Sky Bet Championship

Two sides who were right among the bookies favourites for relegation have spiked our interest this weekend. Barnsley and Charlton were both heavily tipped to drop back down into League One at the end of the season, but Charlton at least are making a decent fist of things, even if Barnsley are struggling.

Barnsley face Swansea this weekend, which is a really interesting one. Last weekend was a fun time for xG enthusiasts, as we saw both Swansea slip up at Stoke and Exeter come out ahead of Forest Green – both results that mirrored the shot-data, but not the league tables. Swansea have been posting thoroughly unimpressive stats all season in terms of possession, shots, shots-on-target and expected goals – but nevertheless have collected 21 points to sit 4th in the table.

They are probably no better than a mid-table outfit this season in truth, and that gives Barnsley a fighting chance to get their second win of the season when the pair meet at Oakwell. I’m not going to paint a rosy picture about the Tykes – who haven’t won since the start of the season and got thrashed 5-1 at Preston last week. But even poor teams win sometimes, and the time looks right to upset Swansea who have now only won once in six now. 3/1 is the carrot dangled by Betway, and I can’t resist a bit of that.

Charlton have certainly out-performed the critics, and it’s undeniable that Lee Bowyer is doing a good job on limited resources. Five wins in the bag after 11 games is an excellent haul – probably a little more than overall performances have deserved, but enough to suggest they can keep clear of relegation this season. Results since August have taken a slide – an excellent win over Leeds was sandwiched between defeats to Birmingham, Wigan and Swansea, before they went to Fulham to steal a point. Derby County are in their sights this week.

Derby are enduring a tumultuous season so far – 13th in the table, but with all manner of off-field issues to deal with. Injuries have certainly played their part, but the charging of two key members of their first XI for drink driving, and the injury to captain Richard Keogh as a result of that evening’s events leave them with plenty of problems. They expect to be without Keogh, Craig Forsyth an George Evans for this one. It’s hard to make Charlton a 17/10 prospect in this one.

Barnsley to beat Swansea at 3/1 (Betway)

Charlton to beat Derby at 17/10 (General)

#Football