Champions League? Bore off – the Championship has just birthed a Ronaldinho regen

On a night where the knockout stages got underway in what is widely considered the greatest competition in club football, the actual greatest competition in club football stole the show once again.

A 24-team Royal Rumble grudge match that takes place over nine months would be an understatement when describing the Championship, a division we are confident in saying is undoubtedly the most entertaining in world football, if not the undisputed greatest.

Seriously, it has it all. Way too many teams, clubs in crisis, over and underachievers scattered around the division, end-of-season play-offs, and the frightening reality that a team is only ever three wins or three losses on the spin away from newfound glory or certain doom.

Oh, it also has a hilarious and brilliant melting pot of players.

The same division that saw Dean Windass, Anthony Knockaert and Jordan Rhodes all look like world-beaters has also proven to be a genuine talent pool for Premier League sides looking to spend their money more wisely.

Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze barely scratch the surface in being testament to that fact, the pair having lit up the Barclays with a talent and flair that the game has been desperately crying out for in an era of sufferball and sideways passes.

But there is one man who has emerged in England’s beloved second tier. A man who doesn’t pose a threat to their reputations, because he’s already crushed it and gone straight for the chain that dangles around Ronaldinho’s neck.

Jaden Philogene was actually on the books at high-flying Aston Villa until September 2023, leaving before really getting a chance to force his way into Unai Emery’s plans.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing and perhaps Philogene would’ve flown in his ruthless, attacking