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Brighton edge Rafa Benitez and Newcastle in Prem promotion race

The Championship has reached its halfway stage, so we assess the main contenders for promotion to the Premier League ...

1. Brighton

Chris Hughton's leaders have built upon their excellent 2015-16 season, when they looked good for automatic promotion but ran out of steam. Shrewdly, they chose to add a coat of paint in the summer rather than totally redecorating, bringing in ballast in the form of centre-back Shane Duffy and extra goals (15 so far) from Glenn Murray. Along with the likes of Anthony Knockaert, Dale Stephens and the returning Solly March, and you have an impressive set of tools at Hughton's disposal.