Ipswich Town, Coventry City, and Middlesbrough are the most likely teams to achieve automatic promotion from the Championship, with EFL pundits George Elek and Ali Maxwell having the final say on who finishes where.

Preston North End and Millwall are only one point behind Ipswich, but they have played one more game, and the talk is about Kieran McKenna’s team breaking into the top two ahead of Middlesbrough or Coventry.

Frank Lampard’s side leads Boro by six points and Ipswich by eight, albeit the latter has a game in hand. Cov has also lost four of its last nine games across all competitions, including two league games versus Ipswich.

Those victories have helped Ipswich significantly close the distance on both sides, with McKenna and his team now won six of their past nine games in all competitions, including a single defeat to Leicester City.

EFL expert George Elek expects Coventry City and Ipswich Town will pip Middlesbrough.

According to NTT20’s mid-season predictions, George Elek prefers Coventry above Ipswich, but both are expected to defeat Middlesbrough for automatic promotion by May. He elaborated: “I’ve gone for Coventry to win the league.”You know, in a strange way, with their current six-point lead, they’re the obvious option to win the league. As expected, they are the favorites to win the league.I believe you must avoid becoming too persuaded by this wobble and assuming that this will be their performance from now until the end of the season. Part of the reason I have them at the top is that Ipswich comes in second. “I believe Ipswich will overtake Middlesbrough by the end of the season.”If that’s the case, the six-point difference between Boro and Coventry is immaterial. You’re looking at the eight-point difference between Ipswich and Coventry as a rationale to flip the two with a game in hand. After playing each other twice, Ipswich will not be able to make up ground in a future game.So, I believe Ipswich will score more points than Coventry between now and the end of the season. However, as seen with Leicester and Leeds, top Championship teams frequently have mid-season slumps.Then, when things become tight again, they kick in, find their stride, and figure out how to get it done. And I’m confident that soon we’ll be discussing this Coventry glitch, wobble, mini-crisis, or whatever you want to call it, as a thing of the past rather than an extended demise.”

Ali Maxwell believes Ipswich Town can defeat Coventry City to the Championship crown.

Ali Maxwell sees some aspects of the promotion fight differently. When asked about the top two, he said: “I believe Coventry City will be a Premier League team next season. “It will mark the end of a fantastic five-year period for the club, and everyone should be proud of themselves.”I think Ipswich Town will win the Championship, while Coventry will finish second. There’s no denying that Coventry was a dangerous super squad.

For August, September, October, and November. They surprised the league with their impressive style of play.They were blitzing the teams. Their attacking players worked extremely well together. Every month, it seemed like a new player stood up.

But it does not last forever. Furthermore, they are not a parachute payment team. “They do not have a squad full of 25 expensive players who can shift in and out and carry things on when others fail.”They have a very good squad, arguably the greatest ever assembled by a non-parachute paid team. And maybe that’s enough to fill the void. “And maybe that’s enough to counteract what I’m suggesting, which is that I think they’ll find it harder to reclaim that super team level after having a little wobble.”They haven’t been terrible in the last two months, but they’re also not a great squad. In terms of results and performances,

I’d say they’re closer to a top six squad than a 100-point super team. “If they stay in the top six, I believe they will still finish second.”I’ve had enough of the question marks about the other teams that aren’t named Ipswich. Ipswich remains the most probable team to have a successful second half of the season.I believe those two wins against Coventry have done a lot for Ipswich’s and Coventry’s intangible confidence,

to be honest. “I don’t think eight points with a game in hand is a huge tally.”When it comes to Ipswich being the team that I believe will suddenly fly from here and average 2.1/2.2 points per game to win the league, they have made significant improvements in the back line in recent months.

“The transition from [Alex] Palmer to [Christian] Walton has been very significant. Walton has been amazing. The back four appears more established and happy than it did at the beginning of the season. That’s also significant in midfield, where I thought they looked terrible. At times, the quality was disturbingly low.Marcelino Nunez in the number ten position has been a complete revelation. If you watch Ipswich’s play, Ipswich’s goals during the last

Within a month or two, Nunez will be at the center of everything. “[Jaden] Philogene and [Jack] Clarke provide a goal per game, regardless of who plays off the left.”Still not great at the top of the pitch, but the players and manager give me hope that things will improve. I think there might be another gear left in Ipswich, and I believe they’ll go one better than two years ago.

Actually win the league.”