In the Efl Championship, Coventry City have already sealed promotion back to the Premier League after 25 years away, but the fight to join them is still wide open. One of Ipswich Town, Millwall, Southampton or Middlesbrough will be in the top flight by 2 May, with the final automatic place hanging on a fast-moving run-in. Ipswich sit second, but the Efl Championship table remains volatile and every remaining match now carries real weight.
Coventry are up, but the race behind them is still live
Coventry secured automatic promotion with a point at Blackburn on Friday night, and that result changed the shape of the Efl Championship immediately. Ipswich had held a two-point advantage with two games in hand, but their 2-0 defeat at Portsmouth on Tuesday showed how quickly momentum can shift.
Millwall are third and back in the hunt, while Southampton have surged into fourth on the back of a six-game winning run. Middlesbrough sit fifth after a poor spell that has brought three draws and three losses, leaving their form at exactly the wrong time.
With Ipswich still facing Middlesbrough and Southampton in two of their final four games, the route to second place is now anything but straightforward. Ipswich need 10 points from their five remaining games to be certain of automatic promotion.
What Ipswich, Southampton, Millwall and Middlesbrough still face
Former Ipswich captain Mick Mills said on Radio Suffolk that the side can still do it, pointing to the fixtures ahead and arguing that three wins are there to be taken. He said a win over Middlesbrough on Sunday would almost end Boro’s hopes of finishing second. Jobi McAnuff, speaking on the 72+ EFL podcast, said the Portsmouth defeat summed up Ipswich’s season and added that the quality in the squad makes the recent inconsistency hard to explain.
Middlesbrough boss Kim Hellberg remains in the picture as the club look to recover from their dip in form. Southampton’s rise has been equally striking, and their recent run has turned them from outsiders into genuine contenders in the Efl Championship. Millwall, meanwhile, still have enough momentum to stay in the conversation if the results break their way.
The key middle stretch could decide everything
The middle stretch of the run-in is now the part that may settle the promotion race, because the clubs are not only chasing points but also directly affecting one another. Ipswich’s remaining meetings with Middlesbrough and Southampton make the Efl Championship picture even harder to read.
The one certainty is Coventry’s promotion and the uncertainty around the next step. With only a small gap between the contenders, the Efl Championship could still produce a dramatic finish before 2 May.
What happens next
Sunday’s meeting between Ipswich and Middlesbrough is one of the games most likely to shape the final order, while Southampton and Millwall continue to chase any opening in front of them. The coming round of fixtures should make the Efl Championship picture clearer, but for now the race remains too tight to call. If Ipswich slip again, the pressure will spread quickly across the chase group, and the Efl Championship promotion battle could still change in a single weekend.
