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Welcome for a busy night of Football League as well as international soccer action. The spotlight falls on key second-tier encounters and those crucial final group matches in this Africa Cup of Nations competition.

Preamble

Hello everyone. Welcome to what is reportedly the penultimate soccer live blog of the year. We have an extensive EFL schedule, kicking off with Ipswich's trip to Coventry at 6pm, and we’ll also be keeping at least a third of an eye on the two evening games from Group A at this Africa Cup of Nations: Morocco hosting Zambia as well as Mali facing Comoros.

Our primary attention will be on the following games, all 19:45 start times unless stated.

Afcon 2025

• Comoros versus The Eagles (19:00)
• The Copper Bullets v Morocco (7pm)

Second Division Matches

• Coventry versus The Tractor Boys (18:00)
• The Foxes v Derby
• Middlesbrough v Hull
• Millwall versus The Robins
• Wrexham versus North End

Third Tier Fixture

• The Bluebirds v Stevenage

Recent Lineup Updates

Coventry v Ipswich Confirmed Lineups

The early game, featuring the sides sitting first and third in the Championship, promises to be a cracker. These are the two XIs.

Coventry (4-2-3-1) The goalkeeper; the right-back, Woolfenden, the defender, the left-back; the midfielder, Grimes; the winger, Rudoni, the forward; the striker.

Substitutes: The backup keeper, Allen, Simms, the defender, Bidwell, Latibeaudiere, Eccles, Perry, the player.

Ipswich Town (4-2-3-1) The shot-stopper; Furlong, the centre-half, the defender, the left-back; Matusiwa, the midfielder; the attacker, Nunez, Jack Clarke; the centre-forward.

Subs: Palmer, the defender, Johnson, the defender, Cajuste, Burns, the forward, Philogene-Bidace, the striker.

Referee Anthony Backhouse (from Cumbria).

Africa Cup of Nations: Group A Permutations

It's a tricky picture. It always is where only some third-placed teams qualify. Here’s how things look before tonight’s final set of matches.

• Morocco 4 points, +2 goal difference
• Mali 2 points, GD0 (goals scored 2)
• The Copper Bullets 2 points, 0 goal difference (goals scored 1)
• The Coelacanths 1 point, -2 goal difference

Briefly, Morocco are probably fine though they will aim to beat Zambia and top the group. Zambia likely requires at least a point versus Morocco. The island nation probably need to beat their rivals, who should advance if they get a point.

Lotta ins, lotta outs, lotta what-have-yous.

Angola v Egypt Update

The conclusion of Group B at this Africa Cup of Nations has coverage elsewhere. To avoid spoilers, avoid following that coverage.

Second Tier Table Snapshot

Pos	Team	P	GD	Pts
1	Coventry	23	31	51
2	Middlesbrough	23	9	43
3	Ipswich	23	15	38
4	Hull	23	2	38
5	Preston North End	23	7	37
6	Bristol City	23	7	36
7	Millwall	23	-6	36
8	Watford	23	4	35
9	QPR	23	-2	35
10	Stoke	23	7	34
11	Derby	23	1	32
12	Southampton	23	4	31
13	Wrexham	23	2	31
14	Leicester	23	-1	31
15	Birmingham	23	1	30
16	West Brom	23	-5	28
17	Charlton	22	-6	27
18	Blackburn	22	-4	26
19	Sheff Utd	23	-5	26
20	Swansea	23	-7	26
21	Oxford Utd	23	-8	22
22	Portsmouth	22	-10	22
23	Norwich	23	-9	21
24	Sheff Wed	22	-27	-8