3/1 To Win
The countdown is well and truly on for the 2017/18 Sky Bet Championship campaign!
The fixtures for the new season are released on Wednesday 21st June 2017 and, with just one week to go, we’ve profiled five home games to relish next term.
With the division set to be as competitive as ever next time around, there will be plenty of mouthwatering fixtures played at Pride Park Stadium over the course of the campaign.
We’ve picked out five that stand out from the crowd for us right here on dcfc.co.uk…
Aston Villa
In their first-ever campaign outside the Premier League - and the top flight since 1987/88 - it’s fair to say Aston Villa expected a higher finish than 13th spot in the Championship in 2016/17. An early-season change of management saw Steve Bruce, who has been promoted from the Championship on four separate occasions as a manager, replace Roberto di Matteo and continue their squad overhaul. With a full summer to work with his squad, Bruce and Villa will be fully expecting to be right in the mix this time around and certainly boast a strong and deep squad at Championship level. After selling out their allocation for every away game last term, they’re sure to bring a full capacity following to Pride Park Stadium - and it’s certainly to be a match not to miss!
Nottingham Forest
Forest survived a final day scare to retain their Championship status back in May, with a 3-0 thumping of Ipswich Town to avoid relegation on goal difference, to ensure the big local derby remains on the fixture calendar in 2017/18. Former Rangers boss Mark Warburton took over at the City Ground back in March and has vowed that the Reds must never find themselves in that position again and, under new ownership following Evangelos Marinakis’ takeover, Forest will be looking to take advantage of the fresh start and enjoy a much more positive campaign. When it comes to local derby matches at Pride Park, Derby have the upper hand having won eight of 14 matches between the sides on home turf since moving to their new home in 1997 – so let’s hope that trend continues! We don’t need to tell you, this one is a must-attend fixture…
Sheffield United
After six successive seasons in League 1, the Blades are back in the Championship. Chris Wilder’s side romped to the title with a hugely impressive 100-point haul and finished 14 points clear of runners-up Bolton Wanderers. They’re certain to be licking their lips in anticipation at being back in the second tier of English football and, no doubt, will be backed every step of the way by their large following of supporters. They’ll be determined to ride the crest of a wave and take their fine form from last season into the Championship. This is certainly a game worth circling in the diary as past encounters have certainly been intriguing ones.
Sunderland
Following 10 seasons in a row in the Premier League, Sunderland were relegated from the top flight back in May. After years of battling for their lives and pulling off several great escapes in recent years, they were unable to pull off a repeat showing under the now-departed David Moyes. Their last season in the Championship was in 2006/07, when they finished as Champions under Roy Keane, after finishing bottom of the Premier League in the previous campaign. With a new manager still to be named there remains an element of unknown when it comes to what Sunderland have to offer in the second tier but, make no mistake about it, they will be pushing for an immediate return to the Premier League and make it a case of déjà vu.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Once thing is for sure, when Derby and Wolves have met at Pride Park Stadium in recent seasons - goals have been guaranteed! The last three meetings have produced a total of 15, of which 12 have been scored by the Rams following 5-0, 4-2 and 3-1 victories. The latter of those came in April, when Gary Rowett’s men put Wolves to the sword with a convincing display in their final home fixture of the 2016/17 season. Since then, Wolves have changed Head Coach with Paul Lambert being replaced by former Porto boss Nuno Espírito Santo. If you’re a lover of high-scoring encounters, then this one’s for you!
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