EFL weekend tips: how Forest can boost promotion push at Blackpool

Blackpool vs Nottingham Forest

12.30pm, Sky Sports Football 

It’s crunch time in the hunt for the Championship playoff places and Nottingham Forest, with games in hand on the sides above them and FA Cup participation now over, are primed for a serious run at the top six. 

Having started the season in such bad form that Chris Hughton was fired as manager after six defeats in their first seven games, Forest have managed to creep up the table without the normal level of expectation that has followed them in recent seasons. 

It was clear early in his reign that Steve Cooper had turned the club around. First he made them solid and now they look a good all-round team. Blackpool are a good side, particularly at home, but Forest have shown that they are well capable of finding a way to win this kind of game. 

Recommended bet: Forest @ 2.44  

Luton Town vs Millwall

3pm 

Luton are absolutely flying right now. Since the start of February, the Hatters have taken 24 points from a possible 33 as they got to the front of a very tight playoff fight in third.  

Their manager Nathan Jones was fuming after QPR came from behind to snatch a 2-1 win at Kenilworth Road three weekends ago, but seven goals in two wins since then will have him in a better mood. 

Millwall still have a shot at the playoffs too, despite seeing a fine run ended away to Stoke City in their final match before the international break. Despite their capitulation at Stoke, the Lions have a reputation as a team that are hard to beat, even if that has meant they have had a few too many draws this season. 

They had to do without on-loan striker Benik Afobe (a player who has been transferred three times for an eight-figure fee) at Stoke. Afobe has become the real focus of the attack at Millwall recently, having had a slow start to his time in London. 

But, while Luton are likely to come flying out of the traps, this could be a tight game with few goals and with the playoff chase so tight, both sides will be looking to make sure they do not lose. 

Recommended bet: draw @ 3.15  

Middlesbrough boss Chris Wilder will see his side play three of the top four after their trip to Peterborough

Peterborough United vs Middlesbrough

3pm 

It was perhaps a sign of QPR’s downturn in form rather than anything particularly impressive happening at Peterborough that they were able to finally secure their first league win of 2022 at the 15^th attempt in their final game before the international break. 

The three points did lift them off the foot of the table, but they remain seven points away from fourth-bottom Reading with only the bottom four now looking at serious risk of going down. 

What Peterborough have managed to do in recent weeks is score, with Jonson Clarke-Harris and Jack Marriott netting seven goals between them in the last four matches. 

Under Chris Wilder, Middlesbrough are not a side to be taken lightly by anyone. Their FA Cup tie against Chelsea means that they haven’t played a Championship match since their 2-0 win away to Birmingham City on March 15. 

But in seventh place, two points off sixth place with at least a game in hand on the four sides in the playoff places, they will be seeing a match against Peterborough as a banker win, especially as they play three of the top four – Fulham, Bournemouth and Huddersfield Town – among their following four fixtures.  

Recommended bet: Middlesbrough and both teams to score @ 3.5  

Sheffield Wednesday vs AFC Wimbledon

3pm 

The wheels seem to have fallen off at AFC Wimbledon and time was up this week for Mark Robinson, as he left the head coach position, with Mark Bowen stepping in as manager until the end of the season. 

The club has been on a rotten run. Not only have they lost their last five games, they have not won a match since December 7. 

The task in front of Bowen is not a thankless one, though. The form of all the teams at the foot of League One is so poor that they remain just one point away from safety. 

The form of Sheffield Wednesday, in contrast, has been pretty good, as they have managed ten wins since the turn of the year. They seemed to have a blip this month, but put that behind them last Saturday with a 4-1 win over Cheltenham Town. 

In sixth place, with Sunderland and Wycombe Wanderers breathing down their neck, Wednesday need three points on Saturday to maintain their place in the playoffs, although as they are ten points behind Wigan in second (having played two games more), automatic promotion looks beyond them. Wednesday will be out to make a point. 

Recommended bet: Sheffield Wednesday to win both halves @ 3.4 

Sunderland vs Gillingham

3pm 

Things have not been completely smooth for Alex Neil since he took over as Sunderland boss in February, but while they are not getting as many goals as he would like, they are certainly hard to score against. In eight games since he took over the hot seat, Sunderland have let in only five goals.  

If that was not impressive enough, they have let in only one goal in their past five matches and are on a run of 242 minutes without conceding. 

But with the battle for the playoffs in League One heating up, Sunderland need to keep winning and in Gillingham they face a side that have still not put relegation worries completely behind them.

Indeed, Gillingham have been in some decent form, getting seven points from their past four matches, a little run that included away wins at Doncaster Rovers and Accrington Stanley. Sunderland are a tougher task than either of those, though, and the Gills will be up against it. 

Recommended bet: Sunderland to win to nil @ 2.24 

Recommended bets

Forest @ 2.44 

Luton/Millwall draw @ 3.15 

Middlesbrough/BTTS @ 3.5

Wednesday win both halves @ 3.4 

Sunderland win to nil @ 2.24