And we are officially back.
Some two-and-a-half months on from the Championship play-off final, the EFL is back and your team is officially ready to make/ruin (delete as appropriate) your weekends until sometime next May.
There are a handful of games on Friday night to officially get us underway including Blackburn Rovers v Derby and Preston North End v Sheffield United in the Championship - but where will those four, plus the other 20 teams in the division, actually end up?
We all know the score: the Championship is nigh on impossible to pick. But has that stopped the Mirror Football team from giving it a good go? Absolutely not. Will promotions like Leeds, Birmingham and Wrexham all be celebrating in 2025? And who will be shedding tears following relegation? Let's have a look at what we reckon the next few months hold...
Dan Marsh
Championship Winners: Leeds
Promoted: Coventry, Burnley
Top Scorer: Haji Wright (Coventry)
Surprise Package: QPR
Relegated:Watford, Blackburn Rovers, Derby County
League One Winners: Stockport County
League Two Winners: Doncaster
Leeds are my pick to win the league outright this year (I know, I know - how original) simply because even after losing Archie Gray and Crycensio Summerville, their squad is a joke. Daniel Farke has won the Championship twice before, too, which never hurts.
I fancy Coventry City to compete for automatic promotion this year. They've made some astute signings in Jack Rudoni and Brandon Thomas-Asante and have the firepower to really hurt teams. Burnley will also be in an amongst it after coming down: again, their squad is simply too good not to and while Scott Parker divides opinion, he also has pedigree at this level.
I fancy QPR to upset a few teams now that Marti Cifuentes has had a chance to put his own fingerprints on the team. They looked doomed last year and probably would have dropped were it not for the Spaniard. I think Watford and Blackburn Rovers could find themselves in a similar position this season albeit without an escape, while Derby County could also struggle on paper.
In League One, I'll go against the grain and say someone over than Birmingham, who are overwhelming favourites for promotion. I fancy Stockport County to use their title-winning momentum to push for another promotion (their transfer business has been superb) and I'm backing Doncaster Rovers to win League Two.
Tom Victor
Championship Winners: Leeds
Promoted: Burnley, Coventry
Top Scorer: Emmanuel Latte Lath (Middlesbrough)
Surprise Package:QPR
Relegated : Blackburn, Plymouth and Oxford
League One Winner: Birmingham
League Two Winner: Port Vale
Leeds’ points tally from last season was just shy of the 93 that won them the title in 2020, but they missed out on promotion after losing the play-off final. While Crysencio Summerville’s goals and assists will be missed, Mateo Joseph looks to be stepping up to fill the gap and manager Daniel Farke is a two-time Championship winner.
Burnley have a strong enough squad to join them, with new manager Scott Parker having won promotion to the Premier League before. I have Coventry joining them, with Brandon Thomas-Asante’s addition to an already strong attack potentially making the difference.
In the top scorer field, Emmanuel Latte Lath scored eight goals in his last six Middlesbrough games last season and can build on that. Coventry’s Ellis Simms could run him close, though, as another player who was stronger in the second half of last season than the first.
QPR were in a relegation scrap last term but showed enough under Marti Cifuentes to be able to kick on this time around. The same isn’t true for Blackburn and Plymouth, who scraped survival but might not be lucky twice, while Oxford might not have enough to stay afloat after losing play-off hero Josh Murphy over the summer.
Neil Moxley
Championship winners : Burnley
Promoted - Sheffield United
Top scorer - Ellis Simms (Coventry)
Relegated - Oxford Utd, Plymouth, Millwall.
League One winner : Birmingham City
League Two winner : MK Dons
Burnley can win the league provided all of their French summer signings taking off. Scott Parker knows what he’s doing in this division after succeeding with Bournemouth. In not-too-dissimilar circ*mstances with a not-too-dissimilar group of players.
Mark Jones
Championship Winners: Luton Town
Promoted: Leeds, Coventry
Top Scorer: Ellis Simms (Coventry)
Surprise Package: Sheffield Wednesday
Relegated : Cardiff, Preston, Oxford
League One Winner: Birmingham
League Two Winner: Gillingham
The Hatters have kept pretty much all of their better players from last season and Rob Edwards is a good manager. He'll be better for the experience he gained in the Premier League and they can bounce straight back.
Megan Feringa
Championship Winners: Burnley
Promoted:Leeds United, Luton Town
Top Scorer: Josh Sargent ( Norwich City )
Surprise Package: Cardiff City
Relegated : Oxford, Portsmouth and Plymouth
League One Winner: Birmingham City
League Two Winner: Crewe
Ben Husband
Championship winners: Leeds
Promoted: Coventry
Top scorer: Ellis Simms (Coventry)
Play-off winner:Hull City
Surprise package: Sheffield Wednesday
Relegated: Oxford, Plymouth and Derby
League One winners: Birmingham City
League Two winners: MK Dons
They may have lost Archie Gray and Crysencio Summerville, but Leeds' squad still looks one of the strongest in the division. Daniel Farke also knows how to get out of - and win - this division, and they look the team to beat again.
