By nature, the Football League Championship is a unpredictable division. 

Do you agree with these selections?

In a league of 24 teams, nine places have significance in terms of a chance at promotion or relegation. Usually, very few teams find themselves with truly nothing to play for.

Each season, teams that on paper should easily be in the hunt for promotion fall foul and slip into danger, whilst other teams slip under the radar and make big movements up the table. Burnley were around 18th in the ranking of betting odds to get promotion to the Premier League last season (at 16/1).

Who are the season's biggest shocks - either for better or for worse?

PRESS NEXT PAGE BELOW TO SEE THE OVER AND UNDER ACHIEVERS

Overachievers

Brentford

Although they gained 94 points in League One last season, finishing runners up behind runaway leaders Wolves, many would have expected them to be in the lower reaches of mid table.

Warburton has done a great job at Brentford

 

However, they are firmly in the play-off picture, having won the joint third most games in the league (20).

An unorthadox approach by the owner to announce that he will replace the successful Mark Warburton in the summer has not diminished their presence in the top eight teams' race for the top six positions.

Ipswich Town

Another team amongst the play-off contenders, the Tractor Boys have been in the Championship since 2003, enduring twelve seasons without either a promotion or relegation.

McCarthy has masterminded Ipswich Town to the play-off spots

However, in Mick McCarthy they have a manager who has the ability and know-how to get out of this league and he has lifted the club and turned them into a decent outfit, with the joint third-best defence in the league (conceded 43).

Birmingham City

After a dramatic 93rd minute equaliser kept them in the league on the final day last season, the troubled club looked set to struggle again this time out.

The Blues have impressed at times this season

 

Burdened with off-the-field uncertainty, new manager Gary Rowett has done a great job to avoid a replication of this on the pitch and has steered the club to mid-table safety.

Underachievers

Wigan Athletic

After a recent series of successful FA Cup campaigns, nobody would have expected the Latics to be five points from safety with seven games to go.

Wigan Athletic have struggled this season

 

Having spent fairly big money on new signings to replace outgoing stars such as Jordi Gomez, the club have vastly underperformed under Rosler and Mackay this season and look destined for League One.

Their season mirrors various off-the-field gaffes involving both chairman Dave Whelan and manager Malky Mackay.

Fulham 

Following relegation from the Premier League, the club looked to show ambition in a bid to return at the first time of asking, spending a reputed £11m on Ross McCormack.

Fulham have been abysmal this campaign

 

However, the club only took a single point from the first seven games and replaced Felix Magath with Kit Symons, and a team full of promising young talent are still having to look over their shoulder at the drop zone as the season draws to a close.

They have the second worst defence in the league (conceded 68).

Cardiff City

Joint favourites for promotion at the start of the campaign, the relegated Premier League team spent big in the summer but have spent a large majority of the season in the bottom half of the Championship, replacing Solskjaer for Russell Slade.

Could Russell Slade be adding another striker to his Cardiff squad?

 

With the club in the relatively dangerous position of having an unpredictable owner in Vincent Tan, they certainly have to be careful.

Do you agree with these views or do you think that there are bigger shocks this season?