EFL Championship Matchday 43 Odds & Picks

• England’s second-tier stages 12 Round 43 fixtures from Friday until Sunday
• Playoff rivals Fulham and Cardiff  meet while Charlton need survival win against Reading
• See all odds and best bets for England EFL Championship Round 43

England’s EFL Championship heads into its Round 43 fixtures with an intense title battle taking place at the top along with a close-fought contest for promotion playoff places.

England EFL Championship Round 43 Odds

All odds taken July 9

Leeds United and West Bromwich Albion have continued their thrilling contest for the leading two automatic spots since the re-start. Read on for our top three bets for the weekend below.

Pick 1: Fulham vs Cardiff City

Fulham have won three straight games as they prepare to meet Cardiff City in a battle of two evenly-matched and free-scoring playoff hopefuls on Friday.

Meanwhile, Cardiff will be looking to bounce back from a surprise 3-2 home defeat by Blackburn Rovers last Tuesday which ended their impressive re-start in which they had won three times and drawn once.

Fulham are in fourth place with 73 points while Cardiff are sixth with 64 points.

Fulham are priced at -106 for a home win at Craven Cottage at 3:15 pm EST on Friday while Cardiff are at +255, which offers decent value.

.@Ryanbabel 📍

The most satisfying of strikes the last time Cardiff visited us! 🤤#FULCAR pic.twitter.com/JjmeIvquC3

— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) July 9, 2020

However, a draw at +235 is more likely – especially as Cardiff have drawn 16 of their 42 games this season.

Scott Parker’s Fulham side had a tough-re-start when they were beaten 2-0 at home by in-form Brentford and then had to travel to meet table-toppers Leeds United, where they suffered a 3-0 defeat.

Cardiff have won their last three away games stretching back to before the shut-down.

But they have recovered with a 2-1 defeat of QPR, a 1-0 win at home against Birmingham City and a vital win away by 1-0 at fifth-placed Nottingham Forest last Tuesday.

They will welcome the return of the division’s joint-leading goal-scorer Alexandr Mitrovic after a three-match ban. He has 23 goals.

https://twitter.com/BlueCity01/status/1279473287580602368?s=20

Cardiff won 2-0 at Leeds in their first re-start game then racked up a 3-1 win at home against Preston North End and a 0-0 draw away at Charlton Athletic. Then came a 1-0 win away at Bristol City.

Neil Harris’ Cardiff side have won their last three away games stretching back to before the shut-down.

Pick: Draw (+235)

Pick 2: Charlton Athletic vs Reading

Charlton Athletic will be looking to revive their survival bid when they meet Reading on Saturday at The Valley at  7:30 am EST.

The sides are priced evenly for a win at +164 but a Charlton victory is the best offer here. The draw is +210, which is also inviting.

After an encouraging re-start Charlton have suffered defeats in two successive London derbies; 1-0 away against Millwall and then 2-1 at third-placed Brentford.

Reading have kept consecutive clean sheets with two Academy graduates in the defence for the first time in over 4 years.@Tom5Mc and @gabeosho 💪 #readingfc pic.twitter.com/8Htkve7lQX

— Talk Reading (@TalkReading) July 8, 2020

Reading were held at home last mid-week in a 0-0 draw against struggling Huddersfield Town. That came after they had thrashed bottom club Luton Town 5-0.

Charlton’s boss Lee Bowyer is a good motivator. He will impress upon his side the need for three points as they sit one place above the drop zone in 21^st with 46 points – one above Hull City in 22^nd place.

Bowyer’s side made a welcome re-start with a 1-0 win away at Hull. Then came a 1-0 win at home against QPR.

The following 0-0 draw at Cardiff was also impressive but things have since taken a down-turn.

At home, Charlton have the 15^th best record with eight wins, five draws and five defeats.

The win against Luton was Reading’s only victory since the re-start.

They re-commenced with a 1-1 draw against struggling Stoke City then lost 2-1 against Derby County and 3-0 against Brentford.

At home, Charlton have the 15^th best record with eight wins, five draws and five defeats. Reading are the seventh-best team on the road with seven wins, seven draws and seven defeats.

Pick: Charlton (+164)

Pick 3: Hull City vs Millwall

Millwall’s playoff hopes took a knock with a 2-0 defeat at home by struggling Middlesbrough on Wednesday.

So they will be keen to keep alive their slim chances when they travel to meet relegation-threatened Hull City on Saturday at 10:00 am EST  at KCOM Stadium.

Millwall are favorites for an away win at +133 with Hull at +197. The draw is an inviting +220.

https://twitter.com/ClubThefootball/status/1281104523340189696?s=20

But after Hull conceded six times while losing their most recent two games, the spread offer of +103 for Millwall to win by at least one goal is the best value.

In a troubled season, Hull are in the drop zone on 22^nd place.

Hull  have won just once in 14 games with only two draws and 11 defeats.

They were beaten 2-1 away at Bristol City last Wednesday following a 4-2 defeat away against second-placed West Bromwich Albion.

They have won just once in 14 games with only two draws and 11 defeats.

Millwall lost their first re-start game at home 2-3 against Derby County. They then drew 0-0 at Barnsley and 1-1 at home against Swansea before their first resumption win, 1-0 at home against Charlton.

Pick: Millwall pk,-½ (+103)