Four of the Championship’s relegation candidates on the final day of the season survived by the skin of their teeth, securing the result they needed to ensure they will be playing in the second tier next term, ultimately, at the expense of Luton Town.
For Hull City, Derby County, Preston North End and Stoke City, attention has now quickly turned to ensuring the mistakes of this season are not repeated.
Those four clubs were separated by just two points in the final reckoning after seasons of struggle, which saw all four change their manager at various points.
To get the lowdown on how things stand going into the summer at City’s rivals, we spoke to Preston writer George Hodgson, Derby County reporter Leigh Curtis and Stoke City reporter Pete Smith.
This is what the quartet had to say…
How safe is your club’s manager?
George Hodgson – Preston: From the outside, a 20th-place finish doesn’t reflect too well on Paul Heckingbottom, and it certainly would’ve been interesting to see if he’d have stuck around had Saturday not gone PNE’s way. Needless to say, it was a major relief for North End to survive by the skin of their teeth.
But Preston’s problems go beyond Heckingbottom, who arrived in difficult circumstances on August 20 and is entitled to feel his team should never have been in that relegation scrap. He wasn’t blameless but appeared to retain the backing of most supporters. He will now oversee a massive summer transfer window and be judged properly next campaign.
Barry Cooper – Hull City:At this stage, it remains in the balance. Owner Acun Ilicali is conducting a review of football operations at the MKM Stadium after a shocker of a season, which saw City survive on goal difference. Ruben Selles arrived with the club at the bottom of the table, and his remit was to keep the Tigers in the league, and he did. Their form since the March international break has raised concerns behind the scenes, and it remains to be seen whether the Spaniard will be given the summer to really stamp his authority and turn City into a side capable of challenging for the top six as they did the season before.
The owner knows a decision must be made quickly, though he will also want to make the right one and if that means taking an extra couple of days, then so be it.
Leigh Curtis – Derby County: After overseeing such a remarkable escape act, John Eustace is on par with the King and the PM when it comes to job safety. Instead of worry, there is only excitement about Derby’s potential under his leadership and with good reason.
Derby were seven points adrift of safety back in March, but Derby lost just two of their last 11 games, which was enough to get them above the dreaded dotted line. That was owed to smart management, but you got the sense that this is still a long way from the way he wants the team to be in the long run.
Pete Smith – Stoke City: Mark Robins’ first few months have been tough, among the toughest of his career, he says, but he’s come through it with Stoke staying up, and he seems a good fit for the next stage.
He will be, and he has been, involved in key decisions, working alongside sporting director Jon Walters and building a close relationship with owner John Coates to navigate challenges and set up a club that can start chugging in the right direction at long last. He’s a calm head who can think about the long-term without losing track of the here and now.
It seems like everyone at Stoke knows the importance of giving the right manager time but the problem over the last few years has been finding the right manager. Fingers crossed.
How much work does your club need this summer?
George Hodgson: Loads. It’s been said, by Heckingbottom and CEO Peter Ridsdale, that around 10 new players could sign for PNE. That is a significant freshen up. Four loan players are returning to their parent clubs, a number of contracts are expiring and reinforcements were needed anyway.
It promises to be a really busy summer and, as the manager mentioned at Ashton Gate, Preston’s business in the window will have a major impact on what they’re able to do next season – in a league which already promises to be tougher. They’ve got to work smarter than ever and get it right, which won’t be easy.
Barry Cooper: It might seem mad to say, given where they’ve just finished, but not a huge amount. Three influential signings will return from ACL injuries (Liam Millar, Mohamed Belloumi and Eliot Matazo), and the nucleus of a decent side is there. The full-back areas are areas for work, and there’s a big decision looming over the future of Ryan Giles. The key thing for City is adding pace and a striker or two capable of finding the back of the net.
Since Selles arrived in mid-December, the Tigers have built the fourth-best defence in the league behind Leeds United, Burnley and Sheffield United, conceding 26 times in 26 games. At the other end, they were the lowest scorers in the league. That tells you everything you need to know about where their focus must lie this summer.
Leigh Curtis: If they are to avoid a repeat of this season’s relegation battle, then a lot of work is needed to shape the squad into a true Championship team. It must be remembered that Derby carried a large proportion of their League One squad into last season, but there is genuine scope to change that this summer.
They’ve got 11 players out of contract, plus the loan players have gone back, so that does represent the chance for a significant overhaul.
There were some mistakes made in recruitment last season, but then again, no club ever gets it 100 per cent right. But knowing what the Championship is like again after being back in the second tier, should make them far better prepared for what they do need.
Pete Smith: A load. Four senior players have already been released, and five loan players have gone back. Then there’s outcasts like Ryan Mmaee, Andre Vidigal and Nikola Jojic who will be moved along, if possible, and decisions to be made about first team assets and whether to cash in to fund a rebuild.
