Christmas winners and losers... how City’s rivals have fared...
Cardiff City’s run of four defeats over Christmas and New Year has seen them dip out of the top two... and a right old scramble begins in 2018 for promotion to the Premier League.
Despite the horror sequence of results, not every side around the Bluebirds has capitalised upon their bad fortune.
Some, like Wolves who are streaking away at the summit, have had a great festive period. Others have found form out of nowhere to climb the table.
But others, like Cardiff, have endured a torrid time. See Bristol City for details.
It means the promotion race looks wide open in terms of second place and the play-offs as we look ahead to the next five months.
Any side down to Fulham in 10th will have realistic ambitions of going up.
So where exactly do we stand after the hectic 10-day period when sides each played four matches and who are the big winners and losers? Football writer DOMINIC BOOTH takes stock by analysing the top 10... WOLVES (leaders, 61 points) While others have floundered, Wolves have taken full advantage, stretching their lead at the top of the table to 12 points — and the gap to third-place Cardiff to 14.
Before the Xmas matches commenced, that gap between Wolves in first and Cardiff in second was just four points.
Wolves secured a vital win over promotion rivals Bristol City thanks to a last gasp Ryan Bennett winner at Ashton Gate.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side were touted as the ‘Man City of the Championship’ earlier in the campaign, but only now are they asserting their dominance and pulling away from the pack.
A 2-2 draw at Millwall was the only blemish on their Christmas record, with Tuesday’s emphatic 3-0 win over Brentford making the Molineux club look like the second tier’s standout side. Our verdict: DERBY COUNTY (2nd, 49 points) Despite two draws in their last three games, Gary Rowett’s men have enjoyed their Christmas more than most.
The declining fortunes of Cardiff have enabled the Rams to leapfrog them into the automatic promotion places. An impressive 2-1 win at Ipswich and a convincing 3-0 victory over Millwall were the defining points of a solid festive period.
However, Rowett might feel his side have missed a trick. They could have pulled further ahead of Cardiff and Bristol City if they’d beaten Sheffield United and Hull instead of drawn, but will still feel very satisfied. We know what’s happened in terms of results, but the very fact that Cardiff remain third is testament to their early season form.
The Bluebirds might feasibly have taken points at Bolton and QPR and shouldn’t have lost to Preston, but they’ve been off colour and the sudden gap to Wolves bears that out.
No points from four games, but Cardiff fans will hope the blip is done and Warnock can get them back on the right path. They simply must win their next league match against Sunderland. Points gained: 0/12 Our verdict: Losers, even though they might have been punished far more by others. BRISTOL CITY (4th, 47 points) The Robins secured an historic League Cup victory over Manchester United and the Championship’s top teams shuddered at the idea of the momentum they could gain from that