League leaders host Birmingham City, whilst Brentford travel to take on Frank Lampard’s Derby County
With September over halfway through, the EFL Championship table – English club football’s second tier – is beginning to take shape. And it is Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United side which is the early season pace setters, having taken an impressive 18 points from their opening eight games – the Yorkshire club welcome Birmingham City to Elland Road in round nine.
First things first
Before you go any further, head on over to the Oddsshark website, find your favourite betting site and get your own account up and running using your credit card. As a new customer and with the Championship campaign already well underway, there should be a wide range of promotions and special offers available to you.
Where should I be investing my money?
First up, the Friday Night Football this week will come from the DW Stadium, as Wigan Athletic host Bristol City. The Latics have made a bright start to life in the Championship following promotion to League One, and sit seventh having won four of their first eight matches – including victories in their last two home games, against Rotherham United and Hull City.
Bristol City, meanwhile, have made an even better start and sit fifth in the table with 14 points – one more than Wigan, despite the two teams having one the same number of matches. However, City were thumped for four in their last league encounter on the road, losing 4-2 at West Brom and will be looking to bounce back here.
Nevertheless, it is home side Wigan who come into this clash as the favourites to take the points. You can more than double your money by backing the Latics to win at 2.15, while Bristol City are at 3.30 – a draw is only slightly higher at 3.40, according to Oddsshark.
This should be a close game but with home advantage expect Wigan to nick it. A 2-1 win for Athletic is priced at 8.50, with over 2.5 goals in the game coming in at 1.88.
Leeds looking to extend run of form
On the Saturday afternoon (22 September) league leaders Leeds United welcome Birmingham City to Elland Road looking to extend their lead at the top of the table. The Yorkshire club are unbeaten so far this season and last time out comprehensively beat Preston North End 3-0 – confidence is high in their camp ahead of this contest.
Birmingham, meanwhile, are one of only two teams in the division yet to win a league game this term. The Blues have five draws and two defeats from seven outings to date and have ,managed to avoid defeat in their last three games – this, however, will be their most stringent test yet.
And it is Leeds who come in as the clear favourites to win on home soil. You can back the table toppers to take the points at just 1.83, with visitors Birmingham out at 4.20 to pick up their first win of the campaign – a draw is priced in the middle at 4.20.
All in all, this should be a fairly stress free afternoon for Bielsa and his players. A comfortable, 2-0 win for Leeds is priced competitively at 8.50, meaning that a US$5 bet would lead to a US$42.50 pay out.
Derby need to find some stability
And finally, Derby County will look for some greater consistency when they host high flying Brentford on Saturday afternoon. Under rookie boss Frank Lampard, County’s early season form has been up and down, and the club currently sit eight with four wins and three defeats from their opening eight games.
Their recent form has taken a downturn however. Derby have taken just one point and scored no goals in their last two league encounters.
By way of contrast, Brentford sit second, just three points behind Leeds United and in excellent form heading into the weekend fixtures. The club is unbeaten in their last four games across all competitions and will give Lampard a real test of his managerial abilities.
And despite home advantage, Derby are out at 3.20 to take all three points in this one. Meanwhile, you can more than double your money by backing Brentford to win again at a price of 2.20.
We are not expecting a goal fest here. A narrow, 1-0 win for Brentford comes in at 8.00, while you could also potentially double your money by backing under 2.5 goals in the game at 2.00.
EFL Championship round 9 fixtures:
Friday, 21 September
(2.15) Wigan Athletic x Bristol City (3.30); draw (3.40)
Saturday, 22 September
(1.57) Aston Villa x Sheffield Wednesday (5.75); draw (4.00)
(3.20) Derby County x Brentford (2.20); draw (3.40)
(2.05) Ipswich Town x Bolton Wanderers (3.50); draw (3.40)
(1.83) Leeds United x Birmingham City (4.20); draw (3.60)
(1.72) Middlesbrough x Swansea City (4.60); draw (3.75)
(1.55) Nottingham Forest x Rotherham (6.00); draw (4.00)
(2.40) Reading x Hull City (2.90); draw (3.30)
(1.85) Sheffield United x Preston North End (4.33); draw (3.40)
(1.95) Stoke City x Blackburn Rovers (4.00); draw (3.30)
(1.80) West Brom x Millwall (4.33); draw (3.60)
(2.50) QPR x Norwich City (2.80); draw (3.30)