All 24 EFL Championship clubs' main winger ranked from worst to best | OneFootball

Football League World ranks each Championship club's standout winger from worst to best...

Following the conclusion of the January transfer window, all 24 sides throughout the Championship will be searching for an extra injection of quality in pursuit of their objectives as we head towards the 2025/26 campaign’s closing stages.

The race for promotion to the Premier League is intensifying between the likes of Coventry City, Middlesbrough, Ipswich Town and others, while a drastic scramble to avoid relegation is also taking place towards the bottom of the division.

As a whole, the Championship can boast a plethora of high-quality wingers from the division’s summit right to the relegation pack - and with that in mind, Football League World has taken a look at each option in each camp, and has ranked them accordingly…

24 ? ? Derby County - Jaydon Banel

John Eustace’s preference for using wing-backs means that Derby County are short of natural wide options, leaving Jaydon Banel as the only real candidate to get the ball rolling.

The likes of Ben Brereton-Diaz and Rhian Brewster can both operate out wide, but both are perhaps more comfortable in central roles.

Schooled in Ajax’s prestigious youth ranks, Banel joined Derby on loan from Burnley in January and has played precious little football above the Dutch second-tier, so the jury is very much out on the 21-year-old at this stage.

23 ? ? Sheffield Wednesday - Joel Ndala

There’s hardly a variety of options at Sheffield Wednesday, with the relegation-bound strugglers completely devoid of bodies following a real squad exodus in recent times.

The Owls have struggled to both retain and recruit players, but did manage to get some deals done in January and were able to bring Joel Ndala to Hillsborough for the remainder of the season.

The tricky 19-year-old winger previously shone in Manchester City’s academy and spent the first half of the campaign with top-six hopefuls Hull City, where he scored once from 17 league appearances.

22 ? ? Bristol City - George Earthy

The late-window departure of star forward Anis Mehmeti makes it much more difficult to assess Bristol City’s remaining wide options, with Gerhard Struber also advocating for all-action wing-backs in his 3-4-2-1 formation.

Given that the Austrian likes to deploy two free-roaming ‘number-tens’ behind the striker, the Robins’ outstanding natural wide man may be returning loanee George Earthy.

The 21-year-old spent the entirety of the previous campaign on loan from West Ham, and scored three times as City made the top-six under Liam Manning.

21 ? ? Oxford United - Przemyslaw Placheta

Oxford United were extremely busy throughout January in their efforts to dodge the drop and added Aidomo Emakhu from Millwall, who would’ve been a fair shout here, although we’ve decided on Przemyslaw Placheta.

The seven-cap Polish international has electrifying speed and a penchant for long-range efforts - if this list was a mere measure of ability, without accounting for consistency and a whole range of other metrics, he would probably find himself much higher.

20 ? ? Swansea City - Ronald Pereira

For Swansea City, meanwhile, our vote has gone to Ronald Pereira but that could be subject to change owing to another Brazilian wide-man in SA1.

Gustavo Nunes has looked bright following his January loan arrival from Brentford, and could soon overtake Ronald, though the 24-year-old has been a solid performer at Swansea for the last two years and deserves to retain the mantle right now.

19 ? ? Charlton Athletic - Tyreece Campbell

Nathan Jones’ five-at-the-back system for Charlton Athletic makes for limited candidates at the Valley, with Tyreece Campbell representing our selection from a limited pool.

The only other contender was Jayden Fevrier, who remains untested at Championship level and struggled for regular minutes at Stockport County before leaving the League One promotion-chasers to join Charlton on loan in a swap deal with Tanto Olaofe.

Campbell often divides opinion among Charlton supporters, but while the Jamaican international's final ball still requires work, he continually impresses and makes things happen in a wing-back role which arguably limits his attacking offerings.

18 ? ? Blackburn Rovers - Dapo Afolayan

It's a January recruit who makes the cut for Blackburn Rovers, and much will be expected of Dapo Afolayan in his side’s ongoing survival bid after the ex-Bolton Wanderers star returned to England from Bundesliga outfit St. Pauli.

Afolayan was electric for Bolton in League One before leaving for Germany in 2023, and while the Championship is a different kettle of fish, his haul of nine strikes to help St Pauli’s 2024 promotion - coupled with a handful in the Bundesliga - means he arrives with some pedigree and should adapt to the second-tier.

17 ? ? QPR - Koki Saito

QPR are somewhat spoilt for choice in this area of the pitch, with the likes of Karamoko Dembele, Kwame Poku, Paul Smyth and even Harvey Vale all presenting solid options for Julien Stephan.However, we've opted to go with Japanese winger Koki Saito, who caught the eye on loan last season before returning permanently to Loftus Road and has continued to shine - even if there's still a bit to be desired in the way of consistency.

16 ? ? Hull City - Mohamed Belloumi

You've got to feel for Hull City's Mohamed Belloumi, with significant injury setbacks preventing the highly-rated Algerian winger from fulfilling his potential quite just yet at the MKM Stadium.

An ACL injury last season derailed a strong start to life in East Yorkshire and he's also encountered spells on the treatment table this time around, but the 23-year-old remains a real talent with all the ability to light up the Championship when fully fit.

It's that wretched luck which counts against him for now, with an honourable mention also owed to teammate Liam Millar.

15 ? ? Preston North End - Callum Lang

Preston North End are another Championship side to not play with out-and-out wingers, though Paul Heckingbottom's system has nonetheless come up trumps this season with the Lilywhites very much in the mix for a top-six finish.Crucial to those efforts could be recent acquisition Callum Lang, who can play anywhere across the frontline and sneaks in ahead of fellow North End star Lewis Dobbin.Injuries prevented Lang from featuring too much for Portsmouth this season before leaving Fratton Park, but the versatile forward was integral last term with 10 strikes from 32 appearances and, if he can recapture those levels in Lancashire, there's no reason why Preston can't finish inside the play-offs.