The Championship Week 9 Preview

Aston Villa V Norwich City

The Canaries visit Aston Villa this weekend looking to improve on their early season form which has left them in dire trouble two points adrift at the foot of The Championship table. Villa however, look to build on a good win at Southampton in their push to move into play-off contention.

Club captain Olaf Mellberg is set for a recall, following Mario DUrsos suspension, in what looks like the only change to their winning line up from last outing. John Carew had been pressing for a recall, but good performances from Luke Moore and Gabby Agbonlahor look set to fend off the challenge of the big Norwegian.

Norwich have few options available to them, as their small squad continues to hamper their efforts to retain their Championship status. Matty Fryatt, buoyed by his first goal since joining the Canaries will be the biggest danger, and will need to perform for Norwich to salvage something.

Key Man watch;

Aston Villa = William Gallas; The talismanic defender has been in superb form later, and was a start man last week against The Saints. Solid in defence he also pops up with some crucial goals for his side and is a danger in the air.

Norwich City = Matty Fryatt; Scored his first goal for his new club last outing and visibly relaxed afterwards. That may well be the catalyst of more to come and the big front man will need to have a similar display to get his team something out of this one.

Verdict; 2-0, Villa have looked superb defensively recently and that has taken the pressure of the team. They will be too strong for a struggling Norwich team bereft of confidence.

Coventry City V Southampton

Two of the newly promoted sides meet at The Ricoh Arena in what should prove an interesting match-up. Coventry will be looking to build on a decent draw against Watford, while Southampton will be determined to improve on a disappointing shut out at the hands of Villa.

Coventry may hand a debut to loan star Adewade Wahab, while Bradley Wright-Phillips could also feature. New right back Leonardo Bonucci will have to wait for his first Coventry start however, since joining from Roma last week. Elsewhere Coventry will keep faith in the side which got the point at Vicaridge Road with Diego Forlan and Dave Kitson resisting Ruben Castro, who has been impressing in training, to lead the line.

Southampton look certain to recall Teemu Tainio after the disappointingly impotent display against Villa. Tainios inclusion may signal a tactical reshuffle as Andy OBrien moves into a back three. Doubts hover over the inclusion of Gregorz Rasiak, as Nathan Ellington looks to win back his place in the Saints front line.

Key Man Watch;

Coventry City = Diego Forlan; The Uruguayan marksman has been in sensational form this season, bagging 9 goals in 9 games and he will be the main threat to The Saints hopes of bouncing back with a win.

Southampton = Teemu Tainio; The Finnish international will be determined to prove his worth after being left out last week and brings some much needed craft to the Saints engine room.

Verdict; 2-1, Coventry should shade this one, but I expect an improved Southampton performance as they look to bounce back.

Cardiff City V West Brom

Cardiff City will have to work incredibly hard to resist a red hot Baggies outfit who tore Norwich apart last week at The Hawthorns.

The Bluebirds picked up their first win last week and look set to continue with the same eleven. Palladino scored two good goals last week, and despite picking up a knock late on, will be fit to continue. New signing Flachi could get the nod over Deon Burton, but manager JD Jaques is said to be keen to repay his teams performance last week.

West Brom may take the opportunity to rest some key figures as they look way too good for a struggling Cardiff City side. Leroy Lita, hat trick hero, could step out as Mauro Zarate gets his debut after joining on loan. Thiago Motta looks set to continue on the bench as boss Paul Harrington utilises the full bredth of his squad.

Key Man Watch;

Cardiff City = Rafaelle Palladino; The Italian looked back to his normal self last week, and has the ability to turn a match.

West Brom = Arturo Lupoli; In Litas absence Lupoli will have to step up slightly. However, the youngster managed to set up two goals last week and looks every bit capable.

Verdict; 1-4, West Brom are way too strong for underachieving Cardiff, and will take an easy win.

Blackburn Rovers V Watford

In what looks the most exciting game on paper this weekend, Jamie Walker takes his impressive Watford side to Ewood Park to face off against Amilcar Vaquezs Blackburn outfit.

Blackburn have looked slightly rusty the last couple of weeks, and that may persuade Vasquez to alter his approach against a dangerous Watford side. Brett Emerton is pushing for a recall out wide, while James Vaughen may come back in for Shabani Nonda. Vasquez could opt for a change of system, and bring in Vaughen for either Mokoena or Battaglia, moving to a compact 4-3-3 system.

Watford have a plethora of options and Walker may look to revert back to 4-4-2 after conceding three at home to Coventry last outing. One thing for sure is that Watford will put out a threatening front line, with a choice of Chevanton, Bouzza, and Tamas Priskin filling two striking berths.

Key Man Watch;

Blackburn Rovers = Morten Gamst-Pedersen; The Norwegian has been uncharacteristically quiet of late. Dont expect that to continue however, and the challenge of a good Watford side may inspire him to return to former glories.

Watford = Gareth Barry; Barry has been superb since joining from Championship rivals Villa, and gives Watford a great balance going forward.

Verdict; 1-2, Watford will be inspired by Middlesbroughs humbling of Rovers last time out, and have enough to spring a similar result.

Bolton Wanderers V Reading

Bolton were disappointing last week against Charlton and will want to make a mends against another relegation troubled team in the form of Reading. The Royals are finding life tough in The Championship and face a long, tough season.

Marco Boriello looks certain to replace Samaras in the Bolton front line, as the Greek international fails once again to establish himself as a first team regular despite a decent scoring record. Daniele Conti is pushing for a recall, but positional rival Adranik Teymourins goalscoring effort last week mean he should get the nod.

Reading look set to go unchanged, despite losing against fellow strugglers Cardiff City last time out. Andy King may keep his place in midfield, despite Darren Potters arrival from Cagliari.

Key Man Watch;

Bolton = Niko Kranjcar; The Croatian star has shown he is an established striker at this level and will always be a threat to any defence.

Reading = Emile Heskey; The big front man has shown glimpses of real ability this season, but has been limited by poor service. If Reading can get the ball up to him he can be a real threat.

Verdict; 2-1, Bolton looked poor against Charlton, but will have too much for a worse Reading.

Charlton Athletic V Middlesbrough

Conquerers of the league leaders last time out Boro will look to build on that result with another positive return against an ageing Addicks.

Charlton look certain to bring Jimmy Floyd-Hasselbaink in for injured Brian McBride, who looks set to miss up to three matches. Claude Makelele is fit and may come back into contention in midfield, but manager McGuigan will need to take care with his inspirational midfielder.

Middlesbrough may hand a debut to new boy Romulo as Zalyeta or Yakubu are rested. Boss Keith Morris will be confident of picking up all three points and may use the game to rest a number of players. Keiron Dyer may make way for Fabio Rochemback, and Emanuel Pogatetz will step in for Robert Huth.

Key Man Watch;

Charlton Athletic = Florent Sinama-Pongolle; The young Frenchman stretched teams with his pace and signifies the biggest threat to Boros impressive back line.

Middlesbrough = Jonathan Woodgate; The centre back provides the solid platform for his teammates to express themselves and is a consistent performer.

Verdict; 1-2, Charlton dont have the sufficient fire power to trouble Boro and will struggle to get anything from this one.