Robbie Savage Wins Peterborough Debut as Middlesbrough and Birmingham Impress: EFL Takeaways
Sam Parkin reviews the EFL weekend, highlighting Robbie Savage's winning start at Peterborough, Middlesbrough's rise to the top two, Birmingham's derby win, Preston's struggles under Graham Alexander and Salford's League Two lead.
Robbie Savage began his tenure as Peterborough United manager with a 3-1 victory at Leicester City, piling pressure on Russell Martin. Pundit Sam Parkin said Savage's preferred high-intensity, aggressive style suited the game plan against a Leicester side that takes risks with the ball. Parkin noted Savage has inherited a prolific scorer in Harry Leonard and believes the squad is better than its league position suggests, though he will face heightened scrutiny given his profile.
Middlesbrough's narrow win over Wolves lifted them into the Championship's top two. Parkin identified the arrival of Will Lankshear as the missing link, providing the finishing touch that Boro lacked last season despite creating numerous chances. He also praised manager Kim Hellberg for fielding his strongest back four and securing a clean sheet against a strong Wolves side, suggesting the result could be a turning point.
In League One, Birmingham City's one-goal win at West Bromwich Albion was their third away victory of the season, moving them into seventh and the expanded play-off places. Parkin observed that Chris Davies has shifted from a purist possession approach to a more direct, set-piece-oriented style, a change that has paid off under pressure. He added that Birmingham must improve at St Andrew's, where they have drawn four times, to become genuine promotion contenders.
Graham Alexander's return to Preston North End began with a defeat by Millwall that left them bottom of the Championship. Parkin said the appointment of the club legend is understandable, but warned that Alexander's strength lies in organisation rather than free-flowing attack. He questioned whether Preston have the attacking players to score enough goals, and suggested survival would be a successful season before rebuilding over future transfer windows.
Salford City top League Two after a sixth win in seven matches, a 2-0 success at Cheltenham Town. Parkin said new manager Peter Cklamovski inherited a strong squad with the likes of Macaulay Langstaff and Luke Molyneux, but stopped short of calling them certainties for promotion. He pointed to free-scoring Barnet, play-off-tested Crewe, and also York and Bristol Rovers as contenders, saying he would withhold judgement on Salford until seeing more football.
