After the disappointment of the postponed game on Friday, the Sky Bet Championship will attempt to resume on Saturday when 11 matches are scheduled to take place, should the storms abate enough for them all to go ahead.
Should they all go ahead then we will get the chance to watch the first game live on TV before the remaining matches come along in the traditional 3pm kick off slot where updates on those will come in the usual places.
Saturday’s fixtures are as follows: (3pm unless stated, UK TV in brackets)
Preston North End v Millwall (12.30pm – Sky Football)
Blackburn Rovers v Cardiff City
Bristol City v Coventry City
Huddersfield Town v Queens Park Rangers
Hull City v Southampton
Middlesbrough v Birmingham City
Norwich City v Leeds United
Stoke City v Sunderland
Swansea City v Leicester City
Watford v Sheffield Wednesday
West Bromwich Albion v Plymouth Argyle
Special Offer
Sign up for a Boylesports account and bet £10 to get up to £20 in free bets! Perfect offer for the Sky Bet Championship! Click the image below for this great offer! New accounts only. 18+ T&Cs apply. Gamble Aware.
Big Matches
With second placed Ipswich Town seeing their match postponed on Friday evening, the leaders Leicester City get the chance to move five points clear at the top of the table if they can find a victory when they head across the Severn Bridge to take on Swansea City. That match is not the TV game however. It is the one between third placed Preston North End, who will hope the international break came at a good time after three straight defeats, and a Millwall side who will be competing without Gary Rowett in charge for the first time in four years after his dismissal in midweek.
Best of the Rest
Sunderland, Leeds United and Birmingham City sit inside the top six on the resumption of the competition and all face away matches. Leeds have the trickiest test of them all as they head to Carrow Road to take on a Norwich City side for whom injuries have hampered them recently. Sunderland head to the Stadium of Light to take on former manager Alex Neil and his Stoke City side while Birmingham City begin life with Wayne Rooney in charge when the Blues head up north to take on a Middlesbrough side who probably didn’t want the international break to come having won their last four matches. At the other end of the table two teams in early relegation trouble meet at Vicarage Road where Watford host bottom of the pile Sheffield Wednesday while two more battle it out in Yorkshire as Huddersfield Town welcome QPR to the John Smiths Stadium.
Betting
All eyes will be on the Riverside Stadium on Saturday to see how Wayne Rooney begins life at Birmingham City. The former Manchester United ace will need to start well because John Eustace was doing some good work at St Andrews but I suspect it will take a game or two before we see the Blues flourish under Rooney because the former England star will change the style to playing out from the back and maintaining possession and that doesn’t come overnight.
He probably has the debut in the dugout from hell against a Middlesbrough side who clicking into gear prior to the international break with four successive wins, victories which included successes over Sunderland and Southampton, two top seven sides in the division. Middlesbrough have generally been a force under Carrick and now he looks to have his new look squad working how he wants it I expect to see much the same that we saw from Boro last term under him and I think they’ll have too much for a transitional Birmingham side here.
Tips
Back Middlesbrough to beat Birmingham City for a 3/10 stake at 1.80 with Coral
