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EFL Championship is one of the toughest leagues to predict because nobody knows what to expect when a team gets relegated from Premier League because key players might not show interest in staying at the club which puts clubs in a position where they have to rebuild which might go either way.

While the PL teams are rebuilding, there are teams that came into the league, One or Two years ago and still have parachute payments, then comes the teams that have missed last season’s promotion due to one or two bad games.

Then there are teams that got promoted from League One and were governed by SCMP and not FFP, which means they had restriction only on spending a maximum of 60% of their turnover on wages and League One is also not an easy league which means they were promoted because they were best among 24 teams.

All the while rest of the teams are trying to build on last seasons success, and One or Two quality signings or Player improvements could Transform them into title contenders.

There is also a chance that injuries, suspensions, coach changes, Referee quality which could all affect a team like any other League.

So we would like to stick to predicting which section of the table a team is going to finish and want to share the current squad status of the team.

Before we get started let us answer a very important question which is in the backs of many fans minds

When does the League One and League Two Summer transfer window close?

League One and Two Transfer window will close on Monday 2nd September at 5:00 pm. So it is safe to say there is still time for prospects to go on loan to lower tiers.

This is just the part One of the Preview and I am currently working on Part two So please stay tuned.

Barnsley

There is a strong feeling among Barnsley fans that the departure of Kieffer Moore could affect them this season as Conor Chaplin and Patrick Schmidt might not be able to fill the 19 goals and championship experience that is lost due to the sale of Moore.

Here is the list of players that departed the club this season.

Barnsley Transfers Out

Name position Transfer type Squad status Adam Davies GK Free First Team Zeki Fryers LB’, CB Free Backup Ryan Hedges RW’, LW, CF Free Backup Lloyd Isgrove LW’, RW Free Backup Adam Jackson CB Free Backup Liam Lindsay CB £2.5million First Team Will Smith CB Free Prospect Ethan Pinnock CB £3.1million First Team Kieffer Moore CF £2.5million First Team Victor Adeboyejo CF Loan Backup

‘ indicates that the position is the players’ primary position.

Barnsley Transfers In

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Mads Juel Andersen CB’, LB, RB £920k First Team Mike-Steven Bähre AM’, CM, LM, LW £139k First Team Brad Collins GK Free Backup Şahin-Radlinger GK Free First Team Luke Thomas RW’, AM, LW £1.25million First Team Toby Sibbick RB Undisclosed First Team Aapo Halme CB Undisclosed Backup Bambo Diaby CB Undisclosed First Team Mallik Wilks LW’, AM, RW £1million First Team Conor Chaplin CF’, RW, AM Undisclosed Backup Clarke Oduor LB Undisclosed Prospect Patrick Schmidt CF’, RW, LW Undisclosed First Team

Barnsley 2019-20 Analysis

Barnsley seems to have followed the policy of buying the players young and selling them on a profit which is never a bad policy for a team that was just promoted to Championship.

Most of the players they have brought don’t have Championship experience but the quality of players that they have brought in brings the confidence of Championship survival.

There is no doubt in saying that Daniel Stendel has brought in players that can complement the team that finished League One runners up.

The loss defensive duo Ethan Pinnock, Liam Lindsay, Club captain, and GoalKeeper Adam Davies who played part in a defense that conceded EFL’s fewest goals last season while keeping a club record 21 clean sheets will hurt them big time.

Barnsley Prediction

The departure of Kieffer Moore has increased pressure on Cauley Woodrow and new signing Patrick Schmidt while the departure of three key players in last seasons’ defense gives us vibes that Barnsley might find it tough to retain their Championship status.

Finishing Position: Relegation Zone

Birmingham City

The departure of Garry Monk following a conflict behind the scenes kicked off the pre-season for many Blues fans on a sour note while the inability to retain Club captain and six goals CB Michael Morrison increased the unease.

Then there was the inevitable sale of 22 goal striker Che Adams followed by Jota who was part of the swap deal that brought Gary Gardner to the club meant that Birmingham City fans might be in for a ride this season.

