Championship Gameweek 38 Preview: Title Charge, Playoff Push and Relegation Scramble
Gameweek 38 Preview: Competition:Sky Bet Championship Dates: Fri 13th – Mon 16th March Number of Fixtures: 12 Hull City: AWAY vs West Bromwich Albion (Sat, 3:00pm)
With nine weeks of the season remaining, Gameweek 38 couldn’t be more consequential. Coventry City have the chance to go seven wins in a row and put the title in touching distance when they host a Southampton side scrapping for the final playoff place, while Ipswich face a genuine must-win at Hillsborough to keep their automatic promotion ambitions alive. At the other end, West Brom’s winless streak stretches to 13 games — and their next opponents happen to be the Championship’s most clinical away side. Hull City travel to The Hawthorns knowing three points could ratchet up the pressure on the top two and cement their place in the play-off picture for the run-in.
Gameweek 38 – Stats & Historical Data
All Fixtures – Head to Head, xG Form & Historical Positions
Championship - Matchday 38 Preview
Season 2025-26 | Powered by 6 seasons of historical data
Coventry Go for Seven: Leaders Coventry City host Southampton in the standout 12:30 kick-off. Six straight wins have opened up a commanding lead at the top — can they make it seven in a row at a bouncing CBS Arena, or will a Southampton side fighting for their playoff lives spoil the party?
Ipswich’s Promotion Crunch: Town travel to Hillsborough knowing a slip here — with Sheffield Wednesday desperate for their first home win of the season — could prove catastrophic for automatic promotion hopes. After dropping points at Stoke in midweek, the pressure is firmly on Kieran McKenna’s side to respond.
West Brom’s Winless Misery Continues?: The Baggies have gone 13 games without a win and currently sit 23rd. Their reward this weekend is a trip from Hull City, who have the second-best away record in the division — averaging 1.83 points per game on the road. Something has to give at The Hawthorns.
Championship Top Scorers
Top Scorers Heading into Gameweek 38
1.
Žan Vipotnik (Swansea City)
17
2.
Haji Wright (Coventry City)
16
3.
Joe Gelhardt (Hull City)
13
4.
Oliver McBurnie (Hull City)
13
5.
Jack Clarke (Ipswich Town)
12
Top Assists
Top Assist Providers
1.
Gustavo Hamer (Sheffield United)
10
2.
Michael Johnston (West Bromwich Albion)
9
3.
Josh Tymon (Swansea City)
9
Match of the Week: Coventry City vs Southampton
Saturday 12:30pm — The Coventry Building Society Arena
This is the headline act of Gameweek 38. Coventry City, six wins on the spin and clear at the top of the table, welcome a Southampton side that has quietly assembled one of the most compelling late-season runs in the division. For Tonda Eckert’s side, a win here would all but seal the title with games to spare; for Southampton, a first-half slip from their hosts or a goal against the run of play could blow the final playoff spot wide open. Add in the fact that the CBS Arena will be rocking in anticipation of a seventh straight win, and you have all the ingredients for a match that could define the Championship’s business end. Southampton arrive on the back of three consecutive away games — Fulham (FA Cup), West Brom (draw, rescued in injury time by Larin’s header) and now Coventry — so fatigue may be a factor, but they’ve shown they can absorb pressure and find a way.
Head to Head
Coventry vs Southampton
Last 4 league meetings
Coventry0Wins
2Draws
Southampton2Wins
Total Goals: 4 - 6
Date
Home
Score
Away
xG
14 Mar 2026 2025-26
Coventry
1 - 2
Southampton
2.3 - 1.9
20 Dec 2025 2025-26
Southampton
1 - 1
Coventry
1.3 - 0.5
09 Apr 2024 2023-24
Southampton
2 - 1
Coventry
1.4 - 1.5
13 Dec 2023 2023-24
Coventry
1 - 1
Southampton
0.5 - 0.8
Recent Form Comparison
Team not found: Coventry
xG Trends
Coventry - 10-Match Rolling xG 2025/2026
Rolling 10-match average | Green above red = Creating more than conceding
Southampton - 10-Match Rolling xG 2025/2026
Rolling 10-match average | Green above red = Creating more than conceding
Goals by Period
Coventry - Goals by Time Period 2026/2027
Best Scoring Period
0-15 mins
Most Vulnerable Period
0-15 mins
Southampton - Goals by Time Period 2026/2027
Best Scoring Period
76-90+ mins
Most Vulnerable Period
16-30 mins
Historical Position at Matchday 38
No fixture found for Coventry on Saturday 14th March 2026.
