The Championship table is beginning to take shape with a third of the season gone. Recently relegated Leicester City have been the early pace-setters with newly promoted Ipswich Town surprisingly in second.
Ben Dimmock looks at the strengths and weaknesses of the leading promotion contenders, and the reasons for why they may or may not ultimately gain promotion to the Premier League…
Leicester City
Embed from Getty ImagesWhy they will: With excellent squad depth and experience from playing against the nation’s top sides, Leicester are in a great position to not only attain automatic promotion but also be crowned EFL Championship winners. Jamie Vardy may be in the twilight of his career, yet he is still proving to be a nuisance for opposition defences and players such as Wilfried Ndidi and Ricardo Pereira provide Leicester with a perfect balance of ability and experience.
Why they won’t: In a recent surprise defeat against Leeds at home, the Foxes looked unable to fight back when going a goal down and lack the individual creative quality that James Maddison gave them. They should still have enough to get promoted though.
Leeds United
Embed from Getty ImagesWhy they will: Fresh off the back of breaking Leicester City’s nine-game winning streak at the King Power Stadium, Leeds look like a club full of confidence and determination to push for an automatic return to the top flight. With four wins out of their last five league games at the start of November, their form looks promising. Leeds’ manager Daniel Farke has previously won the Championship with Norwich in 2019 and knows how to succeed when the pressure kicks in during the latter-half of the season.
Why they won’t: Leeds are lacking a reliable offensive threat, with Patrick Bamford struggling to find the back of the net again this season. His penalty miss against Stoke cost them a draw and the England international will need to rediscover his eye for goal if United are to be successful.
Ipswich Town
Embed from Getty ImagesWhy they will: Newly promoted from League One, Ipswich have been the talk of the 2023/24 Championship season. They started November second in the table, with a game in hand and a seven-point advantage over third placed Leeds United, and their form is highly promising. Nathan Broadhead adapted to the Championship swiftly with six goals and goalkeeper Václav Hladký is having a stunning season with six clean sheets registered so far.
Why they won’t: Despite their excellent start, the season is still only a third of the way through and much of Ipswich’s current squad lacks the experience of dealing with the gruelling challenge that the Championship season provides. Ipswich had to fight hard for a draw against Birmingham, relying on an 89th minute equaliser to take a point.
Southampton
Embed from Getty ImagesWhy they will: Another side looking to bounce straight back up, they started the season slowly but an undefeated run of five matches shows they can succeed at this level. Centre-forward Adam Armstrong is just one goal off being joint top scorer in the league so far, having registered eight goals in 15 appearances and his link-up play with fellow striker Che Adams has been crucial to their shift in form.
Why they won’t: With a negative goal difference and four defeats from their first 15 matches, the Saints defence looks vulnerable. Their slow start could prove costly in the battle for automatic promotion, then there’s tough opposition to overhaul in the play-off positions.
West Bromwich Albion
Embed from Getty ImagesWhy they will: West Brom looked to lack fire power before an impressive run of three consecutive wins put them firmly back into the promotion conversation. Grady Diangana could be key as he can provide both goals and assists in his new position as second-striker. The black country side finally have a consistent attacking outlet for the first time since they lost Matheus Pereira in 2021.
Why they won’t: Carlos Corboran’s team have some highly challenging fixtures approaching, including Southampton, Ipswich and Leicester. Furthermore, West Brom have consistently been unable to win in games they dominate, resulting in frequent unnecessary draws.
