EFL Championship Promotion Tips: Can Leeds Get Over The Line This Time?
The EFL Championship remains one of the most competitive divisions in English football and while Leicester became the fourth successive winners to have been relegated the previous season last term, Ipswich made the jump straight into the Premier League having gained promotion from League One.
So, once again, it is expected to be an open heat this season, but these are the three teams who stand out in Bet MGM’s EFL Championship Promotion market.
Leeds United - 5/4
Leeds will consider themselves the unluckiest team in Championship history after they collected a whopping 90 points last season, but still didn’t book an immediate return to the Premier League.
Daniel Farke’s side were beaten by Southampton in the play-offs, but if they can put that disappointment firmly behind them and get off to a good start, they look to be the team to beat this season.
The ownership have kept faith in Farke, who took Norwich out of the second tier during his time at Carrow Road and, while youngster Archie Gray has left for Tottenham and Crysensio Summerville is on the verge of a move at the time of writing, the determination to avoid another crushing blow can help them push on for a top-two spot.
Capturing central defender Joe Rodon on a permanent basis after a successful loan spell from Spurs is a boost and the Whites should be able to make amends for last term, when they will have felt robbed of promotion.
Luton Town - 13/4
While relegated Burnley look to have made a shrewd managerial appointment in Scott Parker, who took Bournemouth out of the Championship, one relegated team who could be better placed to make an immediate return is Luton Town.
Their first Premier League season was a massive learning experience for the Hatters, but they performed with great credit and had realistic hopes of staying up before fading in the final weeks of the campaign.
They lost just eight games in their last Championship season, when they went up via the playoffs and they should be encouraged by the fact they scored 52 goals in the top-flight last season.
Most of the squad has remained intact alongside impressive manager Rob Edwards and it would not be a huge surprise if the Bedfordshire outfit managed to bounce straight back up.
Coventry City - 5/1
Luton beat Coventry City in the play-off final in the 2022-23 season, but the Sky Blues should be hoping for better things this term after fading at the end of the last campaign.
Mark Robins’ side took just one point from their final six games as they slipped to ninth, after they had taken Manchester United all the way to penalties in the FA Cup semi-finals.
Maybe that cup run got in the way of their promotion ambitions, but it gave the Midlanders a taste of life in the fast lane and that should boost their hunger for league success this time.
Ellis Simms and Haji Wright are one of the division’s best strike partnerships and they can help the Sky Blues back into the top-flight for the first time in 24 years.
Odds correct at time of publication but subject to fluctuation