EFL March preview: Blackburn out for John Eustace revenge, blockbuster Birmingham City clash, big Crewe match | OneFootball

FLW in partnership with Betway preview a pivotal month of EFL action in March.

Yet another enthralling EFL season is reaching its crescendo, but with promotion and relegation battles still raging across all three divisions, there are still plenty of twists and turns to come before the curtain falls.

Daniel Farke’s dominant Leeds United side sit proudly at the top of the Championship, with Elland Road looking destined to host Premier League football once again next season.

Birmingham City have a return to the top flight firmly on their roadmap too, and Chris Davies appears set to lead the Blues to the League One title in his first full season in senior management.

Whilst in League Two, fellow West Midlands outfit Walsall are in a strong position to secure promotion to the third tier, in what would be the Saddlers’ first time back at that level since being relegated in 2019.

March has a tendency to be a season-defining month in the EFL calendar, with numerous mouthwatering fixtures to look forward to. We have taken a look at two standout clashes from each of the three divisions this month, courtesy of online betting company Betway.

Championship

Derby County v Blackburn Rovers

Just a matter of weeks ago, this fixture failed to really jump off the page. Now it’s one of the most highly anticipated games remaining on the Championship calendar.

That’s all thanks to one man in particular - John Eustace. The 45-year-old sent shockwaves through the second tier when he took the decision to swap a promotion push with Blackburn to take charge of relegation-threatened Derby on 13 February.

Having enjoyed two separate spells with the Rams during his playing career, Eustace’s decision has understandably left a sour taste in the mouths of Rovers supporters, and has fuelled the fire for a heated showdown at Pride Park on Saturday, 8 March.

The returning hero going up against his old side who will be out for revenge, with crucial points at stake at both ends of the table; it has all the ingredients of being a classic contest.

Derby have beaten Blackburn just twice in their last 12 Championship meetings stretching back to February 2016, and should they come out on the losing side once again this time around, their survival chances would take a significant blow.

If Rovers take all three points, however, then they will strengthen their chances of a play-off finish even further, in what would be a huge achievement for the club given their 19th-placed finish last season and their unforeseen dugout drama.

Sheffield Wednesday v Sheffield United

The Steel City derby; it’s one of English football’s fiercest and most passionate derbies.

With Sheffield United looking to do the double over the Owls after claiming a 1-0 victory at Bramall Lane back in November, March’s renewal of this historic fixture looks set to have huge ramifications on the Championship promotion picture.

Sheffield Wednesday remain in with an outside chance of making the play-offs, but Danny Rohl’s side are potentially only a couple of defeats away from seeing that dream evaporate.

As for the Blades, Chris Wilder’s men are sure to be a top-six side at worst this season, but the red and white side of Sheffield have their eyes firmly set on automatic promotion to the Premier League.

The last time Wednesday toppled their inter-city rivals was back when this meeting was a League One fixture in February 2012. Naturally then, the blue side of the city are desperate to taste that winning feeling once again against their age-old enemy.

Hillsborough will be a cauldron of noise come 12:30pm on Sunday, 16 March, and with the game being the only Championship offering that day, the eyes of every second tier fan will no doubt be tuned into what is sure to be a box office game of football.

Wednesday favourites Barry Bannan and Josh Windass will be hoping to finally add a win over the Blades to their CV’s, whilst United’s plethora of attacking options such as Ben Brereton Diaz and Gustavo Hamer will be confident they can make it a long afternoon for the Owls defence.

Betway

League One

Birmingham City v Wycombe Wanderers

A clash between first and second place in League One to kick March off? It doesn’t get much better than that!

Birmingham and Wycombe have been the two standout teams in the third tier so far this season, with at least one of them looking sure to win automatic promotion to the Championship.

The Blues boast a sizeable points gap over the Chairboys though, and so it’s perhaps the visitors to St Andrew’s for whom this fixture will have the most riding on.

They are two of the most potent attacking sides in the division, but could Birmingham’s watertight defence be the deciding factor in this monumental table-topping showdown?

Birmingham could be without talismanic striker Jay Stansfield through injury, however, but Blues boss Davies still has the likes of Lyndon Dykes and Alfie May to turn to should the England youth international be unavailable for selection.

