Football League Roundup: Coventry, Middlesbrough, and AFCON 2025

As the year draws to a close, the Football League delivered a series of compelling clashes and continues to build excitement for the upcoming AFCON 2025 tournament. Here's a look at the key events:

Championship Showdowns

The EFL Championship witnessed intense battles as teams vied for crucial points. Coventry City faced Ipswich Town, while Middlesbrough took on Hull City.

• Coventry City vs. Ipswich Town: Coventry City and Ipswich Town faced off in a highly anticipated Championship match. Coventry entered the match in impressive form, remaining undefeated in 22 of their last 24 Championship matches. However, their recent games have been low-scoring, with under 2.5 goals in their last four league outings. Ipswich's form has been slightly less consistent, but they still occupy a strong position in the league. In their recent meetings, Ipswich has dominated Coventry, winning the last four matches. The predicted lineups were Coventry (4-2-3-1): Rushworth; Dasilva, Kitching, Woolfenden, v. Ewijk; Torp, Grimes; Mason-Clark, Rudoni, Sakamoto; Simms, and Ipswich (4-2-3-1): Walton; Davis, Kipré, O'Shea, Furlong; Matusiwa, Cajuste; Philogene, Núñez, Egeli; Azón. Coventry will be without Dovin and Thomas-Asante due to injury, while Thomas and v. Ewijk are doubtful. Dasilva returned from suspension and started. Ipswich will miss Clarke, Townsend, and Hirst through injury, while Szmodics is unfit. Egeli is likely to replace McAteer.
• Middlesbrough vs. Hull City: Middlesbrough faced Hull City at the Riverside Stadium. Middlesbrough entered the match second in the EFL Championship with 43 points. Hull City arrived in excellent form, sitting fourth in the Championship with 38 points. Middlesbrough has a slight advantage in the head-to-head record, with 15 wins compared to Hull City's 10 in their last 30 meetings. Middlesbrough was without Matt Targett and Abdoulaye Kante due to injury. Hull City's offense has been outstanding, scoring 39 goals so far.

AFCON 2025 Updates

The Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 is underway in Morocco, with the final round of group-stage matches commencing. Qualification for the Round of 16 is still on the line for most teams.

• Key Highlights: The tournament is being held between December 21, 2025, and January 18, 2026. The Round of 16 matches will be played from January 3–6, 2026, followed by the quarter-finals on January 9 and 10. The semi-finals are scheduled for January 13, with the final in Rabat on January 18.
• Qualified Teams: Algeria, Nigeria, and Egypt have already booked their places in the Round of 16 after winning their opening two matches.
• Group B Action: Key matches on December 29 included Angola vs. Egypt and Zimbabwe vs. South Africa. Zimbabwe and South Africa have clashed 19 times, with 8 wins for South Africa, 6 for Zimbabwe, and 5 draws. In eight games between Angola and Egypt, Angola has never won, with Egypt winning four times and four draws.
• Remaining Group Stage: The final group games are spread across three days and promise decisive twists. In Group A, hosts Morocco face a Zambia side, while Mali plays Comoros. Nigeria will take on Uganda in Group C.

The Football League continues to deliver exciting action both on the domestic and international fronts, with crucial Championship matches and the ongoing AFCON 2025 tournament capturing the attention of fans worldwide.