No fixture found for Southampton on Saturday 14th March 2026.
Player to Watch
Léo Scienza (Southampton)
The Brazilian winger has been a persistent thorn in opposition sides throughout Southampton’s late push and showed exactly why at The Hawthorns in midweek — getting the better of his full-back and whipping in the cross that eventually led to Larin’s injury-time equaliser. If Scienza can find pockets of space against Coventry’s well-organised press, he has the directness and creativity to cause real problems. A player who thrives when given licence to take on defenders, he’ll be key to Southampton’s chances of getting something from a tough assignment at the CBS Arena.
Leo Scienza
Southampton • M • 2026-2027 Season
13 apps2 goals2 assists6.50 avg rating
BTP Verdict
Coventry’s momentum is genuinely hard to bet against at this point — six wins in a row, the home crowd right behind them and a squad that simply knows how to win games. Southampton are no mugs and the memory of a 1-1 draw at St Mary’s (when Coventry went down to ten men while 1-0 up) shows they can compete. However, three away games in a row including a draining FA Cup trip to Fulham could catch up with them here. We’re backing the home side to extend their incredible run, with Southampton nicking a consolation but ultimately coming up short at a bouncing CBS Arena.
Hull City vs West Bromwich Albion — Sat, 3:00pm (The Hawthorns)
The Opposition: West Brom are in deep trouble. Sitting 23rd in the table, their winless run has now extended to 13 Championship games — a sequence that has seen Leicester win twice, Blackburn win three times, Oxford four and Charlton five in the same period. Their midweek showing against Southampton was marginally encouraging — they dominated large spells and were seconds away from all three points before Larin’s injury-time header condemned them to yet another draw — but a performance without the result is of very limited use when you’re staring at the drop. Manager Tonda Eckert is under pressure to find a solution, but the pattern of near-misses and late heartbreaks suggests a fragile side that has lost faith in its ability to see games out.
Key Battle: Oli McBurnie against West Brom’s central defence will be the contest to watch. The Scot scored the only goal in the reverse fixture at the MKM Stadium and has been in strong scoring form. West Brom’s backline has struggled with physicality and directness all season — exactly the kind of threat McBurnie poses. If Hull can get the ball into feet around the box, the hosts’ vulnerability on set pieces and transitions could prove decisive.
What We Think: Hull are the Championship’s away-day specialists this season, averaging an extraordinary 1.83 points per game on the road — the second-best away record in the division. Tim Walter’s side have shown a clinical edge that West Brom simply cannot match right now. While the Baggies showed some fight in midweek and will be desperate to finally end that run, Hull’s ability to absorb pressure and punish mistakes with a minimum of fuss makes them strong favourites here. West Brom have those defensive errors in them, and Hull will make them pay.
Head to Head
Hull City vs West Brom
Last 5 league meetings
Hull City1Wins
2Draws
West Brom2Wins
Total Goals: 4 - 7
Date
Home
Score
Away
xG
14 Mar 2026 2025-26
West Brom
3 - 0
Hull City
2.3 - 0.3
20 Dec 2025 2025-26
Hull City
1 - 0
West Brom
1.3 - 1.3
15 Mar 2025 2024-25
West Brom
1 - 1
Hull City
1.0 - 0.3
10 Nov 2024 2024-25
Hull City
1 - 2
West Brom
1.2 - 1.2
24 Feb 2024 2023-24
Hull City
1 - 1
West Brom
0.6 - 1.0
Recent Form Comparison
Team not found: Hull City
xG Trends
Hull City - 10-Match Rolling xG 2025/2026
Rolling 10-match average | Green above red = Creating more than conceding
West Brom - 10-Match Rolling xG 2025/2026
Rolling 10-match average | Green above red = Creating more than conceding
Goals by Period
Hull City - Goals by Time Period 2026/2027
Best Scoring Period
0-15 mins
Most Vulnerable Period
0-15 mins
West Brom - Goals by Time Period 2026/2027
Best Scoring Period
61-75 mins
Most Vulnerable Period
0-15 mins
Historical Position at Matchday 38
No fixture found for Hull City on Saturday 14th March 2026.