So that’s losing 11 or 12 players from a squad that was stretched over the winter, albeit due to a pretty crazy injury list. There are a couple of players who will be pushed higher up the pecking order over the next few months but it would still be a surprise if incomings didn’t reach double figures unless they can find targets who can fill a couple of roles.
It’s also worth remembering that, of the players who have been released, their availability was actually poor over the last nine months.
What positions will be a priority?
George Hodgson: Pretty much all of them. Central defence and central midfield are probably the two departments where PNE are best stocked in, but you would still welcome additions there. Number one Freddie Woodman is expected to leave on a free, so North End will need a new goalkeeper – rumoured to be former loan star Daniel Iversen.
It remains to be seen whether Heckingbottom sticks with wing-backs, or tries to move towards a system more suited to wingers next season. Nonetheless, additions on both sides of the pitch are required. PNE badly lack creativity so that will be a key thing to sort. With Emil Riis leaving, at least one new striker is going to be on the list.
Barry Cooper: City’s big priority this summer will be adding players capable of winning a game in the penalty box. Losing wingers Liam Millar and Mohamed Belloumi to ACL injuries early in the season was hugely costly. Those season-ending injuries to their two top wingers put an awful amount of pressure on Abu Kamara. Kamara was signed as a player with real potential, but wasn’t expected to start every week as they afforded him time to settle. He became their frontline creator, and at times, he found that expectation tough.
The fact that a free transfer signing after the summer window closed, Joao Pedro, finished as top goalscorer with six, said it all. Even own goals and a player who left in January still featured, with three proving how hard goals were to come by.
Luton Town’s three on the final day at West Brom meant City finished as the lowest scorers in the league with just 44, so that’s where much of their focus will be this summer. Signing a left-back will also be uppermost on their priority list.
Leigh Curtis: Has to be the attack. The fact that nearly half of Derby’s goals came from set-pieces tells you they have to be much, much, better in open play next season. To do that, they need real quality, not just up front, but out wide, and they also need more creativity in the middle of the pitch.
Jerry Yates did a fine job of leading the line last season, and he scored 10 goals, but he was the only fit and available striker for the season. If he had got injured, Derby would have been snookered, and it’s scenarios like that they really have to avoid.
They also need to inject further pace in the team as there really isn’t much of it at all. There’s no player in the team you would say is blisteringly quick.
Pete Smith: There’s an argument to be made about almost every position but a centre-half to replace loanee Ashley Phillips and a centre-forward to replace Tom Cannon and Ali Al-Hamadi would probably top the list.
But goalkeeper and wingers if Stoke are prepared to sell Viktor Johansson, Million Manhoef and/or Bae Junho will be big calls too and a reliable holding midfielder to play next to Wouter Burger – and Burger will have suitors as well so… Yes, it’s going to be busy.
Will your club have any money to spend?
George Hodgson: North End haven’t sold a player for any kind of significant fee for some time, but they have spent seven-figure sums on players in the last two years: Lewis Gibson, Jeppe Okkels, Mads Frokjaer, Milutin Osmajic. There will be space freed up on the wage bill, but as far as transfer fees go, you cannot envisage more than £3/4m being spent. Loans will be important for Preston again, and they’ll probably need to snap up some decent free transfers as well.
Barry Cooper: There won’t be a huge pot of money to spend this summer, given the club spent significantly last summer on the likes of Liam Millar, Mohamed Belloumi, Charlie Hughes and Abu Kamara, but there will be finance available to strengthen. Twelve months ago, City sold the likes of Jaden Philogene and Jacob Greaves for the best part of £40m. While much of that went towards paying off other transfer commitments, it did give them space to sign players. Whether or not there will be sales this summer remains to be seen, though there is nobody in the current squad capable of commanding such fees, so things will have to be a little more frugal to fall within FFP.
City, to their credit, have used the loan market well in recent seasons, bringing in the likes of Liam Delap, Fabio Carvalho, and Tyler Morton. Though Louie Barry ended up getting injured, it was another example of their ability to identify top Premier League talent, and they will do so again.
Leigh Curtis: David Clowes has shown that he is not afraid to back the manager when it comes to the transfer market, but as always, there is a limit and there is realism. They aren’t going to do a Birmingham and spend £15m on a striker. But we have to remember that it’s not about how much you have, but how you spend it.
Hull forked out a boatload on players, but still finished below Derby. That’s a case in point. Stoke spent heavily to do a deal for Tom Cannon and only just finished above Derby. It’s about being smart and recognising players who can deliver a big impact on the pitch, but not cost you an arm and a leg.
Pete Smith: Stoke are still counting the cost of letting Alex Neil loose in the summer of 2023 with the war chest they had worked so hard to save up over the three previous years. This will be the final season when that counts in the rolling Financial Fair Play cycle but it’s a millstone that means they will probably have to sell to fund any particularly exciting business.
Money they raise will be put back into the pot – and Stoke will continue to lobby the EFL to change the rules so try to level the playing field with clubs in receipt of parachute payments.