‘Done deal’ - Bristol City’s rivals confirm £14.5m sale as 64-time international completes Hull City switch

Bristol City are looking to extend their excellent five-match unbeaten streak against Coventry City when they make the trip to face Frank Lampard’s side in the West Midlands this afternoon.

The Robins have won three of their last four league matches and a strong winter run leaves fans optimistic that the team can achieve a top six finish in the Championship for the first time since 2008 when they were beaten at Wembley Stadium by Hull City.

Bristol City end the month with crucial fixtures against Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn Rovers in a key stage of the season which promises to have a profound impact on the play-off race.

Ahead of this weekend’s significant round of fixtures we take a look at all the main headlines from the Championship as a major £14.5m deal is finally confirmed.

Bristol City’s play-off rivals confirm £14.5m deaprture

Premier League strugglers Crystal Palace have confirmed the signing of highly-rated Millwall midfielder Romain Esse on a five-and-a-half-year-deal.

The England Under-20 international, who has registered four goals and one assist in 24 league appearances this season joins The Eagles in a reported £12m deal, potentially rising to £14.5m with performance-related add-ons.

Esse, who made his debut as a 17-year-old in 2022, has played a total of 66 games for the Lions and rapidly progressed into one of the team’s most eyecatching talents.

“Romain is the type of player who gets crowds off their seats - the type of player long associated with south London and Crystal Palace football club,” said chairman Steve Parish after getting the January deal over the line.

Palace have a history of developing talents from the second-tier such as Eberechi Eze, Adam Wharton and former winger Michael Olise, who completed a blockbuster switch to Bayern Munich over the summer.

Hull City add 64-time international to their ranks

Championship strugglers Hull City have signed 64-time Moroccan international Nordin Amrabat on a short-term deal until the end of the season.

The 37-year-old winger and younger brother of ex-Manchester United star Sofyan Amrabat, recently became a free agent after leaving Greek giants AEK Athens last month.

He is best known in England for his two-year stint at Watford between 2016 and 2018 but has also gained experience at major clubs such as Galatasaray, PSV, Real Malaga and Cristiano Ronaldo’s current club Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia.

Hull are currently 22nd in the table with just 23 points from 26 games. They face Millwall for the first time since Romain Esse’s sale and could hand Ambrabat his debut on Tuesday when they play host to a resurgent QPR side.