How Championship suspension could impact Middlesbrough, Stoke Charlton and others in relegation dogfight

When the season will resume remains unclear – and it’s expected the current suspension will be extended beyond April 3 due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Many have claimed the season should be finished when safe to do so, with plenty still to be resolved in England’s second tier.

Just three points separate 17th-place Stoke City and 22nd-place Charlton with nine games to go of the regular season.

But how could a lengthy suspension impact the clubs which are fighting to stay up? – especially when some were gathering momentum and some were ravaged by injuries.

We take a closer look at the sides who are hoping to beat the drop and how they were faring before last week’s postponement.

17th Stoke City – 42 points

Many expected the Potters to climb clear of the relegation zone, and things have certainly improved since Michael O'Neill’s appointment in November.

Stoke recorded their biggest win of the season last time out after thrashing relegation rivals Hull 5-1 at the bet365 Stadium.

Key midfielder Joe Allan had just suffered a long-term injury after rupturing his Achilles, yet it looked like the squad had enough to survive.

Still, if and when the season does resume, O’Neill’s side are far from safe, sitting just three points above the relegation zone.

18th Huddersfield Town – 42 points

Danny Cowley’s side may have lost at promotion-chasing Leeds before the suspension but had eased some pressure following back-to-back wins over Bristol City and Charlton.

Top scorer Karlan Grant had recently recovered from a knock and quickly rediscovered his impressive form.

The 22-year-old had scored three goals in four games since returning to the starting XI, scoring three goals in four games.

19th Middlesbrough – 41 points

Boro’s slide was extremely concerning and the Teessiders hadn’t won for 10 league games before their 1-0 victory at Charlton.

Jonathan Woodgate will have hoped to gain momentum from that result, especially after an encouraging performance against Nottingham Forest.

The Teessiders did still have several injury concerns, though, and an extended break could allow the likes of Patrick Roberts and Dael Fry to regain their fitness.

Defensive trio Daniel Ayala, George Friend and Anfernee Dijksteel are also sidelined and are making progress following their setbacks.

20th Wigan Athletic – 41 points

The Latics were one of the Championship’s in-form teams, with only Leeds United accumulating more points over the last six games.

Paul Cook’s side have conceded 50 league goals this season but had found a good balance between attack and defence, keeping four consecutive clean sheets.

One of those shutouts came in a 1-0 win over promotion chasers West Brom – the joint top scorers in the Championship.

21st Hull City – 41 points

After losing two of their three top scorers in January, the Tigers were in free fall.

Jarrod Bowen had netted 17 goals for Grant McCann’s side this season before departing for West Ham, while Polish international Kamil Grosicki signed for West Brom.

Hull haven’t won since New Year’s Day and have picked up just two points since beating Sheffield Wednesday at the turn of the year.

Several injuries to key players had worsened the situation after striker Tom Eaves was ruled out for the rest of the season with an ankle issue.

If the season does resume, the Tigers could welcome back a number of senior players.

22nd Charlton Athletic – 39 points

Three straight defeats had seen the Addicks drop into the relegation zone with pressure beginning to build on manager Lee Bowyer.

Supporters weren’t afraid to let their feelings known during a 1-0 home defeat to Boro last time out, a result which followed a 4-0 thumping at Huddersfield.

After losing to Boro, visiting boss Woodgate defended Bowyer, his former team-mate at Leeds, highlighting the job he’d done to get the club promoted.

“Lee hasn’t had much money to spend,” said Woodgate after the game.

“Hardly anything. If he was backed more, he’d do a lot better. You need to back your manager and he hasn’t had that. He did a unbelievable job last year of getting you promoted and that’s what I mean.”

23rd Luton Town – 35 points

Despite sitting six points from safety, Luton also rank highly in the Championship’s form table after losing just one of their last six games.

After beating a promotion-chasing Brentford side, the Hatters failed to build on their momentum with successive draws against Stoke and Wigan.

It’s clear to see what the problem has been for Luton this season, with Graeme Jones’ side conceding a total of 71 goals in 37 league games.

The Hatters had improved defensively, though, keeping three clean sheets in their last six games.

24th Barnsley – 34 points

After a reviving run of three straight wins, including victories over Boro and Hull, the Tykes appeared to be back in the relegation fight.

Consecutive defeats to Reading and Cardiff has left Barnsley seven points adrift from safety, though, with Gerhard Struber’s side rooted to the bottom of the table.

Barnsley’s top scorer Cauley Woodrow was also nursing a muscle problem which would have ruled him out of the Tykes’ suspended game against QPR.