No fixture found for West Brom on Saturday 14th March 2026.
Hull City Recent Form
Hull City - Recent League Form
WWDWLD
Player to Watch
Oli McBurnie — Hull City
McBurnie has previous form at The Hawthorns in the most literal sense — he scored the only goal in the reverse fixture between these two sides earlier in the season. The powerful centre-forward has been pivotal to Hull’s away form, linking play effectively and providing the focal point for Tim Walter’s counter-attacking structure. With West Brom’s defenders frequently caught in no-man’s-land, McBurnie’s ability to hold the ball up, bring others into play and arrive late in the box makes him the player most likely to decide this one. An ANYTIME scorer bet at generous odds, and a man who knows exactly what the Hawthorns looks like in Hull’s colours.
No season statistics found for Oliver McBurnie in 2026-2027.
BTP Verdict
Hull were impressive at Wrexham in midweek — Nathan Broadhead’s goal earning a well-deserved 1-0 win that showcased exactly the kind of controlled, clinical away performance that has defined their season. They’ve improved game by game recently, adding more attacking threat to their already formidable defensive structure. West Brom have the desire but the momentum and the quality both point firmly in Hull’s direction. The Tigers to win, to nil if McBurnie is at his ruthless best.
Prediction
West Brom 0-2 Hull City
One to Watch
Oli McBurnie
Key Battle
McBurnie vs WBA Defence
BTP Predictions — Gameweek 38
Our Predictions
Season record: 36/81 correct results (44%) | 9 exact scores
Wrexham vs Swansea City
2-1
Coventry City vs Southampton
2-1
Middlesbrough vs Bristol City
2-0
Oxford United vs Charlton Athletic
0-0
Birmingham City vs Sheffield United
2-1
Leicester City vs Queens Park Rangers
2-0
Millwall vs Blackburn Rovers
2-0
Norwich City vs Preston North End
2-0
Sheffield Wednesday vs Ipswich Town
0-3
Stoke City vs Watford
1-1
West Bromwich Albion vs Hull City
0-2
Portsmouth vs Derby County
1-1
Final Thoughts
Gameweek 38 is a genuine six-pointer weekend at both ends of the table. Coventry have the chance to put the title beyond doubt with a seventh consecutive win, while Ipswich face the most pressurised away trip imaginable at a Hillsborough side still searching for their first home win of the season. The relegation picture is equally compelling — West Brom, Blackburn and Portsmouth all need points badly, and at least one of them looks set to fall further behind this weekend. For the neutral, the sheer volume of games with real stakes makes this one of the most watchable rounds of the season.
Best case for Hull City: Hull win comfortably at The Hawthorns — McBurnie nets again against his old sparring partners, the Tigers go to 10 away wins for the season, and results elsewhere drag them within touching distance of the automatic promotion places with eight games remaining.
Worst case: West Brom channel the desperation of a side staring at League One and find a scrappy goal from a set piece, snatching a draw or even a shock win that stalls Hull’s momentum just as the season reaches its crucial phase.
Hull City Upcoming Fixtures
Next Fixtures
No upcoming league fixtures.
Check back after the weekend for our full Gameweek 38 review with xG analysis and match reports!
Wrexham7th
Swansea11th
Middlesbrough5th
Bristol City12th
Oxford United22nd
Charlton19th
Coventry1st
Southampton4th
Leicester23rd
QPR15th
Birmingham10th
Sheffield Utd13th
Millwall3rd
Blackburn20th
West Brom21st
Hull City6th
Norwich9th
Preston14th
Sheffield Wednesday24th
Ipswich2nd
Stoke City17th
Watford16th
Portsmouth18th
Derby8th
