Leicester and West Ham Favourites To Win Promotion To Premier League
Richard | Aug 01, 2011 | Comments 0
The 2011/2012 Championship season gets underway this weekend and in what has become recognised as possibly the most competitive division in football, it is Leicester City and West Ham United who are the favourites to win the much coverted price of a place in the Premier League.
Traditionally the hardest league to be promoted from, the Championship has earned the reputation of being uncompromising, erratic, unpredictable but always entertaining, where any team can win any game.
The last two seasons however has seen one team set the pace, virtually from the outset and maintain that lead until the finish. Newcastle under, Chris Hughton did so in 2009/2010 and Queens Park Rangers won the title under the guidance of Neil Warnock last season. The exciting battle, at least for neutral observes, was the battle for the runners up spot and those competing for the play-off places. Whether or not that happens again this year remains to be seen, but if the betting is anything to go by, it would appear that Leicester and West Ham are the teams the football tipsters are predicting will set the pace.
Leicester manager, Sven Goran Eriksson, has made a number of solid signings, particularly defensively and has a great deal of backing from the Leicester Board, who are desperate to bring Premier League football to the City following relegation in 2002. New signings include Paul Konchesky, John Pantsil, Matt Mills, Dvid Nugent, Kasper Schmeichel and Michael Johnson.
West Ham have also been busy bringing fresh talent to the club but the signing of Kevin Nolan from Newcastle could prove a particularly shrewd signing for new boss, Sam Allardyce. With the likes of Scott Parker still at the club and the additional signings of Matt Taylor and Abdoulaye Faye, West Ham are justifiably at the head of the Championship betting and fans might have plenty of reasons to be blowing bubbles again by next May with a quick return to the Premier League.
Steve McLaren, new boss at Nottingham Forest has also been signalling his intent by bringing three players to the club. He has brought back former player, Andy Reid from Blackpool, the veteran former Dutch international, George Boateng has been given a contract for a year, while the signing of Jonathan Greening from Fulham, could prove one of the best made anywhere this season and Forest will be aiming to go one better than the last two seasons when they’ve finished in the play-offs with the form England boss now in charge.
With two former England managers and one who was once tipped to become the England manager fighting it out for Championship honours this season, the division looks set play host to an exciting season. All three however will know that this particular division holds no guarantees, especially with so many other teams in the Championship boasting promotion credentials; these include Leeds, Cardiff, Reading, Birmingham and Middlesbrough to name just a few and as Burnley, Blackpool and Swansea have proven in the past three seasons, teams who aren’t expected to do can cause a surprise and make their presence felt in this tough division.
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