For the longest time, Leicester City looked favourites for the EFL Championship title. Few competitions in the world of football can match the Championship for drama, but this 2023-24 campaign has now taken on a new level of excitement ahead of Easter Monday’s round of fixtures. Four teams remain in the hunt for the title as the season comes to a close, with only two spots available for automatic promotion. The question of who will claim those spots looms large as we now enter the finale to the campaign.
Leicester City
Embed from Getty ImagesRecent results have stagnated their progress, but Leicester City have been, far and away, the best team in the league this season. They’ve played a lovely brand of football under Enzo Maresca, accumulating 82 points from 38 matches. Normally, that would be enough to secure automatic promotion already. Up until recently, the title never looked in doubt. But even despite their recent run of turmoil, they remain favourites for that top spot on the top football betting apps online.
If they do make a return to the Prem, they’ll feel secure knowing that they’ve replaced several of their biggest losses with Premier League quality. James Maddison, Harvey Barnes, Youri Tielemans and Timothy Castagne all departed as the Foxes crashed into the Championship. But Harry Winks, Conor Coady, Stephy Mavididi and Thomas Cannon have entered the fold, giving Maresca’s men a new sense of hope for the future.
Leeds United
Embed from Getty ImagesLike Leicester, Leeds United found themselves relegated at the end of last season. Subsequently, a number of first-team players reportedly refused to play in the Championship. They managed to keep a hold of a few, most notably Willy Gnonto, who’s been one of their stars of the season.
Leeds were far from perfect at the start of the season. In fact, they did not win a game until the fourth round. By round nine, they sat in ninth. But then the Daniel Farke effect took over. Daniel Farke has worked wonders in turning their fortunes around, with Leeds now sitting above Leicester on 83 points after 39 matches. Farke is incredibly experienced in the art of securing promotion from the Championship to the Prem, so Leeds remain in prime position to secure their return to the big time.
Ipswich Town
Embed from Getty ImagesIpswich Town have been the season’s surprise package. But under a Ole Gunnar Solskjaer disciple in Kieran McKenna, Ipswich have climbed all the way into first place after their thirty-ninth fixture. But despite the clear quality of the manager, this is all the more impressive considering they just came up from the third tier. Sure, they finished on 98 points and 101 goals. But that wasn’t even good enough for first last year. Now, against all the odds, they might just win the Championship.
Pundits and experts alike predicted that Ipswich would fade away at some point in the season, but that has yet to happen. The Tractor Boys had a blip in mid-December that saw them win one, lose one, and draw five of their seven games, yet they are still in with a shot of back-to-back automatic promotions. This would be all the more impressive, considering they haven’t been part of the Prem since 2003-04.
Southampton
Embed from Getty ImagesSouthampton endured a dreadful campaign last time out in the Premier League, finishing dead last on just six wins. Strapped for cash, they sold the likes of Romeo Lavia, Tino Livramento, James Ward-Prowse, and Nathan Tella for almost £180 million. Former Norwich pro Russell Martin has however used his playing experience to good use in pumping the Saints back to health.
The Saints were leaking goals for fun at the start of the season, especially in September when they lost four games in a row, including a 5-0 loss at Sunderland followed by a 1-4 home defeat against Leicester. Southampton fans were calling for Martin’s head, but they soon changed their tune when Southampton embarked on a 22-game unbeaten streak to see them within touching distance of the automatic promotion places. They might be out of the title race for now, but promotion could still be within reach, particularly via the Playoffs, where their Premier League level experience could prove invaluable.
With that, the title race remains wide open between Leicester, Leeds and Ipswich, with Southampton also knocking at the door for promotion. Leicester and Leeds have the experience, but Ipswich have the feel-good factor that could take them all the way to the top. Who do you think will win the Championship this year?
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