The leaves are turning and the EFL race for promotion and survival is heating up. A glance at the top of the Championship suggests the clocks have rewound more than a decade, with seven of the current top nine teams having sat outside the top flight for at least half a dozen seasons, and plenty of them more than double that. The third tier is just as intriguing, while the League Two promotion chase is wide open.
The game of the weekend could be Swansea against West Ham. Swansea's last-gasp winner at Millwall made it four straight wins either side of the international break, keeping the Swans top of the Championship, 16 years since they last won promotion. Title favourites West Ham, four points back in third after a 6-0 win at nine-man Lincoln, are the leading scorers across the top four tiers with 29 goals in 10 games. They will come up against the meanest defence in the division, with Swansea conceding just seven so far. Something has to give.
Birmingham and QPR are also looking to stick around. Birmingham, who have not been promoted to the Premier League since 2009, romped to a 4-0 win over Preston to go fourth. QPR, unbeaten in five league games on the road and conceding a division-best four goals in that span, sit fifth. Saturday's results will show whether these sides are here to stay in this year's promotion race.
Leicester City face Doncaster at the King Power with pressure mounting on manager Russell Martin. Last Saturday's 3-1 defeat by lowly Peterborough was a third defeat in four league games at home, during which they have shipped nine goals. Supporters chanted for his dismissal, and Martin has said there will be "no quick fix." City lie 17th, one point off the drop zone, and below Rovers on goal difference.
Source: BBC Sport Football · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing