The 2015/16 season is shaping up to be one of the best in the recent history of the Sky Bet Championship, with at least 10 teams still in contention for a shot at promotion.

At the other end of the table, the relegation shake-up is almost equally difficult to call - with Fulham, MK Dons and Bristol City still looking to steer themselves away from the pull of the bottom three.

The season has seen some big names be persuaded to join the ranks of Championship sides, with intense pressure to perform piled on their shoulders.

Similar demands also applied to some of the league’s top players, who had shown their ability in previous seasons to change games and influence seasons.

However, not all of them managed to live up to the hype that surrounded them at the beginning of the season, and there have been a number of players who will be disappointed with their performance this campaign, having been tipped to impress by fans and pundits alike.

FLW’s Archie Griggs takes a look at the FIVE biggest flops in the Championship this season......

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PRESS THE IMAGE BELOW TO SEE THE FIVE FLOPS!

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Bradley Johnson

The London-born attacking midfielder joined Derby County on transfer deadline day in the summer.

Nonetheless, he arrived at Pride Park with a big reputation, having played a key role in Norwich’s promotion the previous year; he netted 15 times, including a crucial strike against rivals Ipswich in the play-off semi finals.

However, his performances have been more subdued in a white shirt.

Having initially been a standout player for the Rams at the start of the season, the 28-year-old’s form has taken a massive hit since his suspension for accumulating five yellow cards.

His lack of impact seems to have had an additional effect of the rest of the team, who now only cling on to the play-off places with the tips of their fingers, having topped the league’s table earlier on in the campaign.

While he is still a very decent player at Championship level, many Rams fans feel he has failed to justify his club record transfer fee, and his recent form hasn’t helped these claims - he has failed to find the back of the net since the turn of the year.

Daryl Murphy

The powerful forward enjoyed the season of his career last year - scoring an impressive 27 goals and finishing as the league’s top scorer, as he helped Ipswich Town reach the play-offs for the first time in nearly a decade.

Many Blues fans expected the Irishman to have a similar impact this time round, but his goalscoring form of yesteryear has failed to materialise.

While he has shown flashes of brilliance on occasion, including bagging two goals in a 3-0 pasting of Charlton Athletic, he has struggled to make a real impact for an underwhelming Ipswich side, who find themselves worse off than last year in ninth place.

And with the twilight years of his career quickly approaching, it is hard to imagine the 33-year-old will be able to improve last season’s personal best goal tally before his time in a Town shirt comes to an end.

Andi Weimann

Derby’s capture of Weimann was arguably the signing of the summer, and seemed to be exactly what the Rams needed in order to finally reach the Premier League, after they had failed in their two previous seasons.

However, the Austrian international has had a poor start to his career at the iPro, only scoring three times over the course of the campaign.

He had established himself as a very competent player at Premier League level, making over 100 appearances for fellow Midlands club Aston Villa, which leaves Derby fans scratching their heads as to why Weimann has struggled to replicate his previous form for their own team.

Sol Bamba

The intimidating centre-back arrived at Elland Road in the summer, following a highly successful loan spell at Leeds last season.

His incredible performances last year had Leeds supporters very excited following his permanent signing, but sadly he has failed to continue his stellar form this time out.

He is part of a consistently disappointing Leeds United side who sit very much in lower mid table, and the Ivorian has often been the subject of harsh criticism following his  poor form so far in 2015/16.

Alex Pearce

I can only apologise to Derby fans for including yet another Rams player in this selection.

Pearce’s form at Reading gained him a reputation as one of the most formidable centre-halves outside the top flight, and he was rewarded with a move to the division’s favourites for promotion at the start of the season.

However, he has failed to make a single league appearance in a Rams shirt, being kept out of the side by players such as Jason Shackell and skipper Richard Keogh, and has found himself very much surplus to requirements at Pride Park.

He now finds himself out on loan at relegation-threatened Bristol City, and his future looks desperately bleak at Derby after his complete failure to make his mark on the side.