Birmingham City Departures

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Che Adams CF £15.5million First Team Jota RW £4.2million First Team Isaac Vassell CF Undisclosed Backup Michael Morrison CB Free First Team Viv Solomon-Otabor LW,RW Free Prospect Bez Lubala CF Free Prospect Josh Cogley RB Loan Prospect Greg Stewart CF Free Not needed Iván Guzmán RW Loan Not needed Tomasz Kuszczak GK Free Backup Cheikh N’Doye CM Free Not needed

Birmingham City Arrivals

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Ivan Sunjic DM’, CM £7.4million First Team Álvaro Giménez CF £1.4million First Team Dan Crowley AM’, CF £700k First Team Agus Medina CM Free Backup Gary Gardner CM Swap Jota First Team Moha Ramos GK Loan Backup Jake Clarke-Salter CB Loan First Team Fran Villalba AM Undisclosed First Team

Birmingham City Analysis

It is tough to predict where blues are going to end up at the end of the season but it is safe to say Álvaro Giménez, Dan Crowley’s performance could decide their fortunes.

It will also be interesting to see whether Pep Clotet will turn out to be the man that will stay as the manager at the end of the season as his expansive style of play can go either way.

It seems like Jake Clarke-Salter is Michael Morrison’s replacement, Álvaro Giménez is Che Adams’ replacement while Dan Crowley could turn out to be a valuable asset in forward positions.

Birmingham City Prediction

This season could go either way for them but we are trying to be on the safe side with our prediction.

Finishing Position: Bottom half (13-21)

Blackburn Rovers

The club seems to be gaining back the fans that it lost during the previous years but not in the pace that the board wants. Many fans seem to have taken Mowbray to their heart but some feel that he is spending too much on players which is not something you hear from fans these days.

Main objective Mowbray this season was to retain the services of his star players while adding quality and competition for places to the existing squad.

He seems to have managed exactly that but some people still feel Christian Walton should have better competition at Gk than Jayson Leutwiler and Andy Fisher while later should have been given chance to go out on loan.

Charlie Mulgrew’s departure on loan to join Wigan has also brought its fair share of criticism from the fans but it will be interesting to see if this leads to opportunities for Academy players but also arises the question of whether there are enough quality CBs at the club.

Blackburn Rovers Departures

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Charlie Mulgrew CB Loan First team Craig Conway LW Free Backup Paul Downing CB Free Backup Jack Doyle LB Free Prospect Lewis Mansell CF Free Prospect Jack Rodwell DM Free Backup Ben Gladwin CM Free Not Needed David Raya GK £3 million First team Joe Nuttall CF Undisclosed Backup Scott Wharton CB Loan Prospect Tyler Magloire CB Loan Prospect

Blackburn Rovers Arrivals

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Christian Walton GK Loan First Team Tosin Adarabioyo CB Loan First Team Greg Cunningham LB Loan First Team Stewart Downing LM Free First Team Bradley Johnson CM Free First Team Sam Gallagher CF £5 million First Team

Blackburn Rovers Analysis

While depth in attacking positions looks great the defensive especially CB and Goalkeeping positions could have been strengthened but there is still a chance to add free agents so it will be interesting to see what happens next.

The addition of Stewart Downing, Bradley Johnson, and Sam Gallagher will improve the quality and bring invaluable experience to their positions. If these players can combine with Lewis Travis, Joe Rothwell and Bradley Dack then this has the makings of a season to remember.

Blackburn Rovers Prediction

Blackburn Rovers leaked 69 last season so there was a need for strengthening at the back but the defense is not giving us vibes of ability to push for playoffs so here is our prediction.

Finishing Position: Top Half (7-12)

Brentford FC

With the opening of their new 17,250 capacity stadium, this is going to be their final season at Griffin Park and most of the fans wish it were a memorable one but the departure of Neal Maupay, Ezri Konsa, and Romaine Sawyers might have killed playoff push dreams.

The Bees are known for their ability to unearth unknown European talent and turning them into stars. Many said it was Dean Smith’s ability but Thomas Frank has also continued his legacy forward.

Like every Transfer market Bees have gone after the players whose stock value has fallen in recent years but who have the ability to raise their value quickly.

