Pick of the stats: West Bromwich Albion v Southamptonpublished at 14:39 GMT 9 March
14:39 GMT 9 March
With Leicester City playing on Tuesday night, West Bromwich Albion could find themselves back in the Championship relegation zone when they host Southampton on Wednesday (19:45 GMT).
The Baggies have not won a league game since 29 December and host a Southampton side who upset Premier League Fulham in the FA Cup at the weekend and have won five successive Championship matches.
West Brom have lost three of their past four home league games against Southampton (W1), more than they had in their previous 16 (W8 D6 L2).
Southampton have won eight of their past 10 league games against West Brom (L2), as many as they had in their previous 22 (D8 L6).
West Brom are winless in their five home league games so far in 2026 (D2 L3), last having a longer run without a home win from the start of a calendar year in 2003 (first 9).
Southampton have won six of their past eight league games (D2), as many as they had in their previous 19 (D5 L8).
Southampton are looking to score two or more goals in four consecutive away league games for the first time since December/January in the 2019-20 Premier League campaign.
Winning breeds winning - Harwood-Bellispublished at 12:41 GMT 9 March
12:41 GMT 9 March
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Taylor Harwood-Bellis joined Southampton permanently after winning promotion with Saints in 2024
Southampton defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis said that the team were driven by their travelling support in their FA Cup win over Fulham.
Just under 5,000 fans made the journey to west London and celebrated wildly when Ross Stewart slotted home a late penalty to send them into the sixth round.
Tonda Eckert's side frustrated their Premier League opponents and left Craven Cottage with a clean sheet, something Harwood-Bellis contributed to alongside fellow defender Nathan Wood.
"With the run we're on winning breeds winning," Harwood-Bellis told BBC Radio Solent, with Saints now unbeaten in their last 10 games, in all competitions.
"The manager made it clear before the game how many fans were coming and how much it means to them.
"He said it had to mean the same to us and I think it showed how much it did, we have to be focused on winning as many games we can and that's the mood we're in and what we're doing."
With the upturn in form and hopes of returning to the Premier League looking much more achievable, Harwood-Bellis reflected on his personal progress and the steps Saints have made since their relegation last campaign.
"The maturity in the group has grown over the last year and there's been loads of learning," he added.
"Even for myself personally there's a maturity to my game that I'm still working on and there were loads of naïve moments last year that I'm first to point out.
"With the mood we're in we want to get as many games in as possible, I love playing football and we want to be in as many competitions as we can."
You can also listen to today's 5 Live commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Fulham v Southampton" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Leeds v Norwich", for instance.
Sutton's predictions: Fulham v Southamptonpublished at 19:14 GMT 7 March
19:14 GMT 7 March
Southampton have won six of their past seven games in the Championship but I fancy Fulham here.
They are at home and are going to be fine in the Premier League this season, so I don't see Marco Silva making too many changes.
It would be great to see Fulham having a real run in the FA Cup. They've never won it, reaching the final in 1975 is their best attempt yet, but I wouldn't rule out their chances of making it to Wembley this year.
'Game's gone' or 'everyone has something to play for'?published at 15:18 GMT 5 March
15:18 GMT 5 March
Image source, Shutterstock
Earlier we asked what you make of the news that, from next season, the Championship play-offs will be expanded to include the teams finishing seventh and eighth?
Josh, Derby: I don't believe this is necessary. I do think that the play-off format should be aligned throughout the top five leagues, but expanding isn't needed. Better distribution of the monies involved and establishing a clear matchday structure to balance various men's and women's leagues would be a better use of everyone's time. This strikes me undue American influence.
Callum, Dartford: I think it's a good thing so teams can push for promotion that thought they wouldn't get near the play-offs.
Cato, Sheffield: If we adopted it to this season, it means that eighth-placed Derby (on 51 points) have about as much a chance of going up as third-placed Millwall (on 63 points). Plus, to accommodate the extra games, would they extend the season into June? I don't like the idea of it at all, and I hope it's short-lived.
Steve, London: Another example of football being ruined, week by week. Don't you dare think about implementing VAR too.
Mark, Stafford: As a Stoke fan, I think it's good news. The season has come to a grinding halt due to being decimated by injuries. Add to that, the quality of what is coming down from the Premier League, it would mean upsets can happen and still allow teams in that mid-table race to dream of greater heights!
