Exclusive: Lee Hendrie names the 3 most exciting players in the EFL Championship right now | OneFootball

Sky Sports pundit Lee Hendrie described the three most exciting players in the Championship right now exclusively to Football League World

Sky Sports pundit and former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has described the three most exciting players to watch in the Championship right now, with yet another riveting and entertaining campaign of second-tier football heading underway.

The early stages of the season have represented the typical quality and unpredictability which makes the division uniquely special.

Frank Lampard's Coventry City have stormed to the summit of the Championship table, marrying imperious defensive steel with a free-flowing frontline, and the likes of Charlton Athletic, Hull City and Millwall have also surprised the masses to plot shock - albeit early - bids for a play-off finish, whereas all three relegated sides in Ipswich Town, Leicester City and Southampton are yet to get going after being, rather unsurprisingly, tipped for promotion contention following relegation from the Premier League.

Much is, of course, subject to change, but what we can already say with a great degree of certainty is that the entertainment value of the Championship that we all know and love will remain firmly intact, with a raft of storylines, plot twists, dark horses, surprise packages and disappointments to come — all adding to the excitement.

However, who are the most exciting individuals to watch? Hendrie has had his say...

Lee Hendrie names Bristol City, Millwall and Coventry City stars as the Championship's most exciting players

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Hendrie described the three most exciting players to watch in English football's second-tier right now.

Hendrie's first selection was Bristol City playmaker Scott Twine, whose specialist free-kick ability and sublime creativity makes him one of the division's classiest attacking midfield operators at his best, and the 26-year-old has been in superb form at Ashton Gate by returning five goals and two assists from 13 appearances thus far.

After Twine, Hendrie went with another in-form star in Femi Azeez. The Millwall winger has been a revelation under Alex Neil in the opening months of the campaign, building on a steady if unremarkable debut season in East London with four strikes in as many outings — including the winner in last weekend's 1-0 victory over Leicester.

Hendrie's third and final inclusion was perhaps the least surprising, as he presented Brandon Thomas-Asante with his flowers following a stunning start to the season at Coventry. Signed from West Bromwich Albion last summer, the five-cap Ghanaian international flattered to deceive in his opening term at the CBS Arena but, to an even greater extent than the aforementioned Azeez, is in fine form at the minute.

He has been a driving force behind Coventry's surge to the top of the league table, and no player in the Championship has scored on more occasions than the in-form Thomas-Asante at the minute, with his nine strikes putting him ahead of Derby County's Carlton Morris and teammate Haji Wright.

Discussing his selections, Hendrie explained: "I've done a bit of Bristol City over the last few weeks, and Scott Twine has been really, really good for them.

"He's got goals, he can pick a pass, he's a very clever player when he gets into good positions. He's an exciting player that can turn something quite quickly.

"The other one is Femi Azeez at Millwall, I really like what he's all about. Again, scoring goals, he's got bags of potential, creativity, plays out wide, exciting player.

"And then I can't avoid Coventry at all, Thomas-Asante has been outstanding this season. It feels like he's playing his best football under Frank Lampard - goals, assists, he's a livewire and a handful.

"So they would be my three at this moment in time."

Scott Twine, Femi Azeez and Brandon Thomas-Asante form is changing the Championship promotion race

All three players have caught the eye so far this term, with their individual performances each helping to propel their respective clubs into early-season promotion contention.

Thomas-Asante, of course, is enjoying the most notable influence right now, with Lampard sure to owe a great deal of gratitude towards the versatile attacker despite strong displays from the likes of Ephron Mason-Clarke, Victor Torp and fellow hitman Wright, though Twine and Azeez are also doing their bit elsewhere.

Bristol City were not necessarily tipped to follow up on last season's shock top-six finish following the departure of head coach Liam Manning to Norwich City, but his successor — ex-Barnsley boss Gerhard Struber — is proving to represent an arguable upgrade.

The Austrian has the Robins in fifth position after successive victories over free-spending Birmingham City, freshly-relegated Southampton and Manning's lowly Norwich - prior to Saturday's shock 5-1 collapse at the hands of fellow high-fliers Stoke City, of course - and much of that is owed to the dynamic attacking midfield partnership developed between Twine and skilful Albanian forward Anis Mehmeti.

Millwall, meanwhile, are also upsetting the odds once more, and find themselves positioned one place higher in fourth following a run of four straight victories before this weekend's 2-2 draw Gary Rowett's Oxford United.

Though not as free-flowing in attack as the likes of Bristol City and especially Coventry, the Lions have been typically well-drilled and organised, with wide magic from both Azeez and Thierno Ballo offering Neil's side the outlet they may need to finally crack the division's top-six.