What to look out for in EFL's Boxing Day programme

Barely able to move? The smell of roast turkey still wafting through the house? Sounds like you might need some fresh air by Boxing Day and fortunately the EFL is here to help.

While some European leagues take their winter break we plough on in England's second tier.

In the Championship there is plenty of jostling to be done around the play-off places while in Leagues One and Two the top sides are within range of the chasing pack.

Here are five things to keep an eye on this 26 December.

There is a feeling in Suffolk Ipswich might finally be getting it together.

A chastening Premier League experience led to a hangover at the start of their return to the Championship but the recent signs are promising, albeit with the odd hiccup along the way.

An impressive dismantling of the leaders Coventry, followed by victory over Stoke looked like statement moments, only for a 3-1 reverse at Leicester to raise doubts - not helped by a loss at Oxford at the end of last month.

"There are lots of lessons to learn in there and there were bits where we played well, bits where we didn't, bits we managed and bits we didn't manage so well. There's lots to take from it. We'll take the lessons and move on," said boss Kieran McKenna after a functional win over Sheffield Wednesday.

Therein lies Ipswich's problem - outstanding for a couple of games before a slip, which is why they are more play-off challengers than promotion prospects, at least for now.

Millwall's surprise rise to the top six remains one of the stories of the season so far but back-to-back defeats means they could drop out of the play-off places on Friday.

A win for either of these at The Den (13:00 GMT) would boost their respective targets.

When he was ditched by Birmingham as they sat sixth in the Championship in October 2023, there was plenty of sympathy for John Eustace.

"It is essential that the board of directors and the football management are fully aligned on the importance of implementing a winning mentality and a culture of ambition across the entire football club," said Birmingham who promptly appointed Wayne Rooney, then Gary Rowett, and were relegated.

Eustace moved on to Blackburn where his first game was a 1-0 loss at St Andrew's so here is a chance to put a few things right with his Derby side when they make the trip down the M42 (12:30 GMT).

Such is the log-jam of sides in mid-table, a win for Birmingham would move them above the Rams and to the edge of the play-off race while a Derby victory would push them back into the top 10.

"We're halfway through the season, there is so much more hard work to come from the group," said Eustace following Saturday's draw with Portsmouth.

He would dearly like that hard work to bring three points and maybe the last laugh.

Twelve months ago Stoke were only four points clear of the relegation zone, on an eight-game winless run and about to sack boss Narcis Pelach following a Boxing Day defeat by Leeds.

They head into this festive period in a similar poor sequence with four defeats from their past five outings but the feeling in the Potteries is far from downbeat.

Mark Robins still has them in eighth place and only two points short of the top six. Given their highest finish since relegation from the Premier League in 2018 is 14th you can see why there remains an air of optimism in the Potteries.

Three of their four recent losses have been by a single goal - proof there is not much wrong but something that Robins knows needs to change.

"At the moment we're not good enough, we cannot keep losing tight games 1-0, 2-1 but that's where we are at the moment and we have to find a way to alleviate that," he told BBC Radio Stoke.

Preston head to The bet365 Stadium (15:00 GMT) on a six-match unbeaten run and in the play-off spots but, this being the Championship, defeat by Stoke would drop them out of the top six, possibly to be replaced by their opponents.

These two could still make the play-offs with both having already had managerial changes to try to shake-off disappointing starts.

Jack Wilshere's much-heralded appointment at Luton has brought a slight, if unspectacular improvement with his 18 points from 10 games lifting them three places up to eighth. For the record they had accrued 16 points from their opening 11 matches.

But progress has slowed with one win from their past six outings culminating in a 3-2 loss at Reading last Thursday.

"We're starting to build that identity of who we are, but the identity involves in possession, out of possession, transitions, set plays, in this league especially," said Wilshere.

Michael Duff's impact at Wycombe has been more immediate and impressive.

Two defeats from his 13 league games in charge have taken the Chairboys to within six points of the play-off places, having lost in the semi-finals last season.

They have also only been beaten once on the road under Duff while recent wins over Bolton and Lincoln make them a side worth watching as the promotion race hots up.

This is chance for either team to force their way into the conversation or slip further behind.

Football can be a pretty transient business, out of the door at one club one week, in the door at another the next.

Cambridge United boss Neil Harris and his director of football Mark Bonner will need to ensure the door they go through at Priestfield Stadium on Boxing Day (15:00 GMT) is marked 'visitors'.

Harris spent 20 months in charge at Gillingham, which included relegation from League One, while Bonner's eight-month stint produced 15 defeats in his 28 games.

Since then Harris has been at Cambridge, who he left for Millwall, before returning to the Abbey Stadium in February where once again he was powerless to prevent relegation - see what I mean about the transience?

His second stint with the U's came at the same time as former boss Bonner's appointment as director of football - are you keeping up?

They are just one point outside the play-offs but only four ahead of their opponents.

Gillingham's recent seasons have been mirror images - impressive starts followed by a downturn in form and failure to even trouble the top seven.

Four managers in under two years tells the story and although Gareth Ainsworth's arrival in March inspired a 21-game unbeaten run, time off for the boss to recover from heart surgery and more indifferent results means they are once again in danger of flattering to deceive.

BBC Sport will have live text coverage of all the EFL action on Boxing Day.