis and Lewis McCann representing extremely attacking options in wing-back areas, the Trawlermen pose a multitude of threats, which has seen them score 32 goals this season – more than leaders Walsall.
Hosts Tranmere, on the other hand, have got things wrong at the other end, are struggling without Lee O’Connor, and have just suffered back-to-back defeats to keep Andy Crosby’s side confined to the bottom half.
More Football Tips
Check out below for more football betting tips on this week's football action.
