CHAMPIONSHIP CLASS
TOM HESLOP talks to former Scotland striker Chris Iwelumo about football in England’s second level
Chis Iwelumo on the second tier
The Championship has a reputation for being a battleground – and former Wolves and Burnley striker Chris Iwelumo knows just how tough it is.
The Scotland international gained promotion back into the Premier League with Wolves in the 2008-09 season but, after he sustained a medial ligament damage in a game against local rivals Birmingham City, he missed out on the run-in which saw the Gold and Black army go up as champions.
The marksman, who played for 18 different clubs throughout his career, including teams in Denmark and Germany, acknowleged that the Championship is one of the most demanding divisions he ever played in.
“The Championship is probably the sixth strongest league in the world in terms of the size of the teams, fan bases and the infrastructure of the clubs,” he said.“It has changed a lot and there is more football getting played in the division nowadays.
“I don’t think the standard or speed of the Championship compared to the Premier League is vast, though I think this is the poorest year ever for technical quality in the Premier League.”
In addition to admitting the Championship is one of the toughest leagues in the world, the 37-year-old ex-Charlton forward also believes bringing young foreign players into the division is a risk – because they simply are not ready for the second tier’s brutality.
“I am not saying that applies to all young foreign players that have come over because I have played with some very tough foreign players,” he said,“but you need to have a certain temperament and you need to have a certain style of play to come to the Championship.
“In the Championship you know what you are going to get – every year it’s going to be a hard league.
“No matter how much money you throw at it, the league is tough. There are a lot of big clubs there challenging.
“Whoever goes down this year from the Premier League – Aston Villa definitely, possibly Newcastle – is not guaranteed to go straight back up. That is how difficult the Championship is, no matter how big the club.”
Despite retiring from professional football just over two years ago, Iwelumo has certainly kept himself busy.
The 6ft 3ins former Stoke City man is currently studying for a professional sports writing and broadcasting degree at Staffordshire University and can sometimes be seen on Channel 5’s programme on Saturday nights giving his opinions about the weekend games.
So what is the key to Championship success? “It is all about consistency,” said Iwelumo, who progressed through the ranks at St Mirren in Scotland during the early days of his career .“It is the same as in any walk of life – if you are consistent with what you do then you are going to get results, but that’s easier said than done.”