Coventry v The Tractor Boys, The Foxes v The Rams, along with More Football Action Previews
Welcome for a busy night of EFL and continental football action. Our focus includes key second-tier clashes plus the pivotal last group matches in the Afcon tournament.
Introduction
Oh, hi folks. You are welcome to the reportedly this second-to-last soccer clockwatch of 2025. We have an extensive Football League slate, starting with Coventry v Ipswich at 6pm, and we will also monitor at least a third of an eye on the two night games from the first group at the Africa Cup of Nations: Zambia against the hosts Morocco and Mali facing Comoros.
Our primary attention will be on these games, all 19:45 kick-offs unless stated.
Afcon 2025
- The Coelacanths v Mali (19:00)
- Zambia versus The Atlas Lions (7pm)
Championship
- The Sky Blues v Ipswich (18:00)
- The Foxes v Derby
- Middlesbrough versus The Tigers
- Millwall v The Robins
- The Red Dragons versus Preston
Third Tier Fixture
- The Bluebirds versus Boro
Recent Lineup Updates
Coventry v Ipswich Team News
The evening's opener, between the teams who are top and third in the Championship, looks like a cracker. Here are the two XIs.
Coventry (4-2-3-1) Rushworth; the right-back, Woolfenden, the defender, Brau; Torp, Grimes; Sakamoto, the attacking midfielder, Mason-Clark; Wright.
Subs: The backup keeper, the midfielder, the forward, the defender, the full-back, the defender, Eccles, the youngster, the player.
Ipswich (4-2-3-1) Walton; Furlong, O’Shea, the defender, Greaves; the midfielder, the midfielder; the attacker, the playmaker, the winger; the centre-forward.
Subs: Palmer, the defender, the midfielder, Humphreys, Cajuste, Burns, the forward, the attacker, Akpom.
Referee Backhouse (from Cumbria).
Africa Cup of Nations: First Group Permutations
Look, it’s complicated. That's often the case where only some third-place teams qualify. This is the current state ahead of this evening's last round of matches.
- The Atlas Lions 4 points, +2 goal difference
- Mali 2pts, 0 goal difference (goals scored 2)
- The Copper Bullets 2 points, 0 goal difference (with 1 goal for)
- The Coelacanths 1pt, -2 goal difference
To summarize, Morocco is likely safe though they will aim to beat Zambia to top the group. Zambia likely requires at least a point against the hosts. Comoros likely must to beat their rivals, who will probably be okay with a point.
Lotta ins, lotta outs, lotta what-have-yous.
Egypt's Match with Angola Latest
The conclusion of Group B at the continental championship has coverage elsewhere. For those wishing to remain unaware, it's best not to seek out that information.
Championship Standings Snapshot
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coventry | 23 | 31 | 51 |
| 2 | Middlesbrough | 23 | 9 | 43 |
| 3 | Ipswich | 23 | 15 | 38 |
| 4 | Hull | 23 | 2 | 38 |
| 5 | Preston North End | 23 | 7 | 37 |
| 6 | Bristol City | 23 | 7 | 36 |
| 7 | Millwall | 23 | -6 | 36 |
| 8 | Watford | 23 | 4 | 35 |
| 9 | QPR | 23 | -2 | 35 |
| 10 | Stoke | 23 | 7 | 34 |
| 11 | Derby | 23 | 1 | 32 |
| 12 | Southampton | 23 | 4 | 31 |
| 13 | Wrexham | 23 | 2 | 31 |
| 14 | Leicester | 23 | -1 | 31 |
| 15 | Birmingham | 23 | 1 | 30 |
| 16 | West Brom | 23 | -5 | 28 |
| 17 | Charlton | 22 | -6 | 27 |
| 18 | Blackburn | 22 | -4 | 26 |
| 19 | Sheff Utd | 23 | -5 | 26 |
| 20 | Swansea | 23 | -7 | 26 |
| 21 | Oxford Utd | 23 | -8 | 22 |
| 22 | Portsmouth | 22 | -10 | 22 |
| 23 | Norwich | 23 | -9 | 21 |
| 24 | Sheff Wed | 22 | -27 | -8 |
