Derby Day Drama, Late Goals & Managers Under Pressure: Five EFL Talking Points | OneFootball

Another weekend of EFL action has delivered plenty of drama across the Championship, League One and League Two, with local rivalries, late goals and shifting fortunes giving supporters plenty to debate during the international break.

There was derby joy for Wolves as they edged past West Brom, while both Millwall and Burton Albion surrendered two-goal leads to settle for draws against their local rivals. Elsewhere, several unbeaten records finally fell, with Bromley ending Huddersfield Town’s perfect start and Barnet coming out on top against Fleetwood Town.

At the opposite end of the table, the battle for survival is already taking shape. Five of the Championship’s bottom six picked up points, while Burnley remain without a league victory and Derby County needed a dramatic late equaliser from Mo Fuseini to rescue a point at Turf Moor.

And with three EFL managers already losing their jobs this month, attention is also turning towards the dugouts. With the international break now upon us, which teams have emerged from the weekend with the most to celebrate, and which clubs have the biggest questions to answer?

Derby Drama Delivers Across The EFL

Local derbies are rarely short of drama, and this weekend delivered plenty of it across all three divisions.

Wolves came out on top in the Black Country derby, beating West Bromwich Albion 1-0 after a costly mistake from defender Nat Phillips helped hand their rivals victory.

There was a different story in the Dockers Derby, a game Attacking Football labelled as one to watch, as Millwall surrendered a two-goal advantage against West Ham. Caleb Taylor and Camiel Neghli had put the hosts 2-0 ahead before the visitors fought back through Mohamadou Kanté and Konstantinos Mavropanos to claim a 2-2 draw.

The same scoreline was seen in League One as Burton Albion and Mansfield Town shared the spoils, with Burton also unable to hold onto a two-goal lead.

Three derbies, three different stories, but the same underlying theme: nobody was willing to give their local rivals an easy afternoon.

Unbeaten Starts Begin To Disappear

There was another significant shift in the unbeaten records across the EFL.

Huddersfield Town entered the weekend unbeaten in League One but saw that record disappear at Bromley, who claimed a 2-1 victory. That result left just four of the six teams who had started the weekend unbeaten still without a defeat, and all four are in League Two.

The biggest meeting of the unbeaten sides came at the Hive, where Barnet defeated Fleetwood Town 3-1 to maintain their own unbeaten beginning to the campaign.

Walsall also remained unbeaten after beating Port Vale 2-0, while Grimsby Town continued their strong start with a 2-0 victory over Crawley Town.

Crewe Alexandra completed the group after drawing 1-1 with Shrewsbury Town.

With seven games played, League Two has therefore emerged as the division where the unbeaten records have survived longest.

New Leaders At The Top

The international break arrives with new faces at the summit of all three divisions.

Swansea City took advantage of West Ham and Middlesbrough both dropping points to move to the top of the Championship. Their 2-1 victory at Lincoln City took them to 17 points from their opening eight matches.

Bradford City are the new League One leaders after a narrow 1-0 victory at Luton Town, while Plymouth Argyle climbed into third following their impressive 4-2 victory at Blackpool.

Huddersfield’s defeat at Bromley also opened the door for the sides immediately below them.

One of the more unusual results came at Hillsborough, where Sheffield Wednesday and Stockport County played out a goalless draw. With both among League One’s more prolific attacking sides, the 0-0 scoreline stood out.

In League Two, Barnet lead the way with Walsall and Grimsby Town occupying second and third, respectively, with all three still unbeaten.

The Bottom Six Finally Fight Back

While plenty was happening at the top, the bottom of the Championship also provided an intriguing storyline.

Five of the six clubs occupying the bottom six positions before the weekend picked up points, meaning the battle at the foot of the table remains extremely tight.

Preston North End, now under interim management following Paul Heckingbottom’s dismissal, surrendered a two-goal lead against QPR before eventually drawing 2-2.

Cardiff City secured their first Championship win of the campaign by beating Charlton Athletic 3-1, while Derby County rescued a point at Burnley thanks to Mo Fuseini’s dramatic 93rd-minute equaliser.

That goal was particularly significant for the Rams, with Fuseini scoring his first Derby goal and preventing Burnley from finally securing their first victory of the season.

Watford were the only side among the bottom six to leave the weekend empty-handed after losing 1-0 at Bristol City.

With Derby, Preston and Burnley occupying the bottom three after the weekend, there is already plenty for those clubs to address during the international break.

Who Will Be The Next Manager To Go?

Perhaps the biggest question hanging over the EFL heading into the international break is not about the league tables, but the managerial hot seats.

Three EFL managers have already lost their jobs in September. Michael Duff departed Wycombe Wanderers on 8 September, Paul Heckingbottom was dismissed by Preston on 13 September, and Luke Williams became the latest casualty after Peterborough United’s 2-0 home defeat to Doncaster Rovers.

Williams left Peterborough with just one league victory from seven matches, with the club sitting 23rd in League One.

Attention now turns to the clubs still struggling for results.

Burnley remain without a Championship victory after eight matches, while Derby are also in the bottom three despite Fuseini’s late intervention at Turf Moor.

The pressure is not confined to the Championship. MK Dons are the only team to remain winless despite drawing six of their opening seven League One games, while Bromley and Notts County are also finding life difficult after promotion.

League Two has its own battle at the bottom, with Port Vale and Crawley Town occupying the bottom two places. However, with only one league victory between the bottom six sides, there is still plenty of uncertainty over who could find themselves under pressure next.

The international break therefore arrives at an interesting time. Several clubs now have a fortnight to assess their position, decide whether results can improve under their current managers and, in some cases, determine whether a change in the dugout is required.