Football is back. It’s this time of year that the pundits provide predictions as to who is most likely to lift the title in nine months’ time.
That’s a pretty easy job if you are in Spain (one of two teams – Barcelona or Real Madrid), Germany (again one from two – Bayern Munich or Borussia Dortmund) or even looking at the English Premier League where it’s difficult to look further than the trio of Manchester United, City and Chelsea.
France is no better although Paris St. Germain will be looking over their shoulder at Monaco while in Italy Napoli join the Milan duo and Juventus as likely contenders.
If it is the uncertainty, drama and full-bodied commitment then look no further than the English football league where up to 10 teams will be seeking automatic promotion with half a dozen more eyeing the play-off places.
In celebration of 125 years several special opening fixtures were arranged bringing back memories of classic encounters between some of the more historic clubs. Time has witnessed many changes in the game since Sept 8, 1888, not least the introduction of shirt numbers and nets in the goals!
The comparatively pampered modern players will also be pleased they can enjoy 15 minutes inside at half-time rather than the five minutes spent on the pitch!
Bizarrely the number of points allocated to the winning team was only agreed mid-season although Preston North End finished well clear of Aston Villa in second.
Many will be familiar with the name Dixie Dean who contributed 379 of the 515,412 goals scored over the 177,625 matches, although he stands behind the less-celebrated name of Arthur Rowley who netted 433 times.
Another statistic specifically for our Editor is the 10 goals scored by Joe Payne for Luton Town against his beloved Bristol Rovers, although I doubt he will have witnessed this spectacle in 1936!
The current season kicked off at Bramall Lane with David Weir starting his managerial career with his new-look Sheffield United defeating the leagues’ oldest club, Notts County, 2-1.
The strongest sides in the Championship look to be those relegated from the Premier League. While some in this situation have struggled, what sets these apart is the strong management structures and manner in which they have offloaded the expensive existing foreign talent while retaining promising youngsters and integrating these with proven Championship talent.
QPR’s Harry Redknapp is one of the shrewdest operators and he sprung the biggest surprise of the opening day when he brought together old sparring partners, Joey Barton with Karl ‘Kelvin’ Henry in the centre of one of the meanest looking midfields. Around these two are a stunning array of talent with Argentinian winger, Alejandro Faurlin, one of the leagues’ stand-out performers, with Junior Hoilett likely to also provide goals to the ammunition he supplies to the proven pair of Bobby Zamora and Andy Johnson. They have even added the prolific Charlie Austin and can call upon Adel Taarabt who was the primary reason for their previous promotion to the land of Premier fortunes.
Owen Coyle may be unfamiliar with his surroundings at Wigan although the exciting trio of Maloney, McCarthy and McArthur will be better for their experiences last season while Ben Watson will add goals from midfield. In ex-Liverpool stopper, Scott Carson, they have a final barrier who will not have given up hope of representing England again, while Coyle has added quality players with a point to prove in Grant Holt and the centre-back pairing of Leon Barnett and James Perch.
Reading’s Nigel Adkins is another with a great Championship record and he made the signing of the summer in persuading ex-Real Madrid’s flying Dutch winger, Royston Drenthe, to join the challenge at the Majewski Stadium. While they will undoubtedly score plenty of goals I am less convinced by their defensive credentials to mount a sustainable challenge.
Gianfranco Zola’s Watford had a slow start last season but played some of the best football in the Championship. Over the summer they have finalised no less than eight signings from sister clubs in Italy and Spain (including six free transfers) but will need to replace the goals from Vydra. They should pick themselves up from the disappointment of an extra-time defeat to Crystal Palace in the play-off final and be ‘in the reckoning’ in May.
I would also like to see Leicester do well – not because I have any affinity with them, rather because they have curbed their free-spending ways (largely due to financial fair-play regulations) and retained a largely similar squad to last season. I hope that this consistency pays off and sends a message to this business at large!
Of the less-fancied clubs, Derby look to have a strong outside chance. Under Nigel Clough they have made progress every year and only missed the play-off’s last season by seven points, suffering from a lack of depth in the squad. In Will Hughes they possess the best young English talent outside the Premier League, a view endorsed by him becoming the second youngest player to represent England U-21’s.
Despite having just reached the age of 18 he still managed to represent the Rams 38 times last season. Derby have a strong defence that is always capable of shutting out the opposition, although they have now added some firepower up front with Russell and Martin looking ideally suited for each other.
Another team worthy of mention is Yeovil Town whose remarkable rise over the last decade has seen them come from non-league to the second tier of English football. They started well with a 1-0 away win against Milwall.
For all the wonder stories there are also warnings from the sides that go into free-fall. While Wolverhampton Wanderers became the first team to suffer a double relegation twice, they look to be on a more stable footing. Still benefitting from the parachute payments from the Premier League and revenues generated from strong ongoing and loyal support, they should possess the quality to be playing in the Championship next season. The unheralded Leigh Griffith has returned from two seasons on loan at Hibernian where he scored 29 times last season.
Not so Coventry City who look certainties for relegation following their 10-point deduction and are even lacking a home ground following a fall-out with the owners of the Ricoh Arena. The fans are revolting as the Sky Blues face liquidation after failing to exit administration as a result of their rent row. Due to play all of their home games in Northampton, as the season commenced they had sold only 300 season tickets!
Peterborough are another side with strong credentials although manager Darren Ferguson will no longer benefit from friendly loans facilitated by his now-retired famous father. Crawley Town should also challenge for the title and have the financial clout to compete with the more established clubs in the division.
One league further down, the bottom tier, is Portsmouth. Now owned by the fans some are tipping them for a promotion that would mark a recovery from their recent nightmares, although free-spending Fleetwood should be hard to beat.
It was also wonderful to witness Newport County’s long-awaited return to the football league with their 4-1 home win against another team to have suffered a rollercoaster existence, Accrington Stanley.
However, for me, the Championship is the one to watch. There is so much quality throughout the league that there is a level of unpredictability and competition that is hard to match.
