Part two in my look at how fans of the other 23 Championship clubs are feeling about the upcoming 25/26 season
OXFORD FANS
“We are again the bookies early favourites to be relegated this coming season yet our 2025 form under GR would is equivalent to finishing in 10th spot! A few astute summer signings should surely see us surpass last season’s 17th place. We can do this!”
“The amount of people having OUFC in the relegation zone is insane”
“We’ve got a very solid foundation to be well clear of any relegation scrap, defence was already good and the attack will now be bolstered. Difficult league again though so I’d honestly take 21st again”
“We’ll surprise a few more this season”
“I believe this season will be tougher than last season based on the promoted teams being know where near the relegation zone.”
“Between Dembele, Harris, Płacheta, Mills, Bradshaw and whoever else I’ve missed they won’t get anywhere near enough goals to keep us above that relegation zone”
“Not like Oxford fans, to write off signings before they’ve even been announced. Zero reason not to trust Rowett, so won’t judge the lad until he’s actually played for us (controversial I know)”
PORTSMOUTH FANS
“Such an exciting group of players. I can’t wait to see what this season has in store”
“Pompey have a good core of a team. Without the ridiculous amount of injuries to our back line I think we’d have been around midtable. What let us down last season was not having a squad good enough to play 3 games in a week at a good level. We were 7th in the league from December to end of the season with a play off home form, but relegation away form. Bishop and Murphy didn’t start the season due to injury and surgery. 3 needed in CM as we currently only have 1 champ ready in Dozzell. If they can hit the ground running and we get a starter RW think midtable is very achievable.”
“I think it’s going to be more comfortable than last season but we won’t be pulling up many trees.”
“Its going to be a hard season”
“Mid table comfortably imo”
“No goals conceded in pre season… can bet your bottom dollar we’ll be 2-0 down after 15 mins next week”
PRESTON FANS
“We barely avoided relegation last season and none of our signings are anywhere near the top 10 in the league”
“Think most people who do an ounce of research won’t have us above 18th.”
“A blind man can see we’re in for a season of struggle.”
“barring Jebbison coming of age or an insane season, hard to argue we won’t be near the bottom”
“Wednesday and Hull should be in serious trouble on paper. But even those two both have players we want to sign, who would walk into our starting line-up.”
“I just fancy relegation for us as it stands so I’m more intrigued with the push for promotion.
We are so far behind it’s ridiculous”
QPR FANS
“I’m a bit worried tell you the truth.
It definitely feels like there isn’t a togetherness.”
“The lack of depth up front, the lack of strength in midfield, the need for a new left back ASAP. The squad is still a lopsided mess and we need to sort that by the end of the window.”
“We’re not physical enough
We’ve not got a striker who can play up top on their own
We’re quite small
We’re a squad plagued with injuries
Our first team are bottom third championship with our squad being mainly league 2 / 1 at a push standard.
Not enough leaders to be resilient”
“We’ve lost our best defender in Edward’s, contrived to promote our 2cnd best goalie, downgraded an OK left back and lost Colback’s bite. Our strikers don’t strike. Meanwhile we’ve bought in players who’ve all shown flashes, but may take some time to bed in. Tactically there’s not much to hang on to, so far so bleak. “
“Unless we get some signings then we look nailed on for relegation imo
There is literally nothing about us everything is a bit meh”
“It’s only the Championship, not the champions League and I bet half the teams in the division are saying their preseason has been poor and they look like relegation candidates. Only three can go down and surely Wednesday take one of those spots. I think we’ll be okay.”
“finishing 14th would be a decent accomplishment this season. Even more so if we sell a couple of players at the end of it.”
WEDNESDAY FANS
“I have no optimism going into the season at all.
Although for me what happens on the pitch is of secondary importance, the big thing is getting rid of our cretin of an owner and saving the club.”
“Zero optimism about this season, in my eyes its a write off. Slight optimism about potential takeover / getting rid of DC”
“If we win 5 games out of 46 we will have done well.”
“if we manage to stay up it’ll go down as legend and a golden statue of Bannan will be erected.”
“It’s not on my radar how we do I’m only interested in club staying alive and if that means playing youngsters and getting relegated I can live with that.”
“Forget the football, but as a fan base, we have never been closer.
The come back years will be electric”
“I think if something genuinely tangible came to fact soon the fan base would be so unified that we’d drag these lads over the line like we did vs Peterborough.”
“As long as CHANSIRI Has gone ,If we go down so what we have been there before .We always come back.”
“I’d accept two 3-0s against them lot , that sums it up”
SOUTHAMPTON FANS
“Think we’ll be more than good enough for this league, we have a stronger squad than last time we were in this League, one less squad that is better than ours, and we had the “Worst Manager Ever” (TM) that season.”
