Three weeks. Six points on the table. And already you can feel the ground shifting beneath the feet of several managers who were supposed to be pushing in the right direction this season. The EFL has a wonderful, merciless way of condensing an entire campaign's worth of anxiety into an August Saturday afternoon, and this weekend's programme delivers several fixtures that could set the tone for what follows.

Stoke's Long Road Back

Let's start at the bet365 Stadium, or rather the away end of Molineux, where Stoke City travel to Wolves at 12:30. Mark Robins becomes the seventh man to take a crack at hauling the Potters back to the Premier League, a division they left after the 2017-18 season and have since watched from a distance across nine Championship campaigns. The highest they have managed in that time is 14th — hardly the stuff of banners in the Boothen End.

Last season offered a genuine flicker of hope. Around a third of the way through, Stoke were sitting second and a play-off place felt like a minimum. Then came one of the Championship's most catastrophic collapses, three wins from their final 20 matches, and those dreams evaporated quietly. This term has begun with back-to-back defeats against Swansea and Southampton, and while the owners have backed Robins with investment — George Hirst arriving permanently from Ipswich, with Ben Johnson following on loan — results need to start following the expenditure. A trip to Wolves on a Saturday lunchtime is a stern early examination.

Clement's Canaries in Freefall

Over in Norfolk, Norwich City were supposed to be one of the Championship's stories of cautious optimism. When Philippe Clement stepped in last November, the Canaries were in genuine trouble. He steadied the ship, eventually, winning 17 of his 31 league games in charge and finishing ninth. The summer transfer business looked considered — winger Andre Brooks from Sheffield United, Ali Ahmed and Mohamed Toure already bedded in from the January window. A promotion push felt plausible.

Two games in, Norwich have no points. A home defeat by West Brom was bad enough; the performance at Millwall was, by most accounts, alarming. Now Burnley visit Carrow Road on Saturday at 15:00. That might sound like a fixture offering some relief, but the Clarets — relegated from the Premier League and under new boss Nicky Hayen — are a wounded, motivated side desperate to find their footing. Losing at West Brom and then going out of the EFL Cup at Bradford City in midweek has given them something to prove as well. Expect a competitive afternoon in East Anglia, whichever side comes away with the points.

West Ham's Uncomfortable Short Trip

There is no avoiding West Ham at the moment. The off-field noise around ownership and the eyebrow-raising decision to break the Championship transfer record for Arne Engels — with Nuno Espírito Santo publicly framing the signing as one for the Premier League — has created a backdrop that scrutinises every result under a harsh light. Losing at home to Charlton last weekend was genuinely damaging to the mood around the club, and although an EFL Cup win at Southampton on Tuesday provided temporary relief, it settled very little.

Saturday's 15:00 trip to Vicarage Road is a fixture packed with danger. Watford under Alessio Dionisi have made a sharp start — beating Southampton on the opening weekend and then earning a draw at Wrexham suggests a side with genuine energy, even if they were thrashed by Peterborough in the cup in midweek. Dionisi reshuffled his squad for that one, so the league version of his Hornets is a different proposition entirely. West Ham will be expected to win. That expectation, right now, feels like the heaviest thing in their luggage.

Plymouth and Bradford: League One's Early Subplot

Down in League One, Plymouth Argyle host Bradford City at Home Park in what could be a telling early indicator for both clubs. Argyle made an almost miraculous recovery last season, dragging themselves from fourth-bottom at the turn of the year to safety — but a sluggish start again has familiar alarm bells ringing in Plymouth. Tom Cleverley appears to have the backing of patient owners, but patience has limits. Bradford, meanwhile, arrive in buoyant form after knocking Burnley out of the EFL Cup in midweek. The Bantams in that kind of mood will fancy themselves against anyone.

It is early days, as every manager's press conference will dutifully remind us. But in the Championship and the divisions below, early days have a habit of becoming late nights rather quickly. The EFL does not wait.

Frequently asked

What time does Stoke City vs Wolves kick off on Saturday?
Stoke City travel to Wolves for a 12:30 BST kick-off on Saturday in the EFL Championship.
Why is there pressure on West Ham so early in the season?
West Ham have lost their opening Championship match at home to Charlton, and a combination of ownership uncertainty and high-profile transfer spending has put Nuno Espírito Santo's side under intense scrutiny from the start.
How has Norwich City started the Championship season under Philippe Clement?
Norwich have taken no points from their opening two Championship matches, losing at home to West Brom and then putting in a poor performance in defeat at Millwall.