Coventry fell away a little at the end of last season, but a lot of their focus had already switched to the FA Cup. Their shrewd recruitment will keep them in the mix and adding Thomas-Asante to Ellis Simms and Haji Wright is a fearsome prospect for their rivals.
As for Sheffield Wednesday, their miraculous rescue act showed just how transformed they were under Danny Rohl. For much of the second half of the season they were one of the best sides in the league and after a good summer that could continue.
Nathan Ridley
Championship winners: Burnley
Promoted: Sheffield United, Middlesbrough (play-off winners)
Top goalscorer: Emmanuel Latte Lath (Middlesbrough)
Surprise package: Sheffield Wednesday
Relegated : Oxford United, Plymouth Argyle, Preston North End
League One winners: Birmingham City
League Two winners: MK Dons
It feels like the northern clubs will have a big say in who goes up from the Championship this season, so why not go for three? Scott Parker has been there and done it - as have Burnley's players - and Sheffield United look to be assembling a promotion-winning squad. Middlesbrough ended the season with just one defeat in 12 and that was against Leeds, so I think they'll win the play-offs with Emmanuel Latte Lath leading the charge for Michel Carrick's side.
Sheffield Wednesday are my dark horses to at least finish in the top half, with manager Danny Rohl's contract extension their best signing of the summer. I also think Portsmouth won't be in danger of relegation and could get off to a strong start by surprising teams with just how good they are, although keeping John Mousinho in charge for the whole season could be a challenge.
I think Oxford, on the other hand, will go straight back down and be joined by Wayne Rooney's Plymouth and Preston, who are on thin ice under boss Ryan Lowe. Speaking of Rooney, I'm going for his former club, Birmingham City, to win League One but perhaps not quite as comfortably as many expect, especially with Steve Evans back at Rotherham. I'll then go for MK Dons to avenge their play-off heartache and take the League Two title.
Oli Gamp
Championship Winners: Burnley
Promoted: Leeds, West Brom
Top Scorer: Carlton Morris (Luton Town)
Surprise Package: Portsmouth
Relegated : Oxford, Plymouth, Wednesday
League One Winner: Birmingham
League Two Winner: Carlisle
Scott Parker has shown he knows how to get promoted after pulling it off twice previously with Fulham and Bournemouth. Some managers just know how to crack the Championship and many players in Burnley's squad were part of their last promotion run. Parker and Burnley are a good fit and I'd be surprised if they didn't go up as champions.
Elsewhere, Leeds United could finally get themselves back in the Premier League this term after agonisingly finishing third and then losing to Southampton in the play-offs. Daniel Farke has done a good job at Elland Road and has a quality side - you feel this year things will come together much more fluidly, especially with young forward Mateo Joseph tipped to flourish.
As for West Brom - they usually get back to the Premier League at some point and after qualifying for the play-offs last time out, it seems only a matter of time before Carlos Corberan's side get the job done.
I could also see Portsmouth making a real go of it in the Championship after racking up nearly 100 points in League One last season and really coming together under John Mousinho, a talented manager who will have turned heads after his achievements with Pompey. The signings of Josh Murphy, Jordan Archer and Matt Ritchie will put them in good stead too.
Oxford’s squad just doesn’t look strong enough to compete and I believe time will run out for Plymouth Argyle and Sheffield Wednesday. In League One, I expect Birmingham to come straight back up - especially with highly rated new coach Chris Davies at the helm following his spell as assistant to Ange Postecoglu at Tottenham.
Mike Walters
Championship winners : Middlesbrough: Finished like a train last season. The rioters last weekend were abject plonkers but the football team's very good.
Promoted : Leeds, Sheffield Wednesday: Daniel Farke's men flopped at Wembley but he has an enviable reccord in the Championship, while Wednesday's great escape under Danny Rohl could spill over into a promotion bid.
Top Scorer : Emmanuel Latte Lath - no doubting the quality, now for the consistency
Surprise Package : Oxford - Trust me, Des Buckingham knows how to set up a team
Relegated : Plymouth, Cardiff, Portsmouth - Sorry, Wayne, but it doesn't get any easier
League One Winner : Bolton - This time, the Trotters will go all the way
League Two Winner : Chesterfield - Back-to-back promotions? Why not?
Daniel Orme
Championship Winners : Sheffield United
Promoted : Burnley, Coventry City
Top Scorer : Haji Wright (Coventry)
Surprise Package : Sheffield Wednesday
Relegated : Oxford United, Stoke City, Plymouth Argyle
League One Winner : Birmingham City
League Two Winner : Doncaster Rovers
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