Derby County wait for seven answers as crisis and controversy grip Championship

The Championship is rarely quiet from the terraces to the boardrooms but the in-tray for the EFL seems to be stacked higher than ever.

Derby County are interested observers in some of the problems facing the top brass and in other issues will get to have their say such as proposals to change the playoffs, ticket prices and more.

Yet decisions being weighed in the coming weeks and months could reshape the entire division. Should seventh and eighth place be dragged into the play-offs? What happens when games are abandoned in farcical circumstances, as Blackburn and Ipswich discovered? How harshly should Leicester be punished if they’ve broken spending rules, and how much patience can Sheffield Wednesday’s fans be expected to show as their crisis drags on?

These aren’t just boardroom debates but issues that will shape the future of the Championship. Here DerbyshireLive takes a look at the current issues facing the EFL.

The EFL Board is now discussing proposals to expand the Championship play-offs so teams finishing seventh and eighth would also be involved. One-off eliminator games would decide who would take on the teams who finished third and fourth.

The idea has apparently got widespread support from people who are wary of the Premier League becoming a closed shop, with the same clubs going up and down – but it would need approval from the top flight and the FA, as well as a consensus in the EFL.

What has John Eustace said about it?

“Yeah, for sure (I would welcome it),” he said. “It happened in non-league when I was manager at Kidderminster. Unfortunately, I was on the other end of it, finishing very highly in the league and then getting knocked out by a team just finishing eighth.

“That wasn’t great, but it’s about momentum. If teams finish the season very well and if they’re coming into that eighth spot full of momentum and maybe the third or fourth place is losing that, then it makes it an exciting challeng