As for Mike Dodds’ Wycombe, they too possess a prolific centre-forward in Richard Kone, as the 21-year-old has been tearing up League One this season and establishing himself as one of the most exciting young talents in the EFL.

However, with Brum being at home for this one, Betway currently have them down as 7/10 favourites to claim what would be a massive win in their quest for the title.

Wrexham v Stockport County

A fixture that has developed into a simmering rivalry in recent times, Wrexham and Stockport County are both eyeing up promotion to the Championship this season.

The two clubs have been enjoying the fruits of big-money takeovers over the last few years, having both risen from non-league football to being within touching distance of the second tier in just a handful of years.

Stockport were plying their trade in National League North as recently as 2019, whilst Wrexham are looking for their third promotion in as many years, having been crowned National League champions in 2022/23.

It was County who pipped the Red Dragons to the National League title in 2021/22, before repeating that exact same feat once again last season, as they won League One by finishing four points ahead of the Welsh side.

It’s these constant title battles in recent seasons that has really intensified this rivalry, with the latest chapter set to be written at the Racecourse Ground on Saturday, 22 March.

Wrexham’s Sam Smith is one of League One’s leading marksmen this season, as was Stockport’s Louie Barry, and it was he who scored the decisive goal to hand the Hatters a 1-0 win in the reverse fixture earlier in the season.

County won’t be able to count on him this time around, however, having seen their star player recalled by Aston Villa in January. It’s a fixture that looks set to play a big part in helping to form the League One play-off picture, as well as potentially keeping hopes of automatic promotion alive for the victor.

League Two

AFC Wimbledon v Notts County

Two of League Two’s biggest clubs and leading promotion contenders go head-to-head on Saturday, 8 March.

Wimbledon and Notts County are locked on 57 points after 32 games played, with the Dons’ slightly better +23 goal difference over County’s +19 placing them in the third and final automatic promotion spot.

After dropping out of League One in 2022, Johnnie Jackson has been gradually creeping his Wimbledon side ever closer to a return to the third tier over the last two seasons, finishing 21st in 2022/23 before a 10th-placed finish last season.

As for the Magpies, they solidified their place in League Two last term with a 14th-placed finish, after winning promotion from the National League in 2022/23.

Stuart Maynard’s side have really built upon those foundations this term however, largely thanks to the goals of their prolific forwards David McGoldrick and Alassana Jatta respectively.

Wimbledon have a deadly hitman of their own though in Mathew Stevens, who is enjoying a highly fruitful debut season at The Cherry Red Records Stadium, having joined from Forest Green Rovers in the summer.

It is the Dons who will play host to this massive clash towards the top of League Two, with the winners potentially dealing a knockout blow to their opponents’ automatic promotion hopes.

Crewe Alexandra v Port Vale

March concludes with what looks to be a hugely important game in prospect between play-off chasing Crewe and Port Vale.

Heading into March, it’s the Valiants who sit just three points ahead of the Railwaymen, with the two clubs occupying the final two play-off places in sixth and seventh respectively.

Lee Bell’s Crewe side have built their promotion push around an excellent defensive unit, with just 31 goals conceded after 33 league games. However, having scored just 39 goals after the same amount of games, it’s problems at the other end of the pitch that are perhaps holding them back slightly from having even stronger promotion claims.

As for Port Vale, Darren Moore’s team also boast one of the better defences in the league, but like the Alex, putting the ball in the back of the opposition net has been somewhat of a problem for them this season, with just 41 goals scored after 31 games.

Therefore, it could be an afternoon at Mornflake Stadium that may be decided by whose key player turns up. Jack Lankester has been Crewe’s creative cog this term, but he could be set to miss the game through injury, so Bell may need someone like Adrien Thibaut to penetrate Port Vale’s defence.

Vale’s Jayden Stockley is having an almost identical campaign to Lankester in terms of attacking output, and those from a Port Vale persuasion will be hoping their talismanic striker has recovered from his injury setback in time to appear in this critical clash.

It looks primed to be an occasion where play-off hopes could be bolstered or dashed, and it has all the makings of a closely fought tussle between two fairly evenly matched promotion-chasing sides.