EFL preview: Titanic tussles at league and local level

After a brief hiatus for FA Cup action last weekend, the Championship is back with a bang on Friday night.

If you don't remember how we left things before the break, let me remind you.

Just three points separate the top four sides in the second tier. Leaders Leeds are only a point ahead of Burnley, with Sheffield United third on goal difference, and Sunderland a further two points back. Tantalising.

The Black Cats head to Turf Moor for a huge game in the promotion race to get the weekend under way on Friday (20:00 GMT).

Scott Parker's Burnley have kept 17 clean sheets in 26 league games this season and their nine goals allowed means they currently have the best goals conceded per game rate by a team in a single season in EFL history (0.35).

As he seeks to bust that statistic, Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris could hand a debut to French midfielder Enzo Le Fee, who arrived on loan from Roma this week.

"It's a good statement for the club because it shows that we are attractive," Le Bris told BBC Radio Newcastle.

The midfielder managed only 10 appearances in his few months in the Italian capital, a chaotic period for the Giallorossi in which they had three different head coaches.

But Le Fee played under Le Bris at Lorient, in France, and the Black Cats boss knows exactly what he brings.

"Enzo is versatile and has really good quality," he added. "He can adapt himself in different positions, a six, eight or 10.

"We need depth in that part of the squad so we'll see in the 20 games we have left how we use Enzo and the other players."

Attention turns to the foot of the table on Saturday lunchtime (12:30 GMT) when three of the bottom four are in action.

Cardiff host Swansea in the south Wales derby, having climbed out of the drop-zone courtesy of Tuesday's draw against Watford, who equalised late on.

Although the Bluebirds have squandered leads lately, they are unbeaten in their past five matches in all competitions and boss Omer Riza admitted: "It's frustrating and there is stuff we need to work on. That will improve as the season goes on.

"We know we need three points, but we are out of the bottom three for now. It was a good performance and we have to take that into Saturday."

Millwall entertain third-from-bottom Hull City, where new Lions signing Aaron Connolly could face his former club, while basement-boys Plymouth welcome QPR to Home Park seeking to close an effectively four-point gap to safety, so negative is their goal difference of -29, the worst across the entire EFL.

New Argyle boss Miron Muslic is seeking to follow-up a point against Oxford United in his first game at a lively Home Park on Tuesday and said: "When you go out and you feel that, I was very impressed.

"Now I know what it feels like to play a home game and what Home Park and the Argyle fans and the Green Army can deliver.

"I have nothing but respect for that - this will also give us the boost we need and the confidence we need. It's like a 12th man almost for the future to face the challenge we have in front of us."

New Luton boss Matt Bloomfield takes charge of an eye-catching home game against Preston North End, five points ahead of the Hatters, who are only two points above the relegation zone.

Two points better off, Derby have lost four successive games, including an FA Cup exit to League One Leyton Orient on Tuesday, and the pressure seems to be mounting on Paul Warne going into the visit of Watford to Pride Park at 15:00 GMT.

Elsewhere, Sheffield United will try to keep pace at the top at home to Norwich, who are without suspended top-scorer Borja Sainz, battling Portsmouth welcome Middlesbrough, in-form Oxford United host fifth-placed Blackburn while West Brom, now seventh and whose search for a new manager doesn't seem to be going according to plan, host Mark Robins' Stoke.

Table-topping Leeds could be out of the automatic promotion places come Sunday lunchtime when they host Yorkshire rivals Sheffield Wednesday at noon live on terrestrial TV.

Daniel Farke's side are the division's best home team, claiming 32 points from 13 games at Elland Road, scoring 30, conceding just seven and losing only once all season.

That was in September to Burnley, who are also the only side to have picked up more points on the road of late than Wednesday, who claimed 17 from eight away fixtures before their surprise defeat at Preston on their last league trip.

A result against the odds here would surely solidify the Owls as play-off contenders, and help keep focus on the field for Danny Rohl as matters off of it appear increasingly fraught.

There's also a titanic tussle at the top of the third tier as two points separate the leading three sides.

Wrexham missed the chance to go top on Thursday by losing their cross-border clash with struggling Shrewsbury Town.

Phil Parkinson's men are behind second-placed Wycombe on goal difference, though the Chairboys have lost manager Matt Bloomfield to Luton this week which could hamper their hopes of automatic promotion.

Wanderers head to Mansfield on Saturday (15:00 GMT) while leaders Birmingham, who have two games in hand, will host Exeter and Huddersfield, in fourth and having significantly beefed up their attack with the signings of Joe Taylor and Dion Charles, seek to make it a four-horse race with a 12:30 GMT trip to Blackpool.

Peterborough are sinking like a stone and welcome FA Cup heroes Leyton Orient, with Posh just two places above the drop zone, while the in-form O's are targeting a play-off spot.

Reading host Stockport in a game of big significance in the race for the top six while Crawley welcome rock-bottom Burton and second-bottom Cambridge head to Bolton aiming to pile more pressure on under fire boss Ian Evatt, albeit with Garry Monk not exactly sitting particularly comfortably at the moment, either.

League Two's runaway leaders Walsall begin life after losing 15-goal striker Nathan Lowe to parent club Stoke with a home game against MK Dons, with the Saddlers seeking to extend their advantage at the top to 15 points.

Crewe, Salford, Port Vale, AFC Wimbledon, Notts County and Doncaster will all be seeking to take advantage of any slip-ups from Mat Sadler's men.

At the other end basement boys Carlisle host Bradford at 12:30 GMT trying to end a run of one win in nine to overhaul Morecambe, who host second-placed Crewe, with third-bottom Tranmere just out of reach going into their trip to AFC Wimbledon.