Championship promotion race nicely poised

Leeds United and Southampton will face-off on the final day of the season at Elland Road. Could that be the tie that decides the race for the second automatic promotion spot?

Leicester City’s slip-ups in the last two rounds have opened the door for rivals in the intriguing race for promotion to the Premier League.

Looking to bounce back from the 3-1 defeat at Coventry City, the Foxes could only manage a 1-1 draw against second-placed Ipswich Town last time out.

It was the second time the top two sides had cancelled each other this term by the identical 1-1 score line, dropping four points in the process. That has helped the chasing pack close the gap at the top to manageable levels.

For Leicester City, what appeared to be a commanding lead at the top of the Championship table a few weeks ago has now been whittled down to just seven points. With 54 points still on offer, there are plenty of opportunities to eat further into the Foxes’ lead.

One thing is certain, though: there will be twists and turns before the promotion race is won and lost.

How it’s shaping up

As we slowly approach the business end of the campaign, four clubs, Leicester City, Ipswich Town, Southampton, and Leeds United, have nicely positioned themselves for the final tilt.

But for Ipswich Town writing the campaign’s Cinderella story and upsetting the applecart, pre-season predictions fingering the Premier League’s three most recent dropouts as the chief protagonists in the promotion race are looking spot-on.

Ipswich who have defied the odds all season, stubbornly continue to hold on to second, although their grip on the second promotion spot is increasingly looking tenuous.

How might things pan out

A seven-point lead in a title race is quite handy, but far from being unassailable, especially with plenty of football left to play. It only takes just a short sequence of results to alter the picture dramatically.

Although on the whole, Leicester have looked quite imperious this term, establishing themselves as favourites for the first automatic promotion spot, Enzo Maresca’s men have also shown in recent weeks that they too are just mere mortals. Leicester City’s frailties exposed by Coventry City and Ipswich Town will give rivals some encouragement that the leaders can be reined in.

That said, as things stand, the first automatic promotion spot is Leicester City’s to lose. That leaves Ipswich Town, Southampton and Leeds United, separated by just two points (although Leeds United have played a game more), in what is shaping up to be a three-way battle for the second automatic promotion berth.

Southampton have the bit between the teeth at the moment. They are now right in Ipswich’s slipstream and shaping up to overtake the Tractor Boys into second place thanks to a 18-match unbeaten run.

Do Ipswich have the temperament to hold off the relentless Saints, and indeed the notoriously temperamental Leeds United, or will the Tractor Boys buckle under pressure?

All ex-Premier League play-off?

Predicting how the promotion race will unfold is a hazardous exercise.  Yet, there is one scenario that is looking increasingly likely by the day; Leicester City winning automatic promotion back to the Promised Land leaving fellow Premier League dropouts Southampton and Leeds United to slug it out for the second automatic promotion berth.

To add to the intrigue, Leeds United and Southampton will lock horns at Elland Road on the final day of the season in a match that could decide the winner of the race for the second automatic promotion spot?

Observers will hasten to caution against writing off Ipswich Town’s automatic promotion claims. However, I can’t help but feel that a lack of experience will undermine Kieran McKenna’s men’s challenge and see them fall just short.

While I’m wary of making bold predictions, football logic dictates that Leicester City, Southampton, and Leeds United’s recent Premier League experience will stand them in good stead for the promotion race ruin-in. It’s up to Ipswich Town to tear up that script and gatecrash the party.