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Welcome to a full night of Football League as well as international football action. The spotlight falls on key Championship clashes and the pivotal final group games in the Africa Cup of Nations tournament.

Preamble

Greetings to all. Welcome to what is arguably the second-to-last football clockwatch of 2025. We have a full Football League slate, starting with Ipswich's trip to Coventry at 18:00, and we’ll also be keeping at least a third of an eye on both night games from the first group at this Afcon: Morocco hosting Zambia and Comoros v Mali.

Our primary attention will be on the following games, all 19:45 start times except where noted.

Africa Cup of Nations Fixtures

• Comoros versus The Eagles (7pm)
• Zambia v Morocco (7pm)

Championship

• The Sky Blues v The Tractor Boys (18:00)
• The Foxes versus The Rams
• Middlesbrough v Hull
• The Lions v The Robins
• Wrexham v Preston

League One

• Cardiff v Stevenage

Latest Lineup Updates

Ipswich at Coventry Confirmed Lineups

The early game, featuring the sides sitting first and third in the second tier, could be a thriller. These are the two XIs.

Coventry (4-2-3-1) The goalkeeper; the right-back, Woolfenden, the defender, Brau; Torp, Grimes; the winger, Rudoni, Mason-Clark; Wright.

Substitutes: The backup keeper, the midfielder, Simms, Kesler-Hayden, the full-back, the defender, Eccles, Perry, Andrews.

Ipswich Town (a 4-2-3-1 setup) Walton; Furlong, O’Shea, Kipre, Greaves; Matusiwa, Taylor; the attacker, the playmaker, Jack Clarke; Azon.

Subs: The goalkeeper, the defender, Johnson, Humphreys, Cajuste, Burns, McAteer, the attacker, the striker.

The official Anthony Backhouse (Cumbria).

Africa Cup of Nations: Group A Scenarios

The situation is complex. It always is where only some third-place sides qualify. Here’s how things look ahead of this evening's final set of matches.

• Morocco 4 points, GD+2
• The Eagles 2 points, 0 goal difference (goals scored 2)
• The Copper Bullets 2 points, GD0 (goals scored 1)
• The Coelacanths 1pt, -2 goal difference

In short, Morocco are probably fine but will want to defeat Zambia and win the group. Zambia likely requires a draw or better against the hosts. Comoros likely must to beat their rivals, who should advance with a draw.

A host of potential results and permutations.

Angola v Egypt Update

The conclusion to Group B at the continental championship has coverage elsewhere. For those wishing to remain unaware, it's best not to seek out that information.

Second Tier Standings Overview

Pos	Team	P	GD	Pts
1	Coventry	23	31	51
2	Middlesbrough	23	9	43
3	Ipswich	23	15	38
4	Hull	23	2	38
5	Preston North End	23	7	37
6	Bristol City	23	7	36
7	Millwall	23	-6	36
8	Watford	23	4	35
9	QPR	23	-2	35
10	Stoke	23	7	34
11	Derby	23	1	32
12	Southampton	23	4	31
13	Wrexham	23	2	31
14	Leicester	23	-1	31
15	Birmingham	23	1	30
16	West Brom	23	-5	28
17	Charlton	22	-6	27
18	Blackburn	22	-4	26
19	Sheff Utd	23	-5	26
20	Swansea	23	-7	26
21	Oxford Utd	23	-8	22
22	Portsmouth	22	-10	22
23	Norwich	23	-9	21
24	Sheff Wed	22	-27	-8