Statisticians have their say on whether Championship leaders Burnley will hold their nerve in title race with Sheffield United

Burnley had signed off for Christmas with a 3-1 win at home to Middlesbrough to extend their lead at the top of the division.

But goals from John Egan and Billy Sharp ensured Nathan Broadhead's finish for the Latics didn't count for anything at the DW Stadium.

The three teams at the summit — with Blackburn Rovers joining the Clarets and the Blades — have won 13 games apiece so far this season.

Jon Dahl Tommason's side are now five points behind the automatic spots having recovered from two derby defeats with victory over Norwich City at Carrow Road.

It's all building towards an exhilarating second half to the campaign with just five points also separating QPR in sixth and Stoke City in 17th.

According to an updated predictions table from FiveThirtyEight, Vincent Kompany's table-toppers are still predicted to win the title, but it's going to go right down to the wire.

The ‘supercomputer’ has the league leaders preserving pole position by a margin of two points, and data analysts are expecting Paul Heckingbotham's side to join them in the Premier League next season.

It’s forecasted the Clarets will end the season on 86 points, with a goal difference of +34, which means statisticians don't believe that Burnley will be as strong in their final 23 games.

If their calculations are correct, and Burnley accrue a further 39 points, their finish will be five fewer than the 93-point totals gained in both promotion campaigns under former boss Sean Dyche.

According to their research, the Clarets have a 47 per cent chance of claiming top spot, as they did in 2016, and a 76 per cent chance of securing a return to the top flight.

Huddersfield are forecasted to finish bottom where they will be joined by Rotherham and Blackpool in the bottom three.

Following the completion of this weekend’s round of fixtures, analysts at FiveThirtyEight have crunched the numbers and predicted how the final Championship table will look…

FiveThirtyEight’s predicted Championship table

BURNLEY 86 (+34)

Sheffield United 84 (+30)

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Watford 74 (+16)

Norwich City 71 (+12)

West Brom 68 (+13)

Millwall 68 (+6)

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Middlesbrough 67 (+11)

Blackburn Rovers 67 (-4)

Swansea City 66 (+2)

Preston 65 (-1)

QPR 65 (-1)

Coventry City 64 (+2)

Luton Town 64 (+2)

Birmingham City 63 (+4)

Stoke City 61 (-4)

Sunderland 60 (+1)

Reading 60 (-11)

Bristol City 57 (-3)

Cardiff City 54 (-12)

Wigan 51 (-18)

Hull 51 (-24)

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Blackpool 50 (-17)

Rotherham 49 (-19)

Huddersfield 45 (-19)