02 August 2023 , 11:05
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Despite it only feeling about six hours since the last domestic campaign came to an end, Friday night marks the return of the EFL when Sheffield Wednesday host Southampton.
And with a new season, comes a newly programmed 'supercomputer'. This one has backed Leicester City and the Saints to bounce back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, but expects Leeds to fall short.
All three relegated sides have switched manager after suffering relegation last term. Leeds now have Daniel Farke in charge, with Enzo Maresca at Leicester and Russell Martin taking over at St Mary's.
All three have also been active in the transfer market, with Leeds loaning out a number of members of their expensively-assembled squad, but their rivals have held on to big names. With the likes of Jamie Vardy and Che Adams gearing up for a season in the second tier, as well as Leeds talents Patrick Bamford and Illan Meslier, it's all to play for.
The supercomputer prediction, shared by the Stats United YouTube channel, provides round-by-round updates of the league table. It has the title race going down to the final week of the season, with Leicester beating Blackburn to seal top spot and Southampton still going up in second.
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Middlesbrough finished in the top six last season and are tipped to do so again. The numbers suggest they will be joined by Stoke, Bristol City and Millwall - none of whom made the play-offs last term - with Leeds just outside in seventh.
Unlike the top of the table, the relegation battle is not expected to go to the wire. Newly promoted Plymouth are set to finish bottom, according to the supercomputer, with Hull and Cardiff joining them with a week to go.
Who are you backing in the Championship this season? Have your say in the comments section
Jamie Vardy has stayed to lead Leicester's promotion push (Getty Images)"My personal point of view is that the target is to improve every day, so the players get the idea," Leicester boss Maresca said ahead of the upcoming campaign. "This is my target.
"The Championship is very hard. There are 23 more clubs that have the same target. At the end, only three clubs get promoted. It’s hard but we’re going to try."
The Foxes have lost James Maddison and Youri Tielemans, among others, but have also added some new recruits. The latest is former Arsenal youngster Stephy Mavididi, who said he is "raring to go" after joining from Montpelier.
Southampton have kept a lot of their squad together for the time being, though James Ward-Prowse and Romeo Lavia could yet leave St Mary's. Mohamed Salisu is perhaps the biggest loss after leaving for Monaco, and manager Martin has work to do after a summer in which former Manchester City youngster Shea Charles has been the Saints' biggest signing.
“I’ve been really honest that the individual chats we've had and I said you know even the ones who think they'll end up back playing in the Premier League and want to, and there’s interest for them, as long as they give it all they’ve got while they’re here, they owe that to the club after last season in particular,” Martin said in July.
For now, a number of those bigger talents have stayed, with the likes of Tino Livramento and Carlos Alcaraz involved in pre-season despite interest. There are still question-marks over Lavia and Ward-Prowse, though, while Kamaldeen Sulemana has emerged as a potential target for Everton after scoring his first Saints goals on the final day of last season.
Supercomputer predictions for 23/24 Championship
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Winners: Leicester City
Runners-up: Southampton
Play-offs: Middlesbrough, Stoke, Millwall and Bristol City.
Relegated: Plymouth, Hull and Cardiff.