Aston Villa
After a turbulent off-season where administration looked like a real possibility, there is an air of positivity around the club following investment from two billionaires. For a while it looked like we’d have to sell our best players. As that no longer looks to be the case, I’m feeling hopeful. We’ll start the campaign with Jack Grealish, Andre Green and Jonathan Kodjia, who all were out of the side for significant periods last season. We are, however, weakened by the departures of Robert Snodgrass, Sam Johnstone and John Terry. Assuming there are no significant departures, Villa can challenge for a place in the play-offs at the very least. After Cardiff reached the Premier League last season, automatic promotion should not be beyond our wildest dreams. I predict we’ll finish fifth. Josh Smith
Birmingham City
The phrase “typical Blues” should be on our club badge. It is said with such frequency that it’s almost a rite of passage for Birmingham fans. Lurching from one embarrassment to another has been a constant theme of my 30 years supporting the club. This year is no different. Having an alright squad, a highly rated coach in Garry Monk and the possibility of some additions had me thinking we could be dark horses. The joy, typically, didn’t last long. We have been put under a transfer embargo; our standout midfielder David Davis has broken his ankle; we have bombed out our two first-team goalkeepers, who no one wants to sign; and we no longer play at St Andrews but at the “St Andrew’s Trillion Trophy Stadium”. Typical Blues. But like every year, deep down I am excited for the new season. We’ll finish mid-table or a bit lower. Matthew Franks
Blackburn Rovers
After what has been a disastrous eight years of mismanagement by our owners, Venkys (yes, they are still in charge), something seemed to change around the club last season. The arrival of Tony Mowbray as manager and Steve Waggott as chief executive has started what could be a healing process with the fans. I expect us to kick on, surprise a few teams, consolidate and finish 15th. Daniel Higginson
Bolton Wanderers
Despite some positive moves in the transfer market, this season looks likely to be another struggle as our squad still has some gaping holes. On the plus side we’ve paid a fee for a player (Josh Magennis) for the first time since 2015. However, finances have dictated that much of our business is being done late and the fear is that we’ll be playing catch-up again. I’m convinced we have the right manager in Phil Parkinson, but we are going to be aiming to finish outside the relegation zone. I’m not sure I could handle anything as dramatic as last season’s final day. We’ll finish 20th. Chris Dykins
Brentford
Brentford have consistently punched above their financial weight with top-10 finishes in the last four seasons. Every transfer window other Championship clubs try to replicate the club’s success by buying our best players and offering them large wages, but things still look bright at Griffin Park under our much admired head coach Dean Smith. We’ll finish sixth and hopefully have a serious tilt at one of the cups. Nick Carthew
Bristol City
Despite a blistering first half to last season and an unforgettable cup run, a tired-looking team ended up finishing well outside the play-offs. This still exceeded expectations and fans are behind Lee Johnson and his exciting brand of football. This season should prove a real test of the coach’s managerial prowess, after losing two key players in Aden Flint and Bobby Reid (Joe Bryan could follow before the deadline). We have recruited well so far, particularly in Flint’s replacement Adam Webster. The goalkeeping position is concerning though, with the inconsistent Frank Fielding currently injured. We’ll finish ninth. Tom Ireland
Derby County
The football under Frank Lampard has been infinitely better than under the last manager, if the pre-season wins against Southampton and Wolves are a reliable guide. If we can clear the deadwood and keep helping our younger players shine, we will do well. Max Lowe will be the player of the season; Jack Marriott will do very well in the golden boot; and I predict we’ll finish second. Chris Litchfield
Hull City
It’s going to be another long and arduous season. Having had a slim squad last season, we’ve lost 10 more players over the summer, six of whom have been regulars. Abel Hernández’s departure is a particularly big blow as he’s a £15-20m striker and we’ve lost him for free. The squad looks very thin up top but Nigel Adkins has said the money isn’t there. We should avoid relegation but the squad is worse than it was last summer and we flirted with relegation for the majority of the campaign. We’ll finish in the bottom half but stay up. Matt Jordan
Ipswich Town
A top-half finish would be fantastic but, if new manager Paul Hurst works wonders like he did at Shrewsbury last season, maybe we can dare to dream even higher. Most Ipswich fans would settle for a transitional season. After the negative mentality instilled by Mick McCarthy, his successor is rebuilding the squad, adding to the experience of Bartosz Bialkowski, Luke Chambers and Cole Skuse with homegrown players and promising youngsters from the lower leagues, such as Gwion Edwards and Ellis Harrison. Hurst’s style is already winning over fans, who want a long-term plan rather than mere survival. Dan Ford
Leeds United
Another underwhelming season. Optimism gone by October, Marcelo Bielsa by December. We will loan a couple more Chelsea players in January to get us excited again but forget to win any games in the meantime. We are Leeds. We’ll finish anywhere between sixth and 21st. Let’s call it 11th.
