There’s no getting away from the fact that the role of an EFL centre back has changed. Gone are the days when centre halves were judged solely on their ability to ‘head it’, ‘kick it’ and keep the ball out of the net. Nowadays, they’re expected to ‘head it’ and ‘kick it’ to their teammates;...
Category: Championship
The weekend that was: ten nuggets from this weekend’s EFL action (11th & 12th December 2021)
#1 Championship leaders Fulham are without a win in their last four games after Luton held them to a 1-1 draw at Kenilworth Road. Elijah Adebayo, a Fulham academy graduate, cancelled out Aleksandar Mitrovic’s first half strike. #2 Bournemouth’s winless run stands at five games after Blackburn beat the Cherries 2-0 at the Vitality Stadium....
The weekend that was: ten nuggets from this weekend’s EFL action (4th & 5th December 2021)
#1 On Friday night, Championship leaders Fulham played out an entertaining 1-1 with Bournemouth on Scott Parker’s return to Craven Cottage. Tosin Adarabioyo’s header cancelled out Dom Solanke’s well-worked opener but, with an xG of 3.56, Marco Silva’s Fulham will be disappointed to only come away with a point. #2 West Brom recorded their first...
The weekend that was: ten nuggets from this weekend’s EFL action (27th & 28th November 2021)
#1 In the Championship, Fulham, Bournemouth and West Brom all dropped points. West Brom played out a goalless draw with Nottingham Forest on Friday night, while Fulham and Bournemouth were held by Preston and Coventry on Saturday. It’s the second time in consecutive game weeks (and only the third time this season) that all three...
Intercepted: the midfield generals who get it back and keep it.
What does ‘winning the battle in midfield’ look like in modern football? Once upon a time, it looked like heavy tackles on boggy pitches. Nowadays, it’s all about pressing the opposition, winning the ball back through making interceptions, being first to loose balls and, of course, dominating possession. While many grow up wanting to be...
The weekend that was: ten nuggets from this weekend’s EFL action (20th & 21st November 2021)
#1 Fulham moved to the top of Championship after the Cottagers beat Barnsley 4-1 on Saturday and Bournemouth succumbed to a 3-2 defeat against Derby on Sunday. Marco Silva’s side have now won seven games in a row, scoring 25 goals and keeping five clean sheets in the process. #2 West Brom remain third but...
The Near Post’s Goals per Game/Start Files.
With three International breaks spread across the opening four months of the season, some EFL teams have played 17 league games, while others have only played 15 league games. Therefore, goals per game feels like the fairest way to assess a team’s potency in front of goal. At present, nine EFL teams are averaging 1.80...
The Near Post’s team-by-team breakdown of the 2021/22 Championship season to date.
(Photo Creds – Denniz Futalan)
The weekend that was: ten nuggets from this weekend’s EFL action (6th & 7th November 2021)
#1 Bournemouth bounced back from their first league defeat of the season with a comprehensive 4-0 win over Swansea. After his brace at the weekend, Cherries striker Dom Solanke has now scored ten goals in his last eight home games. #2 Aleksandar Mitrovic has broken another record. On Saturday, Mitro’s goal against Peterborough made him...
The weekend that was: ten nuggets from this weekend’s EFL action (30th & 31st October 2021)
#1 Bournemouth wracked up their fifth win in a row and their ninth clean sheet of the season as they beat Reading 2-0 on Saturday. The Cherries are now nine points clear of third-placed West Brom. #2 We’re running out of superlatives for Aleksandar Mitrovic. The Serbian striker scored his second hattrick of the season...