The Premier League may be stealing the headlines in England this year but the Championship is still one of the most exciting leagues in world football.
With top-flight riches up for grabs to the three teams who can make it out of the division, either automatically or via the play-offs, it’s no wonder clubs battle for every point with such gusto.
Stoke City have been shock strugglers this season and still prop up the table but this didn’t stop them beating Swansea City at the weekend.
Manager Nathan Jones, who had been under huge pressure, breathed a sigh of relief and credited the club’s owners for keeping faith with him.
“This is a very difficult place to manage with well-documented problems that have affected four managers before me, he told talkSPORT. “So I knew this was a tough job but I’m a big believer, I’m not arrogant, I’m confident we do and I like to test myself because it would be quite easy for me to remain at Luton.
“It had to be a good project and this was a good project.
“If I’m honest, if I didn’t have the owners I have here, I would have gone a long time ago because my results haven’t been good.
“But what we have done is we’ve changed everything else underneath.”
But are things really as they appear in the second tier? Should Stoke City be so low given their overhaul under Jones?
To get a better look at how sides are doing, the ‘expected goals’ (xG) metric allows us to get a better picture of just how teams are performing.
Here at talkSPORT.com we’re always keeping an eye on the excellent experimental361.com, run by Ben Mayhew, to see how clubs are performing based on their stats.
Find out how the stats believe the Championship COULD be shaping up below…
24. Huddersfield – Real position = 21
Real points = 8 | Expected points = 6
23. Bristol City – Real position = 6
Real points = 20 | Expected points = 6
22. Barnsley – Real position = 23
Real points = 6 | Expected points = 7
21. Wigan Athletic – Real position = 19
Real points = 11 | Expected points = 11
20. Charlton Athletic – Real position = 10
Real points = 18 | Expected points = 11
19. Middlesbrough – Real position = 20
Real points = 10 | Expected points = 11
18. Luton – Real position = 18
Real points = 11 | Expected points = 11
17. Nottingham Forest – Real position = 2
Real points = 22 | Expected points = 11
16. Derby County – Real position = 13
Real points = 15 | Expected points = 13
15. Hull City – Real position = 16
Real points = 13 | Expected points = 13
14. Birmingham City – Real position = 12
Real points = 16 | Expected points = 14
13. Blackburn Rovers – Real position = 14
Real points = 14 | Expected points = 15
12. Queens Park Rangers – Real position = 9
Real points = 19 | Expected points = 15
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11. Reading – Real position = 22
Real points = 8 | Expected points = 15
10. Millwall – Real position = 15
Real points = 14 | Expected points = 15
9. Swansea City – Real position = 4
Real points = 21 | Expected points = 16
8. Cardiff City – Real position = 11
Real points = 16 | Expected points = 16
7. Stoke City – Real position = 24
Real points = 5 | Expected points = 17
6. West Bromwich Albion – Real position = 1
Real points = 22 | Expected points = 17
5. Sheffield Wednesday – Real position = 8
Real points = 19 | Expected points = 19
4. Preston North End – Real position = 3
Real points = 21 | Expected points = 20
3. Brentford – Real position = 17
Real points = 12 | Expected points = 20
2. Fulham – Real position = 7
Real points = 19 | Expected points = 25
1. Leeds United – Real position = 5
Real points = 20 | Expected points = 30
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