With just a handful of matchdays to go, things are starting to hot up in the EFL Championship. Fulham look nailed on for promotion, but who will join them in next season’s Premier League? The battle for survival is also set to go to the wire.
We pick out the top four matches from this weekend’s round of action, including the Queens Park Rangers vs Fulham affair. Check out our matchday 40 Championship predictions.
EFL Championship Matchday 40: Best Betting Football Tips
Blackpool vs. Nottingham Forest: EFL Betting Tip
Saturday’s early fixture is a big one at Bloomfield Road as Blackpool entertain Nottingham Forest. With both teams in fine form, this promises to be an entertaining encounter in Lancashire. Forest start the weekend six points above the Tangerines.
Neil Critchley’s Blackpool have had a strong first season back in the Championship. Pool booked their place in the second tier by winning last term’s EFL League One play-offs. Blackpool have more than held their own, winning an impressive 14 of their 37 league fixtures. They are in 13th place on 52 points.
Nottingham Forest have made a drastic improvement since Steve Cooper took over. The Reds are in ninth position right now, just three points away from sixth-place Blackburn Rovers. Forest have suffered just one Championship defeat in 2022.
Both teams are on impressive unbeaten runs at present, and the pair look hard to split on paper. However, we fancy Nottingham Forest to edge a tight tussle at Bloomfield Road. You can get 29/10 for the visitors to win by one goal.
Blackpool 43/20
Draw 43/20
Nottingham Forest 11/8
* Bookmaker Unibet
Odds: 29/10 odds taken 1806 GMT, Thursday 31 March
Cardiff City vs. Swansea City: Best Football League Betting Predictions
Fierce rivals Cardiff City and Swansea City meet at the Cardiff City Stadium this Saturday in a South Wales derby. The Swans could become the first team to do the league double in this fixture after their impressive 3-0 home victory back in October. However, the Bluebirds are the bookies’ favourites in this one.
Steve Morison has done a fine job at Cardiff since taking over in the Welsh capital from the sacked Mick McCarthy, turning the Bluebirds into a decent outfit. Cardiff have been in good form of late, picking up eight wins from their last 13 Championship matches.
Russell Martin has had a tough first season at the Swansea.com Stadium. The Swans reached the play-offs two years running under Steve Cooper, but Martin’s men have spent this season in the bottom half of the Championship table. Still, they have secured five wins in their last ten.
Cardiff head into this derby unbeaten in four (three wins, one draw), and the capital club will be desperate to avoid the first South Wales derby league double on Saturday. Back Cardiff to edge it at 13/10.
Cardiff City 13/10
Draw 43/20
Swansea City 9/4
* Bookmaker Unibet
Odds: 15/2 odds taken 1815 GMT, Thursday 31 March
Queens Park Rangers vs. Fulham: EFL Betting Odds & Predictions
West London teams QPR and Fulham go head-to-head at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium this Saturday. The Cottagers, who sit pretty at the top, will be hoping to take another giant leap towards promotion to the Premier League. As expected, Marco Silva’s men are the odds-on favourites.
QPR have had a slump in form of late, losing four of the last five. Since a 4-0 win over Reading in January, the Hoops have claimed just two league victories. As a result, Mark Warburton’s boys have dropped out of the play-off slots.
Fulham have taken just one point from their last two fixtures, drawing at Barnsley and losing at The Hawthorns. Nevertheless, Silva’s side are eight points clear at the top of the table. More importantly, the Cottagers are a whopping 14 points ahead of third position.
Fulham should chalk up another three points here, piling more misery on out-of-sorts QPR in the process. There is good value in 12/5 for the away win and both teams to score.
Queens Park Rangers 18/5
Draw 14/5
Fulham 3/4
* Bookmaker Unibet
Odds: 12/5 odds taken 1819 GMT, Thursday 31 March
Birmingham City vs. West Bromwich Albion: Best EFL Championship Betting Tips on Matchday 40
Birmingham City and West Bromwich Albion clash at St Andrew’s in an all-Midlands matchup on Sunday afternoon. The Baggies still have slim hopes of claiming a top-six place this season, but they must put together a winning run. Can they start with three points in Birmingham?
Lee Bowyer’s Blues have had another tough season in the Championship. Still, they will be a second-tier club once again next term, as City are 14 points clear of 22nd place. Birmingham have struggled for wins, though, with just Peterborough United and Barnsley winning fewer in this season’s Championship.
After picking up one point from a possible 21, West Brom have recovered well by winning two and drawing two of the last four. Steve Bruce’s boys are seven points away from the final play-off place in 12th. They need a miracle to break into the top six, but three points on Sunday would keep their slender dreams alive.
West Brom have been tough to beat in recent weeks, though two of the last three have ended in draws. We can see these two neighbours cancelling each other out at St Andrew’s, so put some money on the draw at 23/10.
Birmingham City 27/10
Draw 23/10
West Bromwich Albion 27/25
* Bookmaker Unibet
Odds: 23/10 odds taken 1823 GMT, Thursday 31 March
