The EFL Championship campaign gets underway tomorrow evening, but what are the five main talking points heading into the new season?
In this instalment, we are looking at each division’s major talking points.
Today we look at the Championship, which saw a remarkable four-way promotion battle which went right down to the wire before Leicester City and Ipswich Town gained automatic promotion, with Southampton going up through the play-offs.
Here’s where we think the big stories of 2024-25 will be…
Great expectations for Leeds
Leeds United made an unwanted piece of history last season when they equalled the second-tier record for the highest points tally not to get promoted.
Such was the high standard at the top of the Championship last season, their total of 90 points saw them finish third, before losing to Southampton in the Play-Off Final.
Last season, Leeds were the only one of the relegated clubs not to make an immediate return to the Premier League and with the three teams coming down from the top flight this time around not expected to be as strong as last term’s promoted trio, there is much expectation on the Whites to win the title this time around.
In the last ten years, the team that lost the previous season’s play-off final has gone on to win promotion three times- Aston Villa in 2018-19 and Brentford in 2020-21 reaching Wembley again but winning the second time around. Middlesbrough in 2015-16 finished second and gained automatic promotion.
Both club and manager have recent experience winning this division, with Leeds lifting the trophy in 2019-20 under Marcelo Bielsa.
The two seasons on either side of that saw Daniel Farke managing Norwich City to promotion as champions.
Could any of the promoted trio ‘do an Ipswich’?
Ipswich Town were undoubtedly one of the biggest stories in English football last season as Kieran McKenna’s side secured a remarkable runners-up finish to secure back-to-back promotions from League One to the Premier League. So could one of this season’s newcomers emulate the Tractor Boys?
Portsmouth have returned to the Championship for the first time since 2012 after winning the League One title under John Mousinho last season, Derby County are back after two seasons away, while surprise Play-Off winners Oxford United are playing in the second tier for the first time in 25 years.
It is highly unlikely that any of these three will go back-to-back, with Ipswich’s achievement so impressive due to how rare it is.
They were only the fifth team in the Premier League era to achieve successive promotions to the top flight, the last to do so being Norwich City in 2010-12. Survival is more likely to be the aim.
Whilst this league is new to Mousinho and Oxford boss Des Buckingham, Derby boss Paul Warne may feel he has a point to prove from his time at Rotherham.
Under Warne, the Millers gained promotion to the Championship three times, but each stint only lasted for a single season before going straight back down.
Doubts over prospects for relegated trio
Without the exploits of Ipswich, last season would have been the first in Premier League history in which all three promoted clubs went straight back up at the same time as all three promoted clubs came straight back down for only the second time.
However, there are perhaps lower expectations for the three that have made the drop this time around.
Luton Town are probably in the best shape to mount an immediate comeback.
Very often when a team comes down there is a large player turnover, but aside from the expected departure of Ross Barkley, Luton have managed to keep the squad together. Popular manager Rob Edwards has also signed a new four-year contract.
Burnley’s last season in the Championship in 2022-23 saw them break the 100-point barrier, but this summer saw a move few could have predicted as manager Vincent Kompany left to take over at Bayern Munich.
Former Fulham and Bournemouth boss Scott Parker was appointed as Kompany’s successor.
Then there is Sheffield United, who endured a dismal campaign which saw them concede a record 104 goals in the Premier League.
They will also start the season on minus two points after defaulting on payments to other clubs over the last two seasons. Chris Wilder will certainly have his work cut out
Rooney looking to rebuild his reputation
There is no way of sugarcoating how badly Wayne Rooney’s spell at Birmingham City went last season.
Blues made the controversial decision to sack John Eustace in October with the side sixth and replaced him with former Manchester United and England captain Rooney. Less than three months later, he was gone.
Rooney’s 15 matches saw the Blues win just twice as they plummeted to 20th in the table. He was sacked on 2 January.
Despite his disastrous time in the Midlands, the former Derby County and DC United boss has been given the chance to revive his managerial career with Plymouth Argyle.
Plymouth themselves had some managerial upheaval last season but managed to secure survival on the final day of the season with a win over Hull City.
Their home form was vital to Argyle staying in the Championship- they picked up 10 wins and 35 points from their 23 games at Home Park, with just three wins and 16 points coming on the road.
Despite ultimately taking Derby County down in his first managerial job, Rooney earned credit for the job he did, keeping them up in his first season amidst a backdrop of financial uncertainty.
His short spells at DC United and Birmingham have damaged that, but if he defies expectations and keeps Plymouth up, some of that goodwill is no doubt going to return.
Dark horses after revivals?
Last season there were definite parallels between Queens Park Rangers and Sheffield Wednesday.
At one stage, both clubs looked as though they would be dropping into League One, but saw their fortunes transformed after managerial changes brought about major upturns in form
Sheffield Wednesday endured the worst start to a season in the club’s history, picking up just two points from their opening 10 games under Xisco Munoz, eventually reaching the halfway stage of the season with 16 points after Danny Rohl replaced Munoz.
The second half of the season saw the Owls pick up 37 points, finishing in 20th.
QPR had a similarly disastrous first three months- picking up just eight points from 14 games, a six-match losing run proving the end for Gareth Ainsworth.
He was replaced by Marti Cifuentes who got the side out of the relegation zone in February and remarkably finished in 18th place- six points clear of the drop.
Given the incredible jobs done by Rohl and Cifuentes since their arrivals, many believe their clubs will keep the momentum going and kick on this season.
Based on their form since their current managers arrived, top-half finishes could be possible- but will either side be able to pick up where they left off in a notoriously unpredictable league?