Richard, Stansted: Absolutely ridiculous. What is the point of a league format if you are going to make it a bigger lottery to include even more teams at the end of the season? It also brings teams that are even less ready to actually be in the Premier League into scope. But mostly it's the undermining of the league format which makes no sense. I'm a Derby fan - and we look like we would have a chance of benefiting from this if it were in place this season.
Andy, Nuneaton: Anything that expands the opportunities for those outside of the parachute teams is a good thing. We need to get away from this elite view of the Premier League. If it was up to them, they'd stop automatic promotion and relegation and have a system like Rugby Union, where it's based on meeting certain criteria. The eighth-placed club in the Championship getting to the PL? Bring it on!
Ron, Hayling: Money, Money, Money. Players complain about the amount of games they play with the league games and cup competitions so the intention is to play even more at the end of the season. Owners will make some money but that's all that matters!
Barry, Dartford: Yes it's a fantastic for everyone, all the small teams as well as the big boys, to have something to play for. It will give the end of the season something to look forward to.
Benjamin, Poole: I'm a Charlton fan, so it's unlikely we'll come 8th in the Championship any time soon, however, this is ridiculous. More pandering to Americans to make it more likely they'll make money, which is the only thing they care about. Sporting integrity out of the window again. Shame as I felt the Championship was the last bastion of quality and integrity combined. Game has gone.
Broughton, Derby: Absolute ridiculous, put it back to the old days of three straight up, no play-offs. If you don't make top-three you don't deserve to go up.
Julian, London: The worst decision from a footballing point of view ever! The National League teams have been trying to change their system to be like the current EFL system so it seems a very strange decision for the EFL to take. You can finish 8th after 46 games and still get promoted - sporting integrity has been totally lost with this decision. Money over integrity every time!
'We need to keep going' - Eckertpublished at 15:28 GMT 1 March
15:28 GMT 1 March
Media caption,
Southampton manager Tonda Eckert was pleased with his side's first-half display in their 3-1 Championship win over Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough.
James Bree and Ryan Manning put Saints 2-0 up at the break and Taylor Harwood-Bellis made sure after Jerry Yates halved the deficit before the hour.
Eckert praised his side's reaction to conceding after taking control of the game early.
"I think we put in a very good first half, then if you do concede it's a moment you have to get over and we did, so I'm very happy," he told BBC Radio Solent.
"There are still things we need to improve, we know that, but important today to get the three points."
Southampton are one place outside the Championship play-offs after six wins and a draw in their past seven games and Eckert wants his team to keep pushing.
"It was a very good month, the first one on the road with a positive result, three more very important ones coming up and then two at home, so keep pushing until the next break," he added.
What really is the worst EFL kit of all time?published at 17:08 GMT 27 February
17:08 GMT 27 February
Image source, Coventry City FC
Image caption,
Coventry City's new 'deep chocolate plum' fourth kit pays homage to an away strip from more than four decades ago.
You might not hear the old terrace refrain of 'you're not fit to wear the shirt' as often as you used to, but it still has a better ring than 'the shirt's not fit for you to wear'.
Championship leaders Coventry City launched a new collection on Friday, proudly taking inspiration from a kit widely dubbed the 'Worst of All Time'.
A take on the club's infamous brown change strip worn away from Highfield Road from 1978 to 1981, the modern reinvention features what the club calls "a deeper chocolate plum colour with sky blue elements".
Many would suggest it sounds tastier than it looks.
But it's got us thinking... what are actually the worst EFL kits of all time? Let us know which of your club's shirts is hiding in the back of the wardrobe, or even if they were too ugly for you to even part money for them.
We'll collate a list of the biggest eyesores and will give you the chance to vote on the ghastliest of all next week.
'Eckert repaying faith as Saints eye play-offs'published at 19:11 GMT 26 February
19:11 GMT 26 February
Martin Sanders Southampton fan writer
Image source, Getty Images
When Southampton appointed Tonda Eckert, there was a clear belief inside the club about the direction they wanted to go.
Placing such responsibility in the hands of a 31-year-old coach was a bold decision, but it was one made with conviction - and 21 games on from replacing Will Still, that faith is being repaid.
Across those 21 matches Saints have reshaped their season.
Only one side has taken more points in that period and no team has scored more goals.
