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West Ham confirmed the appointment of former midfielder Scott Parker as their new head coach on a two-and-a-half-year contract this morning and he will be in the dugout at Cardiff tonight.

The 46-year-old replaces Nuno Espirito Santo, who was sacked on Tuesday after the club's disappointing start to the Championship season.

Parker previously led Fulham, Bournemouth and Burnley to promotion from the Championship, but has been out of work since leaving the Clarets in April after their relegation from the Premier League.

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Right, we probably need to spend a bit of time talking about West Ham, don't we?

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Oxford United could jump into the automatic promotion places in League One if they can overcome Reading at the Kassam Stadium tonight.

The U's are unbeaten in nine league games and have conceded just five goals in that span, but four draws in their past seven have left them six points adrift of leaders Huddersfield, albeit with two games in hand.

Reading are a point back in sixth place but have picked up just one win in their six away games and five of their eight goals came in one game at MK Dons.

To end that run and go third, Leam Richardson's side will need to end Oxford's seven-game unbeaten streak at home - their best since 2023.

Image source, Opta/Shutterstock

Middlesbrough could move comfortably clear at the top of the Championship tonight with victory at Wrexham.

Wolves have the chance to go second if they win at Bristol City.

West Ham will go at least fifth if they win at Cardiff.

If you need to catch up with last night's action, you can do so by reading any of the match reports below:

• Blackburn 1-2 Stoke
• Charlton 0-1 Bolton
• Derby 0-4 Norwich
• Portsmouth 3-1 Swansea
• Preston 2-3 Sheffield United
• QPR 1-1 Burnley
• Watford 1-0 Lincoln
• Birmingham 3-0 Millwall
• West Brom 1-1 Southampton

Image source, Opta

Three games which could make the Championship table look very different come bedtime.

The games at Cardiff and Wrexham kick off at 19:45 GMT while Bristol City v Wolves follows at 20:00 GMT.

We also have a big game in League One as Oxford United host Reading at 19:45 GMT.

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Scott Parker at West Ham, Middlesbrough and Wolves trying to get back to the Premier League, Bristol City middle of the pack in the Championship...

No, we have not travelled back to 2009, this is the new normal in late 2026 - we can be sure of that as Wrexham are also in the Championship and not the National League, as they were 17 years ago.

We have three big games in the second tier for you this evening, plus a bonus cracker in League One too.

There's plenty to get through so let's get you up to speed...