The Championship is looking like a difficult one to call this season with no especially standout teams really catching the eye. I'm therefore going to stick my neck out and say that Sheffield Wednesday will win it - the Owls have only just missed out via the play-offs in the last two campaigns and should be able to go one better this time out.
Middlesbrough look the most likely of the relegated sides to make an attempt for an instant comeback and have splashed out on half a new side - however, Boro have found this division a tricky one to get out of in seasons gone by and will need to have their wits about them from the get go to justify their pre-season favourites tag.
Reading were unlucky to lose out to Huddersfield in the play-off final and with the majority of last season's squad still in place, should be well positioned for another tilt at the top two. Wolves are going for a continental approach, spending an eye-watering £16 million on Porto's Ruben Neves and bringing in several other interesting looking players on loan. Their spending power could see them as dark horses in the promotion race.
Norwich underachieved last season but the arrival of young German manager Daniel Farke and an influx of Teutonic players could see them mount a Huddersfield-esque play-off challenge this time out while Sheffield United won League One at a canter and have been busy in the transfer market over the summer to bring their squad up to Championship level. Wednesday may not be the only Steel City club celebrating success at this season's end.
Aston Villa have been bringing in a number of interesting looking players including former Chelsea captain John Terry but this has left them with a very old squad that looks vulnerable to injuries. Steve Bruce will be hoping that the likes of Terry, Christopher Samba and Glenn Whelan can all manage a full season of games but I suspect that they may fall just short of the play-offs. Derby seem to be getting a reputation as the division's perennial nearly-men and unfortunately I think they may be in for another agonising near-miss this season although Gary Rowett may just be able to pull a surprise out of the bag and Tom Huddlestone looks like a decent signing from Hull.
Fulham were last season's surprise package, coming from nowhere to claim the last play-off place before Reading dashed their hopes in the semis. However, with a few players leaving for pastures new and the element of surprise gone they will do well to repeat those heroics and may have to settle for a top half finish this time out. Relegated duo Hull and Sunderland will both be looking to steady the ship after summer exoduses and look likely to end up in mid-table this time around. Leeds came agonisingly close to the play-offs last time but with manager Garry Monk leaving for Middlesbrough and a relative unknown in Thomas Christiansen replacing him, they may find it more difficult this season. Cardiff, meanwhile, should improve on last season's disappointment with Neil Warnock having brought in a number of good value players to improve his squad.
Bristol City and Birmingham both achieved survival thanks to late runs and should fare a bit more comfortably this time. The arrival of Harry Redknapp as manager is quite a coup for the Blues although he's yet to bring in any major new arrivals to a squad that struggled last time out. Preston have had to cope with the loss of manager Simon Grayson to Sunderland and will be hoping that Alex Neil can pick up the baton quickly and repeat some of his heroics at Norwich a few seasons ago.
QPR and Brentford both failed to set the division alight last time out and will probably finish lower mid-table again while Bolton and Millwall will both probably be happy with survival after returning to the division from League One over the summer. Barnsley exceeded expectations to finish mid-table last season but a number of their better players have been picked off by other clubs leading to a rebuilding exercise. They at least look to have secured a few decent signings who should help them sneak home although it could be a close-cut thing.
Looking at the bottom three, Burton did well to survive last time out but the loss of their record signing Liam Boyce for the whole season with a serious injury suffered just a few weeks after he joined really is a rotten slice of luck and could spell big trouble for them. Nottingham Forest only just scraped home in both of the last two campaigns and could struggle to do so again while Ipswich look like a club in chaos with a poor finish last season and an awful set of pre-season results this time out. Mick McCarthy may have to rely on all his managerial experience to prevent the Tractor Boys from a first ever foray into the League's third tier...
FINAL TABLE
1. Sheffield Wednesday
2. Middlesbrough
----------------------------
3. Reading
4. Wolverhampton Wanderers
5. Norwich City
6. Sheffield United
----------------------------
7. Aston Villa
8. Derby County
9. Fulham
10. Hull City
11. Cardiff City
12. Leeds United
13. Sunderland
14. Bristol City
15. Birmingham City
16. Preston North End
17. QPR
18. Bolton Wanderers
19. Brentford
20. Millwall
21. Barnsley
----------------------------
22. Ipswich Town
23. Nottingham Forest
24. Burton Albion
No comments:
Post a Comment