Brentford FC Departures

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Neal Maupay CF £20million Star Player Ezri Konsa CB £12.4million First Team Romaine Sawyers CM £3million First Team Daniel Bentley GK £2million First Team Lewis MacLeod CM, LM Free Backup Yoann Barbet LB, CB Free First Team Moses Odubajo RB Free First Team Jack Bonham GK Free Not needed Josh McEachran CM Free Backup Theo Archibald LM Free Prospect Justin Shaibu CF Loan Prospect Canice Carroll RB Loan Prospect

Brentford FC Arrivals

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Bryan Mbeumo RW £6million First Team Pontus Jansson CB £5.7million First Team Mathias Jensen CM £3.5million First Team Christian Nörgaard DM £3.25million First Team David Raya GK £3million First Team Ethan Pinnock CB £3million First Team Joel Valencia AM £1.8million First Team Dominic Thompson LB Undisclosed Prospect Dru Yearwood CM Undisclosed Prospect

Brentford FC Analysis

As they say, goals are the costliest stat in football and when you lose a 25 goal striker then the pressure on other players increases and it is not always easy to find a twenty-plus goal striker so this season might not be Brentford’s season.

The new defensive line of Ethan Pinnock, Pontus Jansson, Julian Jeanvier along with David Raya could also take some time to get used to each other.

Brentford FC Prediction

On paper, Brentford looks like a solid team but not the one we would expect to reach playoffs. Player development is sometimes unpredictable so never say never.

Finishing Position: Top Half (7-12)

Bristol City

Bristol City was part of an entertaining playoff race last season but a lack of 20+ goal striker proved costly to them as they only managed to finish the 8th. This meant that they needed to spend big in the transfer window.

Sale of defensive duo Lloyd Kelly, Adam Webster on huge transfer fees gave the feeling that Bristol City is sacrificing established name to sign a quality player and replace the duo with other quality options.

The Robins were linked with as many as eight strikers on the deadline day but none of them seem to have capitalized but they still managed to bring in Benik Afobe on a last-minute loan deal.

Many fans still feel Right Back and Center Back should have more quality options. Loan moves of Zak Vyner(RB), Jamie Paterson(AM/SS) don’t seem like the right moves for the club considering they could have served as a backup.

Loaning out Jamie Paterson to playoff rivals Derby makes the decision even worse considering his versatility play anywhere as a forward but every fan understands that players’ morale and dressing room morale is very important for a good run.

Bristol City Departures

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Adam Webster CB £20million First Team Lloyd Kelly LB £13million First Team Mohamed Eisa CF Undisclosed Backup Marlon Pack CM £766k First Team Jake Andrews LM Free Prospect Frank Fielding GK Free Backup Stefan Marinovic GK Free Not Needed Eros Pisano RB Free Not Needed Joe Morrell CM Loan Prospect Cameron Pring LB Loan Prospect Robbie Cundy CB Loan Prospect Max O’Leary GK Loan Backup Rory Holden CF Loan Prospect Jamie Paterson AM Loan First Team Zak Vyner RB Loan Prospect

Bristol City Arrivals

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Han-Noah Massengo CM £8million First Team Ádám Nagy CM £2.35million First Team Daniel Bentley GK £2.1million First Team Jay Dasilva LB £2.25million First Team Rene Gilmartin GK Free Backup Tomáš Kalas CB £8.5million First Team Tommy Rowe LM Free Backup Sammie Szmodics AM Free Backup Kasey Palmer AM £2.6million Backup Pedro Pereira RB Loan First Team Benik Afobe CF Loan First Team

Bristol City Analysis

The Robins should have brought in a regular goal-scorer with the money they had but they left it till the last minutes of deadline day and lost the battle to sign Eddie Nketiah.

There are also doubts about whether Jack Hunt and Jack Hunt are good enough to play at the Right Back position and CB pair of Taylor Moore, Tomáš Kalas has let in three goals in the first matchday which is also not a great sign for a team that won matches due to their defensive prowess last season.

The strength and quality they have added in the midfield can be considered a positive this summer.

Bristol City Prediction

As we have explained before Bristol ended in 8th and missed playoffs last season due to a lack of regular scorer which is a concern they failed to address and sale of key players like Adam Webster, Lloyd Kelly doesn’t give any new improvement vibes.

Finishing Position: Top Half (7-12)

Cardiff City

Cardiff City squad showed last season that they have the ability to compete for Premier League safety and missed it by two points. The core of the squad that was part of their 2017-18 Championship promotion season remained at the club.

They go into the season as favorites which comes with its own set of problems as many teams might play for a draw rather than a victory against them.

Fans seem to be enjoying their favorites tag and 18,000 season tickets sold might be proof. The only problem is the lack of regular goalscoring striker and departure of Kenneth Zohore puts pressure on newcomers Robert Glatzel, and Isaac Vassell and increases pressure on their wingers, other areas of the pitch.