This is not a short-term bounce - it is sustained, measurable progress built on clarity, structure and belief.
A seven-game unbeaten run, five wins and two draws, has carried Saints from 15th and 10 points outside the play-offs to seventh, now just four points off sixth place.
That turnaround has not happened by chance. It has been driven by consistency, renewed togetherness and the building of a genuine spine through the team.
January's recruitment played its part too.
Daniel Peretz arrived from Bayern Munich to strengthen the goalkeeping department, while Cyle Larin added presence and experience at the top end of the pitch.
James Bree returned from his loan at right-back, and the partnership of Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Jack Stephens has brought stability in defence.
In midfield, Flynn Downes looks back to his best, dictating games and providing control.
What I have enjoyed most is the spirit, something I felt was missing earlier in the season.
Now there is intensity, unity and a willingness to work for one another that is clear for all to see.
The press is coordinated, the defensive shape more assured, and when Saints score you see a group that truly believes.
Reverting to a back four in January was another pivotal call, since then the balance feels right.
Now come away tests at Sheffield Wednesday, West Brom and Coventry. Navigate them well and Saints will be the team nobody wants to see in the play-offs.
Pick of the stats: Sheffield Wednesday v Southamptonpublished at 16:05 GMT 26 February
16:05 GMT 26 February
Image source, Opta
In-form Southampton will look to continue their surge towards the Championship play-off places when they visit already-relegated Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday (kick-off 15:00 GMT).
The Saints have put together a seven-game unbeaten run (W5 D2) to climb from 15th and 10 points adrift of the play-offs up to seventh and within four points of Wrexham in sixth.
Off-field issues have completely overshadowed this season for the Owls, who have lost 11 games in a row - scoring only two goals in that run - and won just one of their 34 league games.
Sheffield Wednesday have lost their past five league games against Southampton, their joint-longest losing run against the Saints (also five between 1999 and 2006).
Southampton have won their previous two away league games against Sheffield Wednesday, never before winning three consecutive visits to Hillsborough.
Sheffield Wednesday are winless in their 17 home league games this season – only Sunderland (18 in the Premier League in 2005-06) have had a longer winless run at home from the start of a campaign in English league history.
Southampton have won their past two away league games, last winning more consecutively in December 2019/January 2020 (4).
Southampton's Leo Scienza has been directly involved in three goals in his past three Championship away games (1 goal, 2 assists), as many as in his first 10 league games on the road for the Saints (2 goals, 1 assist).
Remembering Richards 15 years after his deathpublished at 07:56 GMT 26 February
07:56 GMT 26 February
Image source, Getty Images
Thursday marks the 15-year anniversary of the death of former Wolves,Southampton and Tottenham defender Dean Richards.
Richards died on 26 February, 2011, aged 36, following a long illness. He had been forced to retire six years earlier because of ill health.
Richards, a cultured centre-back, began his career with his hometown club Bradford City before joining Wolves for a club-record fee in 1995.
After a four-year spell at Molineux, he moved to Southampton in 1999 and then Spurs in 2001.
A week after his death, Wolves and Tottenham met in a Premier League fixture at Molineux.
His widow and two sons, as well as representatives from his four former clubs, were present as the football world paid tribute to a player affectionately known as "Deano".
Saints 'have quality players' - Eckertpublished at 22:53 GMT 24 February
22:53 GMT 24 February
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Southampton are up to seventh in the Championship table
Southampton head coach Tonda Eckert praised his "quality players" for their work in an emphatic victory over QPR on Tuesday night.
Saints took an early lead through Finn Azaz before a brace from Kuryu Matsuki and goals from Leo Scienza and James Bree.
The victory moves them up to seventh in the table and four points behind Wrexham who sit in sixth.
"There are many games we could have scored more than one and sometimes that's enough, but today there were some key moments that came out way and we do have some quality players on the pitch.
"These night games are always special at St Mary's," Eckert told BBC Radio Solent.
"It's a quick pitch and we needed to make sure that we are really sharp and we were right from the beginning, the first goal was because of that.
"I'm very big on confidence and I believe every player needs to back themselves, he (Matsuki) has got his head down and worked hard despite not playing very minutes and today is a consequence of that.
"We're still not where we want to be, we have to keep our heads down, be humble and keep working, we need to turn this into a really good month when we have our game Saturday."
Saints are next in action when they travel away to already relegated Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday.
