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Our best bets for the opening weekend of the EFL season include wins for promotion favourites Bolton and Rotherham.
There is plenty of football action to take in on Saturday on the opening weekend of the 2024/25 seasons in the Championship, League One and League Two.
We have picked out four selections, two from the Championship and two from League One, to produce an accumulator that will pay out at 31/1, if successful.
Selections
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Millwall to beat Watford @ 13/10
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Cardiff to beat Sunderland @ 15/8
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Rotherham to beat Exeter @ 13/10
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Bolton to beat Leyton Orient @ 11/10
Acca pays @ 31/1
Millwall vs Watford (Millwall to win)
Millwall ended last season superbly, taking 26 points from the 39 on offer under the returning Neil Harris to move clear of relegation and they will be eager to get off the mark quickly this term in Saturday’s visit of Watford.
The Lions are on a five-match winning streak in the Championship and they didn’t suffer a defeat in their last six matches at The Den, tasting success five times and drawing once.
Visitors Watford ended the last campaign with a whimper, winning just one of their last eight assignments and they haven’t won at The Den since April 2015.
Cardiff vs Sunderland (Cardiff to win)
Erol Bulut enjoyed a positive debut campaign as Cardiff boss last season, guiding the club to 12th position and there have been some shrewd arrivals this summer, with Calum Chambers, Anwar El Ghazi and Chris Willock all joining.
The Bluebirds have enjoyed a positive pre-season and they should have more than enough to get the better of Sunderland, who brought in Regis Le Bris as their new manager in June.
Frenchman Le Bris couldn’t stop Lorient from being relegated to Ligue 2 last season, which resulted in him leaving his post and his first experience of coaching in England could be a disappointing one.
Exeter vs Rotherham (Rotherham to win)
Rotherham are back in League One again after suffering relegation from the Championship, but they will be one of the favourites to earn an instant return to England’s second tier.
First up for the Millers is a trip to Exeter and the visitors, who have Steve Evans back in the dugout, have the quality in their squad to make a winning start.
Rotherham have been busy this summer, bringing in the likes of Jonson Clarke-Harris, Joe Powell, Sean Raggett and Liam Kelly, and they can overcome a Grecians side who finished 15 points off the play-off places last season.
Leyton Orient vs Bolton (Bolton to win)
Bolton came agonisingly close to reaching the Championship last season, losing in the play-off final, but they will use that near miss as determination to do better this term and an opening win at Leyton Orient can be achieved.
Wanderers boasted the fifth-best away record in the 2023/24 League One regular season, collecting 40 points, and that fine road form should be enough to get past an O’s side who won just nine of their 23 home matches.
