Quiz time. Of the 62 teams who both finished last season and started this one in the EFL, who has won the most points in 2025 so far?
Surely it’s Coventry? Nope, not even close. It must be Bradford then? No. Wrexham? Afraid not.
Birmingham’s back-to-back 4-0 home wins this past week took them up to 83 points and counting this year.
League One leaders Stockport are second with 78 while it’s little old Charlton who are third, a further three points back, after their last-gasp win over West Brom at The Valley on Tuesday.
In a world where Sunderland have bounced straight from the Championship play-offs into the top four of the Premier League, is it really beyond the imagination to expect newly-promoted League One sides to be competing at the top of the second-tier?
There was a bit of heat on Chris Davies less than a fortnight ago after a meek 1-0 defeat at Bristol City, a fourth defeat in five away games without scoring.
However they head to Middlesbrough on Saturday brimming with confidence sat just two points outside the play-off places, and having scored as many goals in the past two matches as they did in the previous 11 combined in all competitions.
The side in sixth they are chasing? That would be Charlton, who rather edged through the nervy League One play-offs last year but have taken to the Championship like a, erm, Addick to water, with just three defeats in their opening 14 matches and the second best defence in the league with just 11 conceded.
That record will be tested on Saturday (15:00 GMT) as Nathan Jones heads back to his homeland to visit Wrexham, a club he previously referred to as “a circus” before backing down a bit, not that Phil Parkinson was buying it.
His Red Dragons have also found their feet following promotion, losing just one of their past eight games and going unbeaten in four at home, inflicting a first defeat on leaders Coventry last time out at the Racecourse to help them sit five points outside the play-offs themselves.
Popcorn at the ready, who can keep up with the Championship Joneses?
