Burnley
Blackburn Rovers
Coventry City
Derby County
Leeds United
Luton Town
Middlesbrough
Millwall
Norwich City
Portsmouth
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield United
QPR
Derby County host Luton Town in the early kick-off on Friday lunchtime to get Easter Weekend underway in front of the Sky Sports cameras.
Supercomputers are backing Derby to survive at the expense of Luton and they know how huge the points are in this fixture, but the permutations have been outlined for if they fail to secure the three points.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 17 |  Oxford UnitedOxford United | 42 | 12 | 12 | 18 | 43 | 60 | -17 | 48 |
| 18 |  Stoke CityStoke City | 42 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 43 | 54 | -11 | 47 |
| 19 |  PortsmouthPortsmouth | 42 | 12 | 10 | 20 | 50 | 66 | -16 | 46 |
| 20 |  Hull CityHull City | 42 | 11 | 12 | 19 | 41 | 50 | -9 | 45 |
| 21 |  DerbyDerby | 42 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 44 | 54 | -10 | 43 |
| 22 |  CardiffCardiff | 42 | 9 | 15 | 18 | 45 | 66 | -21 | 42 |
| 23 |  LutonLuton | 42 | 10 | 10 | 22 | 37 | 63 | -26 | 40 |
| 24 |  PlymouthPlymouth | 42 | 9 | 13 | 20 | 44 | 82 | -38 | 40 |
Derby are operating like a mid-table side currently under the stewardship of John Eustace, with his side setting records in their current form. However, Luton have been much improved of late despite defeat to Blackburn Rovers recently in the Championship.
Prior to that, they had picked up 11 points from six games under Matt Bloomfield. Both sides have had different managers this season, though. Rob Edwards’ side scored two late goals in the reverse fixture to win 2-1 at Kenilworth Road against Paul Warne’s Rams.
John Eustace’s Luton Town verdict should inspire Derby County ahead of battle at Pride Park
The style of both teams should mean a tough battle in the lunchtime game, with both Derby and Luton not lacking in terms of height and physicality. In a game of fine margins, set-pieces could therefore be key.
In an interview on the Blackburn Rovers official website back in December, Eustace described the challenge of Luton after he won a sixth game in a row via a 2-0 win over the Hatters.
He said: “I thought that first half was excellent with the way we played and our intensity with and without the ball was very, very good.
“The second goal was a really good footballing goal. There were 20-odd passes, we really stretched the play and Pape [Makhtar Gueye]’s back heel in the six-yard box was awesome as well to set Becky [Owen Beck]!
“It’s been a good day with how we defended up against a really physical team, defending a lot of long balls into the box.
“I thought the fans today raised the level again and the noise and atmosphere was awesome. We want more of that. They made a big difference.”
Despite a change in management from Rob Edwards to Bloomfield, a similar sort of game is to be expected between the sides. Luton will pack the box with physical bodies and find ways to get it there quickly.
His side’s intensity without the ball will have to be ‘very, very good’ yet again if they are to win. However, pundits are predicting a Derby win at Pride Park.
Can Derby and Luton both survive?
Both teams will be desperate to be a part of the 2025/26 Championship line-up, and a win for either could prove to be pivotal, but particularly for Luton.
A defeat is out of the question and it is far more of a must-win fixture for them than their hosts, who could close in on the ideal points total required for survival this season.
It is a game less about the quality on show but the mental fortitude and determination to win than anything else. The confidence booster and mental edge a win could bring could also carry either side through the final three games.
Pride Park has become a fortress of late, and Derby have favourable fixtures and six-pointers still yet to play, where they could see Eustace work his magic for the second season running in a second tier relegation battle.
Given the teams in the mix, it’s unlikely that both clubs will survive this season. It makes this game even grander in scale and nerve-wracking than it ordinarily would be, with so much at stake.