David Buchanan
Ex-Preston & Northampton full-back on Squad Goals

Luton head up the M6 with a team that’s full confidence. Momentum is really building for Nathan Jones’ men with three wins from their last five games. Elijah Adebayo and Harry Cornick have been absolutely superb.

The Lilywhites put on a gutsy display on Wednesday night, losing narrowly lost 2-0 against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup. They'll be hoping to draw some confidence from midweek.

Preston fans have been speculating on Frankie McAvoy’s future and last week’s derby defeat by Blackpool has only heaped more pressure on the North End boss.

Deepdale is where they’ve been at their best though. All of their league wins this season have been at home and they‘ve only tasted defeat once.

I expect this to be a really open game, Preston need three points and Luton are a high tempo, free flowing team who get numbers forward and create plenty of scoring chances.

I’m hoping for plenty of goals!

Image source, Getty Images

Derby County take on a Blackburn side who have been the very model of mid-table so far with five wins, five draws and four defeats from their 14 games. The good news for the administration-hit Rams is they go into this game unbeaten in four, the bad news is all four matches ended in draws.

Potential Rams buyer Chris Kirchner will be at Pride Park today.

Huddersfield and Millwall start their game today separated in the table by just a single goal, with both sides level on 21 points from 14 matches.

Preston host sixth-placed Luton. The Hatters are in fine form with just one defeat from their past 10 league matches.

Peterborough have been buoyed by back-to-back wins to move five points clear of the relegation zone. They visit a Swansea side who are distinctly midtable at present.

Image source, Rex Features

Blackpool fans will be delighted with the start to the season their side have made.

Promoted back to the second tier through the play-offs, the Tangerines have won three of their past four matches and start the day level on points with sixth-placed Luton Town.

A 2-0 home win over local rivals Preston last time out will no doubt have further enhanced the mood around the Bloomfield Road side.

They visit a Sheffield United team who have been consistently inconsistent so far this campaign as they adjust to life back in the EFL after two years in the Premier League.

With 14 games of the season played the Blades have surprisingly lost (six) more games than they have won (five) so boss Slavisa Jokanovic will be desperate for them to level that stat today.

Cardiff reacted to slumping to a club-record eighth successive defeat by firing boss Mick McCarthy straight after last week's home reverse by Middlesbrough.

The Bluebirds, a Premier League side as recently as 2019, are now looking for a third manager this calendar year and, more worryingly, find themselves in a battle to stay in the second tier.

They face a Stoke team that had made a great start to the season prior to losing their past three matches.

Still, the Potters have lost just once at home in the league this campaign and make four changes from their midweek defeat by Brentford in the EFL Cup.

Four wins from five have propelled Middlesbrough up the table after a slow start.

Neil Warnock's men have kept clean sheets in their past three matches as the veteran looks to mastermind another promotion tilt in what may, or of course may not, be his final season in the game.

Birmingham have had some trouble scoring but ended a six-match goal drought in their 2-1 win over Swansea last week.

Summer signing Troy Deeney scored and claimed an assist in that one and boss Lee Bowyer will know he needs to find a way to get the former Watford man firing if they're to get their season going in the right direction again.

Image source, Rex Features

Coventry's brilliant start to the season has rather hit the buffers in the past couple of weeks.

However, despite picking up just two points from their past three matches, they start the day in the heady heights of fourth position.

They'll be looking to secure just a second away win of the season at a Hull City side who are struggling at the wrong end of the table.

The Tigers have won just once in front of their own fans this season and boss Grant McCann could find himself in trouble if they don't start putting some points on the board soon.

Image source, Rex Features

To say Bristol City could do with a home win today is a bit of an understatement.

The Robins haven't won a league match at Ashton Gate since 26 January, almost a month before current boss Nigel Pearson took over.

You'd imagine they wont have a better chance to end that wretched run than today.

Barnsley are without an away win all season and without a win at all in their past 12 matches.

Indeed, the Reds are only off the bottom of the table because of Derby's 12-point deduction and boss Markus Schopp told BBC Radio Sheffield this week that he knows they have to start getting results if he is to keep his job.

Thanks Matt!

Well, that was QUITE the start to the EFL day wasn't it?

But what's next in the Championship, I hear you cry. Well, 10 more matches is what.

Here they are in list form, with all of them kicking off at 15:00 BST unless otherwise stated:

• Bristol City v Barnsley
• Derby County v Blackburn Rovers
• Huddersfield Town v Millwall
• Hull City v Coventry City
• Middlesbrough v Birmingham City
• Preston North End v Luton Town
• Sheffield United v Blackpool
• Stoke City v Cardiff City
• Swansea City v Peterborough United
• Reading v Bournemouth (20:00 BST)

We'll be doing our absolute utmost to keep you across all nine of the 15:00 BST second tier games as well as all of the action in League One and League Two.

Let's get to it.

Right. Let's park that one.

It's just the start of a day of footballing fun.

Here's Ian Woodcock to take you through to the 15:00 BST kick-offs.

Image source, BBC Sport

That's what it means for Fulham. Fifteen games in, they've scored 36 goals. Some strike rate.

Bournemouth, and ex-Cottagers boss Scott Parker, will certainly know Fulham are breathing down their necks.

West Brom stay third, and can't be caught today at least. Still plenty of football to be played though.

Image source, Rex Features

It's a big statement from Fulham against one of the big promotion rivals in West Brom at the Cottage.

That's 13 goals in four games for the Cottagers, 18 for the season for Aleksandar Mitrovic. Two points behind Bournemouth in the Championship table.

For West Brom, their disappointing record against Fulham continues, but it's a thumping win for Marco Silva's side. Back to the drawing board for Valerien Ismael.

Fulham just controlling possession and seeing out this game to its conclusion.

They've reacted well to the sending off of Tosin Adarabioyo.

Harry Wilson almost making it four too, but as he swats across the box, his shot zings wide.

Image source, PA Media

Speaking of red cards...

A single photo never tells the full story, but here's the challenge which led to West Brom's Darnell Furlong being shown a straight red card.

Replays suggest the Baggies full-back got a slight touch on the ball.

Have the visitors been on the wrong side of refereeing decisions this lunchtime?

Tosin Adarabioyo is sent off for Fulham for a late lunge.

One sour note for boss Marco Silva.

Aleksandar Mitrovic, Neeskens Kebano and Harrison Reed all come off, and Fabio Carvalho, Tom Cairney and Rodrigo Muniz all enter the fray.

Fulham switch it up having made sure of the points.

There's a full schedule of 12 matches in League Two today with all of them, except one, starting at 15:00 BST.

The odd one out is Northampton's home clash against Carlisle.

The Cobblers are in fine form and flying at the top end of the table while the Cumbrians, under the management of Keith Millen for the first time, start the day a point and a place above the relegation zone.

Approaching the quarter of an hour mark it remains goalless.

That should have been it, certainly.

Fulham get the ball wide right to Bobby Decordova-Reid, and his swerving cross to the back-post finds big Tosin Adarabioyo in open space, but his powerful header is beaten away by Sam Johnstone.

How has he not scored?! Superb from Johnstone, that said.

Harrison Reed gets a sight of goal on the left but his curling effort thumps away off a West Brom defender. Fulham desperate to finish this game off.

Bobby Decordova-Reid gets a cross in, deflected. Corner.

Robert Snodgrass gets a yellow card for putting an arm in the chops of Antonee Robinson.

West Brom's midfield playmaker is not having a great afternoon.