Middlesbrough
I have been training my neck muscles all summer to prepare for 46 games of head tennis, otherwise known as Pulisball. Our recruitment and pre-season have not filled anyone with confidence, but maybe we will grind it out and score 40 headers from set pieces. We’ll finish anywhere between second and 20th. Gareth Purver
Millwall
I fear for us. Neil Harris has been an amazing manager since taking over from Ian Holloway, further reinforcing his messianic status among Millwall fans. The biggest challenge this season will be meeting the expectations he set last season, when we pushed for a play-off place. If we start badly, have a losing streak or find ourselves in a relegation dogfight, I worry those increased, unrealistic expectations might quickly turn into frustration and impatience. I predict we’ll finish 18th. Chris Allen
Norwich City
With the parachute payments drying up, Norwich are in a play-offs-at-best scenario. The loss of James Maddison is huge but inevitable given his seismic talent. He was often the difference in tight games, particularly away from home. Josh Murphy and Wes Hoolahan will be missed too. Experienced new signings such as Jordan Rhodes and Tim Krul seem a wise deviation from the usual policy of recruiting from Germany under manager Daniel Farke. Watch out for Onel Hernández, who could make things happen this season. We’ll just fall short of the top six. Ian Hobbs
Nottingham Forest
We’ll be considerably better than we have been for the last five seasons, though that would not be difficult. Over the last 12 months the club has improved beyond all recognition. Out goes a clueless narcissist, in comes an owner who likes to stay in the background and let a team of professionals run things. In comes Aitor Karanka, a manager who is ruthless the players and creative in the transfer market. The club’s engagement with fans has resulted in matchday improvements, not least a reduction in ticket prices which has resulted in more than 20,000 season tickets being sold. If the feelgood factor spreads to the pitch and the new players click, we could take some stopping. We’ll finish in the top six. Michael Buckley
Preston North End
Preston have improved consistently since their return to the Championship three seasons ago and can give any team a run for their money. If Seán Maguire stays fit for the whole season, we’ll hopefully do better in front of goal. We came excruciatingly close to the play-offs last season. If the team remain focused throughout the whole campaign, I reckon they can break into the top six. Andrey
QPR
With quite a few youngsters, we may have a poor start then progress as the squad gels. We’ll have to be patient; QPR fans are used to that. But if there’s no progress by Christmas, Steve McClaren will need more than his brolly to protect him from the wrath of us long-suffering fans. I saw my first QPR match in 1946, so I’ve suffered longer than most. Graham Padgett
Reading
It’s going to be grim. Last season we had a team with no confidence, no creativity and a propensity for alarming defensive mistakes. We overachieved the season before and then the pendulum swung savagely. The arrival of Paul Clement in March helped us stagger to safety but our summer transfer business has been underwhelming, pre-season has been pretty dire and our best player, Liam Moore, looks to be on his way out. For the first time I’m dreading the new season rather than looking forward to it. We’ll finish in the bottom five. James Wyper
Rotherham
I’d love to predict a top-six finish but it’s unlikely. We have a seasoned squad, our manager can work wonders, we have made some decent low-key signings and beating Cardiff in pre-season was a nice touch. But knowing Rotherham, we’ll still struggle against the bigger boys. I’d be happy with a mid-table finish as we look to build for that promotion push in the 2019-20 season. I’m dreaming big. Ideally we would finish 11th, but I’m expecting 15th.
Sheffield United
We’ve made a couple of signings but our prize asset is our manager. Chris Wilder has consistently overachieved wherever he has managed. He is a Blades fan and has turned the club’s fortunes around in the last couple of years. Fans would be happy with a top-half finish, more entertaining football and a win or two over Sheffield Wednesday. Finishing above them again would be a great achievement and a play-off push is not impossible.
Sheffield Wednesday
Hopefully our performances will be more akin to the way we finished last season than the mostly turgid first six months of the campaign, which were characterised by injuries to key players and Carlos Carvahal’s negative tactics. With no incoming additions and three or four significant outgoings, the lack of pace in the team will again be evident – as will the need for a commanding centre-back and wing-backs who can both defend and attack. If Barry Bannan and Fernando Forestieri stay, and Kieran Lee and Gary Hooper return to full fitness, a play-off push might be possible but, more realistically, I think we’ll finish mid-table. Mark Rainey
Stoke City
We’ll do well but we won’t steamroll the division like a lot of our fans were predicting after the first couple of signings. We’ve addressed a lot of last year’s shortcomings, with the promising Oghenekaro Etebo bringing drive in the middle of the park, Tom Ince and James McClean providing graft, creativity and pace out wide, and Benik Afobe offering a presence up front. Our starting XI is perhaps stronger than last year, but we lack depth in defence and are relying on one man for goals. My head thinks play-offs but my heart says we could top the lot if we get lucky with injuries. Let’s go for third.
Swansea City
Expectations have rarely been lower in the last 15 years. The appointment of Graham Potter seems to signal a return to what made the club successful, although you could have said the same when Paul Clement got the gig. Potter’s success will depend on how far he is hamstrung by the actions of his chairman, whose meddling has been the undoing of an array of previous incumbents. The squad has all the depth of your average Love Island contestant. There is a lack of experience in almost all areas and the spine of the team looks inadequate for this league. The words “the next Sunderland” are not far from anyone’s lips. If Potter can make a competitive side from the hand he’s been dealt, it will rival any success he enjoyed with Östersund. I’m predicting, tentatively, that we’ll finish 16th. Lance Drysdale
West Bromwich Albion
When teams go down from the Premier League, most fans expect them to drop another division or go straight back up. Neither will happen for the Albion. Our squad needed an overhaul and slowly it’s happening, with younger and hungrier players coming in to join cult heroes like Chris Brunt and James Morrison. Darren Moore has the right ideas, but we may be left behind by teams spending more money than us. I’m just glad we can have some pride in our club again, because in Moore we have a local guy who genuinely cares. I predict we’ll finish sixth. Dave E
Wigan Athletic
I’ve seen nothing in our transfer activity to suggest we’re building a team capable of competing in the Championship. We’re close to Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City yet we haven’t said to them: “Give us a couple of your youngsters and we’ll give them first-team experience in one of the most competitive leagues in the world.” We’ve gone from winning the FA Cup five years ago to becoming a team that is too good for League One but not good enough for the Championship. Will Grigg is the epitome of this; he made scoring look easy in League One but looked out of his depth in the Championship two seasons ago. We’ll be relegated. Brett
