Sutton’s Acca: 15/1 EFL Bet

The Championship is back, and it’s a full billing of fixtures this weekend, so EFL pundit Gab Sutton returns with a fivefold.

Middlesbrough to win at Huddersfield – 4/6

Middlesbrough responded to a rare defeat, at West Brom at the end of February, with a return of 10 points from the last four league games: they continue to fly under Michael Carrick.

Their form since the change of manager has put Boro three points off the second automatic promotion spot, with Sheffield United having a game in hand.

It’s important the Teessiders take three points at Huddersfield, though, because they have champions-elect Burnley visiting on Good Friday: taking all three points in that game will be a tough assignment and, so tight is the race, they can’t afford to drop points consecutively.

Middlesbrough have the Championship’s top goalscorer in Chuba Akpom, who has bagged a stunning 24 goals as a number 10, whilst linking up beautifully with striker Cameron Archer, on loan from Aston Villa, Marcus Forss, and Riley McGree.

With Hayden Hackney running the midfield with boundless energy alongside Jonny Howson and Ryan Giles bringing the craft from left-back, Boro should get the job done in West Yorkshire, even against a spirited Terriers side fighting for their Championship lives.

Barnsley to beat Morecambe – 2/7

Morecambe didn’t put in a bad performance at MK Dons last week, and had a good proportion of the territory, especially in the first half, but ultimately lost 1-0.

All the Shrimps had to show for their neat passages of play was one shot on target, from Ashley Hunter, because they had no cutting edge in the final third.

Oumar Niasse, who once played in the Premier League for Hull, hasn’t quite been able to make the decisive impact because he’s struggled for match sharpness, having been on the free agent list in February.

Cole Stockton, who scored an astonishing 23 goals last season, has seen his form and performances drop off a cliff in this campaign, and it looks increasingly unlikely that he will finish this season with any remnants of his 2021-22 self.

As such, Morecambe don’t have the final third incision to make their better moments count for something, and that’s a problem when they go to Barnsley, because their better moments might not be particularly long or numerous.

The Tarn are one of the best pressing teams in the league thanks to the work rate of Devante Cole and James Norwood, they can run games thanks to the control of Luca Connell and the ball-playing nous of Mads Anderson, they have clear patterns of play and telepathic relationships everywhere you look.

Sheffield Wednesday to beat Lincoln – 2/5

Sheffield Wednesday are hoping two late goals in midweek, which salvaged a point at Cheltenham after a poor performance, will be enough to end their blip.

The Owls went into Wednesday’s game off the back of successive defeats, including one to bottom side Forest Green on Sunday, and fans were fearing the worst before Aden Flint and Lee Gregory clawed a point from the jaws of defeat.

Darren Moore will need to work out a way for his side to do the business without key midfielder George Byers, but forward Mallik Wilks may come into his thinking after making a huge impact off the bench at Whaddon Road.

Aden Flint is a better middle centre-back option than Dominic Iorfa, and could come into the XI here, while the likes of Dennis Adeniran and Fisayo Dele-Bashiru also offer options to freshen things up at right wing-back and in midfield respectively.

Wednesday have had a blip, but they do have the solutions to address it, and are still four points clear in the automatic promotion race – albeit with Ipswich having a game in hand.

Lincoln, meanwhile, travel to Hillsborough off the back of three consecutive defeats – their season is plateauing in midtable.

AFC Wimbledon to beat Rochdale – 11/10

Any mild fears of Wimbledon getting dragged into a late relegation dogfight have been eased by Tuesday’s 2-0 victory over Walsall, but it’ll take a little bit more to build optimism ahead of next season.

Manager Johnnie Jackson can be encouraged by the performance in midweek, though, and will want his side to match the consistency of Ali Al Hamadi who, individually, has enjoyed an excellent run of form since joining from Wycombe in January, scoring seven goals in 13 appearances.

The Dons have a little bit more depth in their squad, now, and if talents like Jack Currie, at left-back, can play as they are capable, they might secure successive victories against Rochdale.

The visitors parted company with manager Jim Bentley in the week, with the team 11 points adrift at the bottom with eight games to play.

Dale think a lot of interim manager Jimmy McNulty – they told interviewed candidates when Bentley was appointed that they rated him highly but didn’t feel he was ready.

In the circumstances, they are now happy to give him the opportunity to show what he can do in the remaining games, with a view to him leading the rebuild, likely in the National League next season.

It’s a tough assignment for McNulty, though, after the performance at Crawley last week – and PPG projections suggest they’ll need 19 points from their remaining eight games to beat the drop. Big ask.

Swindon to win at Hartlepool – 6/4

Also in danger of falling through the EFL’s trap door are Hartlepool, who have managed to claw some results together under John Askey, against tough opposition.

Pools have held Northampton, Bradford and Leyton Orient to draws in their last three games, and are unbeaten in five, but are also winless in nine.

With Crawley pulling away to give themselves a five-point gap, draws won’t do the County Durham much good: they have to hope the quality of MK Dons loanee Dan Kemp, and summer Wealdstone recruit Josh Umerah, can keep them up.

There is a possibility, though, that desperation from the hosts might open the game up for Swindon, who lost 1-0 to Stockport last time out, after forward Jacob Wakeling was dismissed inside the first minute.

Town have pace, though, in Rushian Hepburn-Murphy, who can do plenty of damage on the counter-attack, if he can rekindle remnants of the potential he once showed as a youngster at Aston Villa, before a spate of injuries.

Jody Morris’ troops can also rely on the clinical finishing of Charlie Austin, who hit four at Rochdale in their previous away game.

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