'Absolutely massive' games loom in relegation scrap

The BBC's 72+ EFL podcast team have taken a look at the Championship relegation picture, with some huge games in store at the end of the international break.

Easter Monday (6 April) sees Blackburn and West Brom face-off, level on points just above the drop zone, just hours after second-bottom Oxford United head to Portsmouth.

Third-bottom Leicester will also head to Portsmouth and Blackburn during the run-in.

Former Watford and Reading winger Jobi McAnuff said: "We know Easter weekend is absolutely pivotal and that Portsmouth v Oxford game is looming large, though they both have another game first (on Good Friday).

"It could genuinely could come down to those matches against the teams in and around you. They are absolutely massive.

"Portsmouth are, at the moment, the team I'd be a little bit concerned about in terms of their current form.

"You take it game by game, of course, but that is 100% one everyone in the squad is looking at going 'we need to win that game - if we are going to stay up that is a must win.'

"This two weeks now for Portsmouth is going to be the longest because it's doom and gloom - (losing) 6-1 against a team on their holidays in QPR (in their final game before the break)."

McAnuff also hailed the impact of interim West Brom boss James Morrison, who has taken eight points from his five games at the helm after replacing Eric Ramsey, winning the past two and only being denied three straight wins by a last-gasp leveller against Southampton.

"The big thing about those games - clean sheets," McAnuff said. "When you are in a battle, being hard to beat is the fundamental thing.

"They were really close against Southampton and got pegged back right in the last couple of minutes. It could have been a killer blow.

"To come back from that and now find those couple of wins, they'll have gone into this break absolutely bouncing. The confidence, that feeling back in the dressing room, is absolutely massive at this stage.

"Massive credit to James Morrison because there were a few eyebrows raised. He knows the club inside out and sometimes that's what it takes.

"At the moment he's had a really positive upturn."