Cardiff City New Signings

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Joe Day GK Free First Team Curtis Nelson CB Free Backup Will Vaulks DM £2.2million Backup Aden Flint CB £4.2million First Team Gavin Whyte RW £2.1million Backup Robert Glatzel CF £5.6million First Team Marlon Pack CM £766k First Team Isaac Vassell CF Undisclosed Backup

Cardiff City Departures

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Aron Gunnarsson CM Free First Team Kadeem Harris RM Free Backup Jack McKay CF Free Prospect Stuart O’Keefe CM Free Not Needed Rhys Healey CF Undisclosed Backup Bruno Ecuele Manga CB £1.9million First Team Kenneth Zohore CF £8.35million First Team Loïc Damour CM Undisclosed Backup Mark Harris LW Loan Prospect Greg Cunningham LB Loan Backup Bobby Reid AM Loan Backup

Cardiff City Analysis

The addition of Joe Day to compete against Neil Etheridge will hopefully place the best No.1 in between the sticks while Aden Flint seems to be the right replacement for Bruno Ecuele Manga.

Will Vaulks, Marlon Pack will bring depth to the midfield. The only big question now is where they can get goals consistently? Is Robert Glatzel or injury-prone but highly rated Isaac Vassell turn into reliable strikers?

Cardiff is a team that has players who can score goals from different areas of the pitch but they only managed to score 34 goals last season in PL so it will be interesting to see whether a change in the quality of opposition is going to increase their goal tally.

Cardiff City Prediction

Many people expect them to finish in automatic promotion spots but we still doubt regarding their goalscoring ability so we are going to stay safe and predict a

Finishing Position: Playoff (3-6)

Charlton Athletic

The Addicks have managed to retain the services of their 22 goals, 13 assist striker Lyle Taylor, rejecting as many as four bids which show that the wantaway owner Roland Duchatelet wants the club to retain Championship status.

The departure of Anfernee Dijksteel has left a gap in the Right Back position leaving Chris Solly as the only player who has the ability to play naturally at that position.

They made use of the loan market on the deadline day and have brought in Sam Field, Jonathan Leko, and Beram Kayal who can add some much-needed depth to the squad.

Charlton Athletic New Signings

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Macauley Bonne CF £210k Backup Tom Lockyer CB Free First Team Chuks Aneke SS Free Backup Ben Purrington LB Undisclosed First Team Ben Amos GK Free Backup Jonny Williams AM Free First Team Deji Oshilaja CB Free Backup Conor Gallagher DM Loan Backup Josh Cullen CM Loan First Team Sam Field CM Loan Backup Jonathan Leko RW Loan Prospect Beram Kayal CM Loan First Team

Charlton Athletic Departures

Name Position Transfer Type Squad Status Nicky Ajose CF Free Not needed Terrique Anderson CF Free Prospect Joe Aribo CM Compensation First Team Patrick Bauer CB Free First Team Daniel Bowry CB Free Not Needed Jo Cummings CB Free Prospect Tariqe Fosu LW Free Backup Reeco Hackett-Fairchild CF Free Backup Mikhail Kennedy CF Free Not Needed Mark Marshall RW Free Backup Jamie Mascoll LB Free Prospect Josh Parker CF Free Backup Ben Reeves AM Free Backup Josh Umerah CF Free Not Needed Igor Vetokele CF Free Backup Anfernee Dijksteel RB £2.1million First Team Taylor Maloney DM Loan Prospect Ashley Maynard-Brewer GK Loan Backup

Charlton Athletic Analysis

While the signings of Tom Lockyer, Ben Purrington, Macauley Bonne, Chuks Aneke, and resigning of Jonny Williams can be considered as positives, while the depth at various positions could cost them in a 46 game campaign.

Their success will be reliant on the youngsters if one of the starters gets injured especially in forward areas. There is no doubt in saying that they could have used two to three more signings in the Transfer window.

Charlton Athletic Prediction

This young Addicks squad doesn’t give the vibes of survival and signing more young players as loans might have improved the energy but brings up a simple question which is are they good enough?

So we are going to play safe and say

Finishing Position: Relegation Zone (22-24)

Rest of the team previews can be found at Championship or 72 in 72