Championship preview
He has managed top European clubs such as Roma, Fiorentina, Lazio as well as being England and Ivory Coast manager. Now, the mission at Leicester City begins for Sven-Göran Eriksson.
The last time he managed a team in this country, he watched his Manchester City side being demolished by Middlesbrough 8-1 in the final game of the 2008/09 season, which he described as “awful.” Things at Notts County didn’t work out for him as director of football, and he will be hoping his return to England will run smoothly.
A return to the Premier League looks a long way off at the moment, but not impossible says the Swede. “I think they have everything here: the stadium, the training ground and the fans. We had 20,000 against Scunthorpe, when bottom of the league, that's very good. There is everything to be a Premier League club. It's only the table which doesn't look very good,” he said.
Curtis Davies of Aston Villa has arrived to the Walkers Stadium on loan for a month to strengthen the defence and could be in line to start tomorrow.
Eriksson has a home game against Hull City to start with, and on the day he was appointed manager, Leicester recorded a 3-1 win over Scunthorpe to move off the foot of the table in their last game. A win against Hull tomorrow would put them one point behind the team who were relegated from the Premier League last season.
Flying high at the top of the table, Queens Park Rangers welcome third-placed Norwich to Loftus Road. Six points clear, Neil Warnock’s men are enjoying a fine season so far. Fans have been predicting the wheels to fall off soon, but that has yet to happen, and considering they are yet to concede a goal at home this season, the fine run should continue.
The match of the weekend has to be Middlesbrough against Leeds United at the Riverside. Middlesbrough manager Gordon Strachan is not enjoying a good time, and with his side 18th in the table, it is a must-win game. For Leeds, boss Simon Grayson will be looking for his side to overturn the minus goal difference they currently have- the only side in the top-12- after conceding so many goals in their recent fixtures.
Seventh versus eighth do battle at the Madejski, as Reading play Swansea. Bristol City take on Swansea’s rivals Cardiff City in one of two early kick-offs, with Scunthorpe against Doncaster the other.
Portsmouth came from 2-0 down to rescue a point at Middlesbrough in their last outing, and they play Malky Mackay’s Watford, currently fourth in the table. With the Football League rejecting Portsmouth’s attempts to come out of administration, manager Steve Cotterill said the focus should be on the football. “We need to blow some of these dark clouds away from this club. We've had them over us for more than 12 months now,” he said.
“Let somebody else have the spotlight for a while. We've been under it perhaps for the wrong reasons, and lots of people want to throw mud at you. When you haven't got a lot to bat back with, some of that mud will stick.”
Sheffield United, three points above the relegation zone, are at home to Burnley while Derby County play Preston North End at Pride Park, and Barnsley take on Nottingham Forest.
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