Crystal Palace have been on a consistent run of form which has transformed their season after a dismal start to the campaign which saw them fail to win any of their opening 8 games in the Premier League. Oliver Glasner’s side are coming off the back of a 4-1 win over Aston Villa at Selhurst Park and can keep that momentum going in the FA Cup here.

Palace have won 4 of their last 5 games across all competitions, the exception in this run coming against an in-form Everton side that were clinical in their 2-1 win over Palace a few weeks ago. Palace secured their spot in this round of the cup with a comfortable win over Doncaster.

Millwall have been going steady under the tutelage of Alex Neil, their focus is likely to be on the Championship with the London side still within an outside chance of making the play-offs and welcome fellow promotion challengers Bristol City in just 3 days time. There is an obvious gap in quality between the Premier League and the Championship which should show here even with Palace eyeing up a cup run to make the most of their positive form in recent months.

Burnley are on a run of 9 successive clean sheets, Scott Parker’s side have only conceded 9 goals in the Championship this season and face off against a Preston side that can be just as stubborn in keeping the opposition out.

These sides recently faced off in a Championship clash which ended 0-0 – there was very little goalmouth action with just 3 shots on target between the sides. Preston have seen under 2.5 goals in 4 of their last 5 games across all competitions. This run includes 2 0-0 draws with the other coming against Wycombe in the last round of the cup.

Burnley have also seen under 2.5 goals in 4 of their last 5 games across all competitions with the exception coming in a 4-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday last time out. Preston are unlikely to be on the end of a hiding from Burnley and the visitors boast the best defensive record across all 4 divisions in England setting up a tentative clash here.

John Eustace’s mid season exit to Derby is still sending shocks through the Blackburn squad and wider community, but their focus must quickly shift to picking up points in these sorts of games. Norwich can move to within 1 point of Blackburn here with victory at Ewood Park. Eustace’s replacement, Valerien Ismael, will want to avoid that outcome.

Blackburn have seen over 1.5 goals in each of their last 5 games whilst Norwich have seen over this line in 3 of their last 5 across all competitions. The initial meeting between the sides produced 4 goals in an entertaining 2-2 draw and more goals should be on the cards here. Norwich’s achilles heel this season when playing away from home has been conceding too many goals, they’ve conceded 24 across their 17 away trips in the Championship this season which has seen them win just 4 of their away games in the Championship this term.

This inconsistent away record makes it difficult to back Norwich to get something from this game but goals are usually guaranteed when Norwich take to the pitch, which when coupled with Blackburn’s recent high goal tallies sets up an entertaining clash between 2 play-off rivals.

Leeds have been imperious at home this season, Daniel Farke’s side comfortably boast the home record in the Championship with 14 wins from their 17 games at Elland Road this campaign. They’ve picked up some crucial victories in recent weeks to strengthen their push for automatic promotion this season which has included seeing off Sunderland and Sheffield United in back-to-back games.

West Brom’s play-off spot is far from guaranteed, Carlos Corberan’s mid season exit to Valencia hasn’t been as disastrous as anticipated but the Baggies are certainly missing the defensive and tactical organisation that Corberan offered the side. The currently sit in the play-off spots but they are only 6 points between them in 5th and Sheffield Wednesday in 13th, making it a very open race for the final 2 play-off spots.

The initial meeting between the sides ended in a 0-0 draw but this meeting was right at the start of the season where the picture looked very different for both sides. Leeds’ recent momentum including increasing the distance between themselves and the chasing pack should see them over the line at Elland Road where they’ve been strong all season.

Coventry have stormed up the Championship table following the appointment of Frank Lampard. They’ve won 7 of their last 10 games across all competitions with the exceptions coming in the FA Cup and against Leeds at Elland Road – a side with the best home record in the Championship this season. This resurgence has placed Coventry right in the heart of the battle for the play-offs with just 1 point holding them back from occupying 1 of the coveted play-off positions.

They face an Oxford side that saw a mini-resurgence carry them away from the relegation zone with Gary Rowett’s side now having an 8-point buffer from the drop zone. This buffer may have brought with it complacency, Oxford are without a win across their last 5 games in all competitions and will need to be careful to avoid being dragged back into that relegation scrap if they continue with this poor run of form.

These sides have faced off twice already this season with Coventry coming out on top in both meetings. These games were under the tutelage of Mark Robins so certain elements of the tactical approach will have changed for Coventry, but Lampard seems to have really energised this squad which can see them continue to make a real push for the play-offs with the sides above them having tough away fixtures this weekend.

An early afternoon clash in League One sees the top 2 sides in the division face off. Birmingham currently have a 9-point lead over Wycombe with a game in hand on their opponents so this lead could easily be 12 or 15 points if Wycombe aren’t careful. The picture can change very quickly in the lower divisions and Wycombe will be looking over their shoulders themselves with the likes of Wrexham and Stockport still eyeing up an automatic promotion spot.

The initial meeting between these sides produced 5 goals in a 3-2 Birmingham win which was a result that set the course for their season. The Blues easily boast the best squad in League One and for a long time Wycombe were managing to keep pace with the leaders, but it looks like Birmingham have been able to wrestle control of the division with the superior quality they have throughout the squad.

Wycombe boast the best away record in the division despite Birmingham’s general dominance in other metrics, they’ve scored 36 goals across their 16 away trips in League One this campaign (2.25 per game). This record should be enough to breach a solid Birmingham defence at home with Chris Davies’ side regular scorers at home this campaign (1.81 per game).

Wrexham welcome Bolton in another crucial meeting to decide the makeup of the promotion rankings as we head into the second half of the League One season. Wrexham sit 3rd in the division, just 3 points behind Wycombe who travel to league leaders Birmingham at the same time as this match.

Bolton find themselves locked in a battle with 5 sides for a play-off spot in a fight that could end up going all the way to the final stages of the season. They travel to a Wrexham side that boast the 2nd-best home record in League One this campaign, Phil Parkinson’s side have won 12 of their 17 assignments at home this campaign, scoring 32 goals in the process – the most of any League One side at home.

The initial league meeting between these sides ended in a 0-0 draw with the sides also meeting in the EFL Trophy, a meeting which saw Wrexham run out 1-0 winners. Bolton’s away form has been patchy with 7 wins from their 15 trips in League One this campaign, decent victories against Shrewsbury and Leyton Orient have strengthened their bid for a play-off place but a trip to Wrexham should prove a challenge too far.

Port Vale travel to struggling Tranmere in this early kick-off in League Two. They can strengthen their hold on a play-off spot here with the away side coming in decent form having lost just 1 of their last 5 games across all competitions which came against League One side Wrexham in the EFL Trophy.

Tranmere are at real risk of the drop out of the EFL having failed to win any of their last 5 games which sees them sit just 2 points above Morecambe and Carlisle in what is a real scrap to avoid what would be a disastrous relegation out of the Football League.

This situation brought about the somewhat overdue dismissal of manager Nigel Adkins after this midweek’s defeat to Accrington, Andy Crosby will be in temporary charge of the Super White Army for this one.

Tranmere will be concerned having seen Mark Hughes’ Carlisle side pick up a crucial win against Barrow on Thursday which heaps pressure on this fixture.

Only 3 sides can boast a better away record than Port Vale in League Two this season, they’ve only lost 4 of their 16 away trips in the division managing to score 20 goals in the process. The initial meeting between these sides ended in a 0-0 draw and on the face of it, a draw may not be an awful result for both sides here but given Port Vale’s significantly superior form we’re leaning towards getting something from the game.