The Sky Blues v The Tractor Boys, The Foxes against Derby, and More Football Action Previews
Greetings for the busy evening of EFL as well as continental soccer fixtures. Our focus includes key second-tier encounters and those pivotal final pool matches in the Afcon competition.
Introduction
Greetings to all. Welcome to what is reportedly this penultimate soccer live blog of the year. We have a full Football League schedule, starting with Coventry v Ipswich at 18:00, while we will also monitor a close watch on both night fixtures from Group A at this Africa Cup of Nations: Morocco hosting Zambia and Mali facing Comoros.
We'll be focussing on these matches, with 7.45pm kick-offs except where noted.
Afcon 2025
- The Coelacanths versus Mali (19:00)
- Zambia v The Atlas Lions (7pm)
Championship
- The Sky Blues v The Tractor Boys (6pm)
- Leicester v Derby
- Middlesbrough versus Hull
- Millwall versus Bristol City
- The Red Dragons versus North End
League One
- Cardiff versus Stevenage
Recent Lineup Updates
Coventry v Ipswich Confirmed Lineups
The evening's opener, between the teams who are first and third in the Championship, promises to be a thriller. These are the two XIs.
Coventry City (4-2-3-1) Rushworth; the right-back, the centre-back, Kitching, the left-back; the midfielder, Grimes; the winger, Rudoni, Mason-Clark; Wright.
Subs: Wilson, Allen, the forward, Kesler-Hayden, Bidwell, Latibeaudiere, the midfielder, the youngster, Andrews.
Ipswich (a 4-2-3-1 setup) Walton; Furlong, the centre-half, Kipre, Greaves; the midfielder, the midfielder; the attacker, the playmaker, Jack Clarke; the centre-forward.
Substitutes: Palmer, Young, the midfielder, Humphreys, Cajuste, Burns, the forward, the attacker, the striker.
Referee Anthony Backhouse (from Cumbria).
Africa Cup of Nations: Group A Permutations
Look, it’s complicated. It always is when some but not all third-place sides progress. Here’s how things look ahead of this evening's final round of games.
- Morocco 4 points, +2 goal difference
- The Eagles 2pts, 0 goal difference (goals scored 2)
- Zambia 2 points, GD0 (goals scored 1)
- The Coelacanths 1pt, -2 goal difference
Briefly, Morocco is likely safe though they will aim to beat Zambia and top the group. Zambia likely requires a draw or better against Morocco. Comoros likely need to overcome Mali, who will probably be okay with a point.
A host of potential results and permutations.
Egypt's Match with Angola Update
The denouement to the second group at the continental championship is being covered. To avoid spoilers, don’t click the link.
Second Tier 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 |
