Two from Stoke City, Sheffield Wednesday, QPR, Millwall,Town Huddersfield , Birmingham City, Swansea, Blackburn Rovers and Plymouth must go
Strap yourself in for the most horrible rollercoaster in town. The next 12 games will be pivotal, potentially traumatic, almost definitely career-defining and possibly, hopefully, eventually ending with relief.
It is jam-packed at the wrong end of the Championship, where Stoke City have now fallen into the relegation zone on the back of six losses in their last seven games. They are only three points ahead of second-bottom Sheffield Wednesday – who have won eight of their last 16 to get a whiff of survival in their nostrils – and only up to five points behind seven other teams.
Plymouth Argyle, Blackburn Rovers, Swansea City, Birmingham City, Huddersfield Town, Millwall and Queens Park Rangers are all looking over their shoulders and nervous supporters are doing calculations about how many points are needed to ensure they stay on the right side of the dreaded dotted line.
The table can flip quickly and dramatically. Last weekend there were wins for Wednesday, QPR, Millwall, Huddersfield, Swansea and Plymouth while Blackburn got a point.
There are fixtures which look daunting but, for Stoke, there are still six home matches remaining and there is still enough time to sort themselves out by being sensible and disciplined. A positive result can change the mood, back-to-back positive results can change everything.
Here is the run in for every team down the bottom – and underneath is our latest predictor gadget so you can work out how the table will end up in May. Let us know who you think is doomed to League One and who will live to breathe another day in the Championship in the comments section.
15th: Plymouth – 40 points
Fixtures: Ipswich (h), Sheffield Wednesday (a), Blackburn (a), Preston (h), Norwich (a), Bristol City (h), Rotherham (a), QPR (h), Leicester (h), Stoke (a), Millwall (a), Hull (h)
16th: Blackburn – 39 points
Fixtures: Swansea (a), Millwall (h), Plymouth (h), Middlesbrough (a), Ipswich (h), Sunderland (a), Southampton (h), Bristol City (a), Leeds (a), Sheffield Wednesday (h), Coventry (h), Leicester (a)
17th: Swansea – 39 points
Fixtures: Blackburn (h), Watford (a), Bristol City (a), Cardiff (h), Sheffield Wednesday (a), QPR (h), Middlesbrough (a), Stoke (h), Rotherham (h), Huddersfield (a), Norwich (a), Millwall (h)
18th: Birmingham – 38 points
Fixtures: Southampton (h), Hull (a), Millwall (a), Middlesbrough (h), Watford (h), QPR (a), Preston (h), Leicester (a), Cardiff (h), Coventry (h), Rotherham (a), Huddersfield (a), Norwich (h)
19th: Huddersfield – 37 points
Fixtures: Leeds (h), Cardiff (a), West Brom (h), Rotherham (a), Coventry (h), Stoke (a), Millwall (h), Preston (a), Bristol City (a), Swansea (h), Birmingham (a), Ipswich (h)
20th: Millwall – 36 points
Fixtures: Watford (h), Blackburn (a), Birmingham (h), Leeds (a), West Brom (h), Rotherham (a), Huddersfield (a), Leicester (h), Cardiff (h), Sunderland (a), Plymouth (h), Swansea (a)
21st: QPR – 35 points
Fixtures: Leicester (a), West Brom (h), Middlesbrough (h), Sunderland (a), Birmingham (h), Swansea (a), Sheffield Wednesday (h), Plymouth (a), Hull (a), Preston (h), Leeds (h), Coventry (a)
22nd: Stoke – 35 points
Fixtures: Middlesbrough (h), Leeds (a), Preston (a), Norwich (h), Hull (a), Huddersfield (h), West Brom (h), Swansea (a), Sheffield Wednesday (a), Plymouth (h), Southampton (a), Bristol City (h)
23rd: Sheffield Wednesday – 32 points
Fixtures: Rotherham (a), Plymouth (h), Leeds (h), Ipswich (a), Swansea (h), Middlesbrough (a), QPR (a), Norwich (h), Stoke (h), Blackburn (a), West Brom (h), Sunderland (a)
24th: Rotherham – 19 points
Fixtures: Sheffield Wednesday (h), Coventry (a), Norwich (a), Huddersfield (h), Preston (a), Millwall (h), Plymouth (h), West Brom (a), Swansea (a), Birmingham (h), Bristol City (a), Cardiff (h)
