Fantasy EFL Triple Gameweek 38 kicked off on Thursday evening at Lamex Stadium, and saw League One champions Birmingham City defeat Stevenage 0-1. However, there are plenty of talking points and drama as our teams are now locked in. Here, we go through the key notes and everything you need to know for their remaining two matches.
If you did miss it, read our article for all the latest information on the triple.
ROTATION STATION
As mentioned in our best Birmingham City assets article, we were expecting some surprises from Chris Davies. However, it was a few more than we expected:
Davies left out their Fantasy-top scorer, Christoph Klarer (D), who was expected to captain the side. Additionally, regular starters Alex Cochrane (D), Tomoki Iwata (M), Willum Willumsson (M), Jay Stansfield (F) were benched. There was a surprise start for multiple assets, including Lee Myung-Jae (D), who made his first start for Blues this campaign.
Despite the benching, 5.5% of managers remain faithful in Stansfield, who still has two more opportunities to score. Same goes for Klarer, although he didn’t even feature off the bench.
DEFENSIVE MASTERCLASS
Nobody selected Myung-Jae, but 0.1% of managers were rewarded with an 11-pointer from Grant Hanley (D), who made nine clearances (+3), and two tackles (+1), alongside helping them to their 20th clean sheet this campaign. Taylor Gardner-Hickman (D) featured once again and banked nine points for 0.1%. Ryan Allsop (G) made a vital save at the end of the game, keeping his 19th shutout in 35, scoring seven points for 7.3%.
Alex Cochrane (D) popped up with a moment of magic, his first goal in two years and for the Blues, scoring an impressive half-volley, scoring eight points for 0.5%. It’s his third-attacking contribution this season, totalling 206 points.
HOW LIKELY IS FURTHER ROTATION?
In Alex Cochrane’s post-match interview following his winner, he stated:
“I felt good when I came on… I thought MJ [Myung-Jae] was class tonight, he’s waited patiently for his chance…the gaffer is very keen on people on the bench contributing and being ready to go. I knew if MJ couldn’t last the full 90 I had to be ready for the moment”.
(YouTube, 2025)
This is a note for all Fantasy EFL managers – expect further rotation. The Blues are set to play:
- 19th-placed Mansfield Town (H), Sunday 27 April 15:00
- 10th-placed Blackpool (A), Wednesday 30 April 19:45
Aside Allsop, we’re now confident that nobody is likely to start three matches. Nonetheless, we’re still expecting some big hauls for the Champions.
RECORD-BREAKERS
Their win saw them smash the 100-point mark, with 102 points in in 43 matches, equating to 296 points, and nine points last night for 5.1%. They are now one point off Wolves’ League One record 103 points, and just four points off Reading’s 2005/06 record of 106 points. A maximum of 111 points is up for grabs.
The result means they are the fastest team to 100 points in EFL history, beating Reading’s previous record of 44.
There were some threatening moments at Lamex Stadium, but as demonstrated throughout the season, they are deserved title winners.
PREDICTED XI FOR SUNDAY
Given that this is Birmingham’s final match this season at St. Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park, and we’ll be seeing them lift the title in front of their home faithful, we’d be shocked to see some surprirse omissions from the starting 11. Although Blackpool (A) on Wednesday may throw up some shocks as it did yesterday, against the Stags, with next-to-nothing to play for, who have lost four of their previous five, shipping 15 goals in that time, expect a hammering to wrap up the celebrations in style.