“I believe we will be at track bullies and simply overpower many teams “
“I think we have the talent to get promoted one way or the other. Anything but promotion will be a failure.”
“If we hit the ground running (13’ish points from first 5 games) then top 2 is on, if we struggle to get over last season then somewhere from 5th-8th.”
“expecting us to have a more than slow start, transfers completed on deadline day then another month for everything to bed in. Don’t think we’ll score loads but won’t concede as many either, I can see a lot of 1-0’s, 1-1’s. Think we’ll edge into the playoffs but come unstuck in the semi’s.”
“We do not have a stronger squad than last time as things stand and as stubborn as Martin was with his system we’ve got no idea how Will Still is going to adapt to the English game”
“We’ll finish 6th if we’re lucky.”
“I keep seeing reports that say Southampton and Leicester will run away with the Championship this season.
Am I the only one who thinks that with the current squad we’ll be luck to finish top 10?”
STOKE FANS
“Think we’ll really start to improve and kick on this season with a proper manager who has seen the weaknesses (CB, wingers) that the fans have seen for a long time.”
“Think we’ll improve but miss out on playoffs.
A lot depends on who’s still to come in.
A couple of top signings and we could make 6th”
“We could easily get play-offs”
“I think we will get 5th”
“I believe we’ll be around it, might be stretching a little to say we’ll make 5th and go up through the play offs, but a man can dream”
“Think we will just miss out”
“Mid-table”
“We will be bottom half”
SWANSEA FANS
“10-15. I usually don’t like to make predictions but it’s clear there is some work to do yet and I think some people are hoping for too much this season whilst others are being to harsh.”
“I freely admit it the positive vibes around the club has made me think unrealisticly about what we can achieve. Now I don’t think it’s all doom and gloom. But the injuries and lack of a striker, add into that with youth not stepping up. I see more pain coming. Would I panic now if I was the Club. Proberly yes. The starting 11 I really like if all fit”
“From where I’m standing, this summer is not looking much different at all, less than a fortnight before the first game and we’re still nowhere near as prepared as we should be.”
I still think we’ll be comfy mid-table this season but it wouldn’t surprise me if it’s a choppy start.
“We’re lacking defensive solidarity and a cutting edge up front.”
“Should we be concerned with pre season results? No
Should we be concerned that we only have 1 fit centre half? Oh yes!”
“It’s not an overreaction when I say we need signings and fast.”
“The more I think about it the more I’m concerned about the start of the season. Maybe my emotions will settle, but defense is on its knees, and with no prolific striker. I’ll say it now. I see alot of people panicking and calling for Sheehan to go for few weeks at start of season, even if that’s madness.”
“Last week there was talk on here of us needing to expand the stadium for when we’re back in the Premier. Stop the builders.”
WATFORD FANS
“Heads up .
You can get 6/4 on Watford finishing in the top 12 .
Lump on ! .”
“Relegation 6/1 is a better bet.”
“Talented squad but Pozzo makes two head coach changes leading to a 15th place finish. The gamble doesn’t pay off and we’re in administration this time next year.”
“An inconsistent defence, no depth in midfield but more talent added in the forward areas. A comfortable midtable finish beckons again, which won’t be good enough for Pozzo who I assume thinks he’s created a Championship super squad.”
“I think 12th or 13th is fair”
“Mid-table seems about right”
WEST BROM FANS
“Positive vibes ahead of new season.”
“Gonna be a long old season”
“Could finish anywhere from 2nd to 16th”
“I think it’s anywhere between 9-12th.”
“Think we will finish 10th”
“10th is best we can hope for.”
“Top 10 with signs of progression and finances in a stable position moving forward. Along with a few great wins against the top teams would a good return for the season.”
“Mid-table”
WREXHAM FANS
“my understanding is Wrexham will have highest commercial sponsorship in the League. higher than a handful of prem clubs in fact. kit sales should increase significantly. club will finally sell some players. aside from match day income with small stadium, wrexham will spend to the last dollar to promote as opportunity to be only club in EFL history to promote to prem on back to back to back to back promotions. this is a freight train and always was. clubs have a limit. wrexham will be Europe bound sooner than later. unlimited”
“4peat via play-offs after strengthening again in January if we’re in the mix (8th or above at Xmas)”
“POs? Quite possibly! But we need more pace up top”
“All things considered, a top ten finish is a reasonable prediction at this point.”
“I think 10 -12th position is a fairer shout”
” 10-15th with no threat of relegation would be lovely (and a cup run!)”
“I think we’ll be around 12th.”
“I’d probably be less confident about this season if I knew more about the quality of the Championship. Happy to admit I know very little about football beyond Wrexham these days and that includes the players we’ve signed. As a result I’m actually buzzing about our chances.”
“I think Sheffield Utd might be in for a bit of a shock”