NORWICH LEAD THE WAY AS THE CHARGE TO GET OUT OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP HOTS UP

MICHELLE OWEN EVALUATES THE CONTENDERS LOOKING FOR AUTOMATIC PROMOTION TO FOOTBALL’S PROMISED LAND

AS ALWAYS, the Championship promotion race is wide open, with the fight for the two automatic spots entering the final straight. The Championship is indeed a marathon, not a sprint, but this is the stage of the season where a team that puts a consistent run together can make it over the line.

Just a few weeks ago, Norwich had been knocked off top spot and had not scored for four games. Eighteen points later, their rivals are faltering and they are surging clear of the chasing pack.

Before Wednesday’s win over Brentford, they were also four points ahead of the Canaries side that went up as champions in 2019.

Norwich fans will appreciate that in all but one of the last ten Championship seasons, the team who were top with 15 games remaining went up. Victory over their fellow promotion contenders sealed their position as favourites as they moved ten points clear of second and third.

But if they do bounce back to the Premier League, can they stay there? Many believe one of the reasons the Canaries are flying is their ability to keep hold of key players like Teemu Pukki, Emi Buendia and Todd Cantwell. One would think they will need to strengthen some more to avoid coming straight back down again but they are only a couple of players away from really competing next season in the Premier League.

BRENTFORD were quite phenomenal until a few weeks ago. I covered their match as they went a staggering 21 games unbeaten in the league. However, that run came to an abrupt end at home to a Barnsley side who have been terrific under Valerien Ismael.

The Bees’ new stadium is perfect for Premier League football and they need to get promoted to keep hold of Ivan Toney. The striker has repaid every bit of his £5million transfer fee with 25 goals and nine assists already.

When Thomas Frank lost Ollie Watkins, the club found a terrific replacement but if they don’t go up you have to question how long they can maintain the slick transfer business while not meeting the ultimate goal of promotion.

They had bounced back impressively from a run of three defeats in February before the midweek loss at Carrow Road.

Frank stated afterwards Norwich are 100 per cent certainties to be promoted in his eyes. Brentford themselves are far from certain right now and could not quite produce their best against the division’s top side – but that is not to say they can’t still grab second place.

Their moneyball approach has got them this far and if they can take that next step to the Premier League, the financial rewards would be massive and the way they use those resources would be intriguing to see. Their approach of finding relatively unheralded players with high potential has a proven track record – but those players have been picked to compete in the Championship. Could they find them for the highest level? If they could, you would fancy Brentford to make a fist of it.

WATFORD are a team many would have picked to make an immediate return to the top tier with a squad, on paper, that is sensational. However, getting the right mixture of talent and style of play can be elusive for even the supposedly best teams.

A turnover in managers yet again this season led to Xisco Munoz – new to English football – being appointed just before Christmas.

Munoz had the Hornets in good form but they were beaten last weekend by another side intent on going straight back up, Bournemouth. Before that,

they looked favourites to beat Brentford to second spot but the pendulum has swung once more in their favour as they beat lowly Wycombe on Wednesday to go level with the second-placed Bees.

Promotion or not, the issues around their ownership remain, with Watford Supporters Trust questioning the running of the club in a statement last month. They are in a good position but the Championship cannot be underestimated; it is incredibly hard to get out of.

AFTER Swansea beat Norwich 2-0 at the start of February, it looked to be a major turning point. Swansea in form, Norwich looking vulnerable. However, since that win, the Swans have not kicked on.

Their credentials for runners-up spot look questionable, although they do have games in hand on those teams above them. They have been less than convincing since beating Daniel Farke’s men and manager Steve Cooper has come under fire from his own fans for being reluctant to make changes in games that are not going their way. What’s more, their strikeforce is not firing right now and they are heavily reliant on Jamal Lowe and Andre Ayew.

Swansea were relegated from the Premier League in 2018 and this has been the season where they have looked the most capable of a return. Yet with the holy grail of the best league on the horizon, reports suggest they chose not to look to the freeagent market for a back-up striker, a decision they may now be ruing.

The issue with their games in hand is the pressure to win them, a couple of surprise results to those who don’t follow the club closely have come up before but, in reality, the performances weren’t up to scratch.

The relentless nature of the shortened season with the same games is taking its toll.

Cooper’s side need to bounce back quickly to stay in contention and Lady Luck was on their side as they won a soft penalty in the 96th minute to return to winning ways against Stoke this week. Ayew – in truth a player who should be in the Premier League – converted calmly to keep the Swans in the race.

THE teams below these four cannot be entirely discounted. After a blistering start, Reading have fallen away but they are capable of some great football with the wonderful front three of forwards Michael Olise, Lucas Joao and Ovie

Ejaria. On their day, the Royals are almost unplayable.

Bournemouth have turned to Jonathan Woodgate for their promotion charge but their inconsistency makes them unpredictable. They could not cope with the physicality of Cardiff recently but, then again, many sides can’t at the moment.

The Bluebirds – under the recently appointed Mick McCarthy – have found new life and invigoration and we can’t discount Barnsley; since Ismael took charge last year they have climbed the table to be play-off contenders. He deserves huge credit for their incredible season with one of the smaller budgets in the league.

However, the four teams mentioned would need some run to make the top two and look more likely to be vying for third to sixth and the play-offs.