West Brom, Coventry and Middlesbrough's play-off chances revealed in latest final Championship table forecast

West Bromwich Albion came back from behind to earn a commendable 1-1 draw against Championship pacesetters Leeds United.

Darnell Furlong’s 39th minute goal came as the perfect response to an opener from Junior Firpo as Tony Mowbray’s Baggies proved that they were more than capable of competing with the very best team in the division at present.

Speaking after the game, which remarkably marked West Brom’s 16th draw of the season, Tony Mowbray commented: "We know how good a side they are, but we came to be competitive. We believe we can win wherever we go. West Bromwich Albion are a big club. We possibly gave them a little too much respect early on, but we grew into the game. We could have scored before they did, but we got our rewards in the end."

The result leaves West Brom in sixth position and narrowly ahead of Blackburn Rovers on goal difference after their dramatic 1-1 draw with Norwich City. However, it did see a resurgent Coventry City climb above them in the league table after a dramatic turnaround under Frank Lampard.

West Brom will be focused on converting more draws into wins in the weeks to come to secure a play-off spot, starting with this weekend’s home clash against QPR. But will West Brom have enough to secure a top six place come the end of the season? Here we take a look at OPTA’s latest forecast.

The automatic promotion race

Leeds United remain hot favourites to win the Championship title for the first time since 2020, following their tightly-fought 1-1 draw with West Brom. The Whites have been the standout team in the division so far and are expected to remain on that same trajectory with a forecast of 99 points and a 97.06% chance of sealing automatic promotion.

Sheffield United, who responded to their defeat against Leeds by picking up a home win over QPR, remain in the driving seat for automatic promotion. OPTA expects the Blades to pick up 93 points and gives me a commendable 60.43% chance of winning automatic promotion at the first time of asking.

Will West Brom make the play-offs?

Burnley, Coventry City and Sunderland are all expected to finish inside the play-off positions alongside West Brom, according to OPTA Sport.

The Clarets are forecast to finish third with 91 points under Scott Parker, leaving them just one short of automatic promotion. Sunderland are thought to finish in fourth position with 83 points and Coventry City are expected to clinch fifth with 70 points after their improved run of form under Frank Lampard.

West Brom are expected to finish in sixth position and only two points clear of Blackburn Rovers after their decision to hire ex-Baggies boss Valérien Ismaël as John Eustace’s replacement.

Full Championship table, according to OPTA forecast:

1. Leeds United
2. Sheffield United
3. Burnley
4. Sunderland
5. Coventry City
6. West Brom
7. Blackburn Rovers
8. Middlesbrough
9. Bristol City
10. Watford
11. Norwich City
12. Millwall
13. Sheffield Wednesday
14. Preston
15. QPR
16. Swansea
17. Portsmouth
18. Cardiff
19. Oxford United
20. Hull
21. Stoke
22. Plymouth
23. Luton
24. Derby

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