The Premier League in England is one of the most famous soccer leagues in the world. It is watched around the globe, one of the contributing factors making it the biggest revenue-generating league in the sport.
Those clubs in tier two of the country (the Championship) are desperate to get a slice of the pie in the Premier League. Promotion into the top-flight can be worth as much as £170 million, so it’s fair to say, there is a lot at stake each season in the Championship.
Here is a look at who looks best placed to land one of the three promotion slots following the 2020/21 campaign.
Norwich
Norwich were relegated from the Premier League last season as they finished bottom of the standings. They knew their fate quite early, which meant they could start their planning for the new season.
The Canaries have made an excellent start to their campaign in the second tier. They have won 13 of their first 20 fixtures and five victories to start December allowed them to slightly pull away from the rest of the league. Victories over Blackburn Rovers and Cardiff City have proved how strong the Norfolk club are.
Head coach Daniel Farke won the Championship title with Norwich in 2018, so he knows exactly what is required. At the time of writing, his side are the +150 favorites in the Championship betting this season. They look to be the team to beat and the most likely club to gain promotion.
Bournemouth
Another side which fell into the Championship at the end of last season is Bournemouth. Eddie Howe worked a miracle on the south coast by keeping the Cherries in the Premier League for as long as he did.
The early signs this season suggest it won’t be long before Bournemouth are back in the top-flight. After 20 games of the 2020/21 Championship season, it is Jason Tindall’s side who have lost the least amount of games.
Tindall was the assistant manager to Howe when he was in charge so it appears that has helped a smooth transition since the former Cherries boss left the club. It looks as though Tindall will have a great chance of testing his managerial ability in the Premier League next season.
Brentford
Brentford fell agonizingly close to securing promotion into the Premier League last season. The West London club went on an excellent run in the final third of the campaign but fell just short of the top two. Defeat in the final game of the season to Barnsley meant they had to settle for the playoffs. Unfortunately for the Bees, they were beaten by Fulham in the final.
Although Brentford lost two of their stars of last year (Ollie Watkins and Said Benrahma) in the summer transfer window, they still have a very strong squad for this division. They have been knocking on the door of promotion for a number of years, but this season might the year they finally make it to the Premier League.
All 24 clubs in the Championship face a busy start to 2021 with a gruelling fixture programme in January. After this run of games is over, the table should give us a better idea about who looks in a great position to gain promotion.