Tuesday Championship Tips: Back Tigers' fine run to continue against managerless Watford | OneFootball

EFL Championship

Tuesday predictions and tips for the four Championship fixtures

There are just four fixtures taking place in the Championship on Tuesday night, and Jack Critchley has crunched the numbers and picked out his best bets for the quartet of midweek games...

Hull v Watford - Full steam ahead for Hull's unlikely promotion bid

Tuesday, 19:45, Live on Sky Sports+ App

Hull boss Sergej Jakirovic admitted that his side were 'not good on the ball' at Blackburn at the weekend, despite leaving Ewood Park with maximum points. Admittedly, the pitch was a slight hindrance, and the game was not particularly pretty, yet the Tigers still found a way to win, further enhancing their promotion credentials.

The men from Humberside have taken 25 points from a possible 30, and although they've had a fairly kind fixture list, they have still managed to beat Middlesbrough, Millwall and Wrexham during that sequence of games.

With their January additions, Hull now possess strength-in-depth, with Kieran Dowell, Yu Hirakawa and the match-winner Lewis Koumas all coming off the bench in the second-half. Defensively, Hull were suspect at the start of the season, yet they seem to have found a decent balance at the back with Charlie Hughes and John Egan forming a nice partnership in the heart of the defence.

Managerial maelstrom arrives at Vicarage Road once again. Just as fans were enjoying some continuity in the dugout, coinciding with an upturn in form, Javi Gracia has opted to leave the club after calling a meeting with owner Gino Pozzo to discuss 'the future of the team' and the 'the ambition of everything'.

Gracia was clearly unhappy with the outcome of the discussion, handing in his resignation on Sunday morning. It leaves Charlie Daniels, Dan Gosling and Adrian Mariappa in charge for this tough trip to the east coast.

Watford's form has been poor for a few weeks, collecting just two points from their last four matches, and losing two of their last three home matches. The goals have dried up and the defence has struggled following the recall of Max Alleyne by Manchester City.

Occasionally, we see an upturn in form following a managerial departure, although this tends to happen so frequently at Vicarage Road, that I am not expecting an imminent response from the players.

Blackburn vs Sheffield Wednesday - Slow-burner in East Lancashire

Tuesday, 19:45

It's one win in 15 for Blackburn, although they put up a decent fight against Hull at the weekend. Although there is plenty of animosity towards the club's owners, some fans have turned on Val Ismael in recent weeks. Relegation is becoming a realistic possibility for Rovers, who are desperately struggling for creativity.

Despite all of the negativity, they have been much harder to break down at home, and Hull were just the second team to win at Ewood Park since November 26th. They aim to keep things tight and don't get beaten easily, but with the home fans having seen their side score 2+ goals just twice so far this season, the disgruntlement and dissatisfaction is perfectly understandable.

They have managed to add Dapo Afolayan this week, but he must hit the ground running to help the club turn their fortunes around.

File this game under 'must win' for Val Ismael. Dropping points in this fixture will ramp up the pressure on the Frenchman and he may find himself out of a job should his side fail to beat the side who sit rock-bottom of the Championship.

Wednesday are battling admirably and they have been able to make an addition this week with Jerry Yates joining from Luton. This should give them some much-needed energy in the final third, yet the former Blackpool striker is a confidence player and he's struggled to make an impact at Kenilworth Road this season. It may take a few weeks for him to get up to speed.

The Owls dug in against Wrexham, restricting the Welsh side for large periods of the game. They will take a similar approach to this one and it may just be enough to earn a point. Whatever the outcome, it's unlikely to be pretty and high-scoring.

Portsmouth vs Ipswich - Tough 90 minutes at Fratton Park for the visitors

Tuesday, 19:45, Live on Sky Sports+ App

Pompey easily swept aside West Brom at the weekend. John Mousinho's side are reaping the benefits of the January window with both Ebou Adams and Millenic Alli getting on the scoresheet and making considerable contributions to the result. Their home form is likely to keep them afloat this season and they are unbeaten in seven of their last eight at Fratton Park.

Nevertheless, they were arguably helped by WBA's inability to do the basics and they will seldom face easier opposition this season. Pompey were in total control throughout, although the news that Colby Bishop left the ground wearing a protective boot is a huge worry for the fans. With Callum Lang seemingly heading out of the exit door, that could leave them short of attacking options.

Ipswich somewhat surprisingly dropped points at home to Preston at the weekend. They struggled to break down PNE's low block and looked uncomfortable with the pace of Daniel Jebbison on the counter. The Tractor Boys managed to rescue something from the game courtesy of a late penalty from Jack Clarke and it is likely that Kieran McKenna will make changes for this midweek fixture.

The Suffolk side don't tend to thrive on their travels, but they have plenty of players waiting to come into the XI and make an impact. January signing Dan Neil, forgotten wideman Kasey McAteer and former Championship top goalscorer Chuba Akpom could freshen things up, whereas Marcelino Nunez's return may not be too far away.

Portsmouth's squad looks better and beefier, but they haven't always fared well with midweek games. It's rare for me to back Ipswich on their travels, but I feel as though there may be a reaction to Saturday's disappointment.

Sheffield United vs Oxford - Yet more home comforts for the Blades

Tuesday, 19:45, Live on Sky Sports+ App

Sheffield United accepted their point at the Den at the weekend. It is an incredibly tough place to go, and Chris Wilder praised the mentality of his team, focusing on the younger players in the squad. The Blades have been potent at Bramall Lane since the beginning of November, winning five of their last six and scoring 3+ goals in each of those games.

Wilder certainly has the luxury of being able to rotate for this midweek game, although he's unlikely to make wholesale changes with that policy having failed to pay dividends against Southampton at St. Mary's. He may opt to give the ineffective Tom Cannon a rest and they will also be boosted by the returns of Japhet Tanganga and Djibril Soumare.

Oxford's unbeaten run under Matt Bloomfield came to an abrupt halt at the weekend as they slipped to a defeat at home to Birmingham. They bumped into the Blues at just the wrong time with the Midlands outfit benefitting from an influx of new signings with both Ibrahim Osman and Jhon Solis catching the eye.

Injuries are also affecting their XI with Brian de Keersmaecker absent for this, whilst Jack Currie will be assessed and Jin Woo-Jeon potentially out due to concussion protocols.

Bloomfield suggested that his side's intensity levels weren't good enough and he has little to rectify that. With just three goals in six games, the Yellows are struggling for goals and although they will show plenty of tenacity and fight, they may just lack enough quality to hurt the Blades. The hosts aren't as fragile as Leicester and they are unlikely to spring a surprise on the in-form hosts.

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