Both Leeds United and Burnley have recently secured promotion from the Championship, qualifying them for the Premier League next season. For the fans of these two teams, this is a great news to celebrate. However, the question arises: are they really ready to establish themselves in the Premier League in the long run? Or are they going to be like the “promoted teams” of the past few years, who only stayed for one season before returning to the Championship?
Leeds United’s offense is strong, Burnley’s defense is the most solid
Leeds United, coached by Daniel Farke, were one of the most impressive attacking sides in the 2023/24 Championship season. They scored 89 goals throughout the season, the most in the entire league. In comparison, Middlesbrough only scored 64 goals, which shows how strong Leeds United’s offense is.
And while Burnley’s side didn’t stand out as much in attack, the defensive performance was commendable. Under Scott Parker, they have conceded only 15 goals in 44 games, the best defense in the Championship. Leeds United are second in this statistic, conceding 29 goals.
Each of these two styles, offense and defense, have their own strengths, and show that these two teams have real talent for advancing to the Premier League. The problem is, though, that the power gap between the Championship and the Premier League is so wide that it’s hard to survive in the Premier League with just offense or defense.
It’s good to be promoted, but the challenge has just begun.
Although Leeds United and Burnley are happy right now, they have to gather their emotions and prepare for the new season as soon as possible because the reality of the EPL is very cruel.
Almost all of the Championship promotions of the past two seasons, such as Luton, Sheffield United and Burnley, were relegated again in their first season in the Premier League. 2024 will see Leicester City and Southampton already locking up their Premier League places, and Ipswich likely to be promoted, but they will face a similar challenge.
This illustrates the fact that there is not just a difference in power between the Championship and the Premier League, but also a huge difference in economic resources. Teams that have just been promoted often find that they are not as good as other Premier League teams in terms of both squad and experience. Coupled with the pressure, many teams start to panic and change coaches frequently, but the results are not ideal.
Two coaches with worrying past experiences
Leeds United boss Farke and Burnley boss Parker, in fact, are not the first time to lead the team to promotion to the Premier League. Back in the 2018/19 season, Farke led Norwich to succeed in the Premier League. But in the following season, they had a poor record and were soon relegated.In the 2020/21 season, he once again led his team to promotion, only to be sacked at the beginning of the season after a run of 15 consecutive matches without a win.
Parker had a similar experience. he became acting Fulham manager in 2019 and soon after took the team through the play-offs for promotion. But Fulham struggled in the 2020/21 season and were soon relegated and he was sacked. He later coached Bournemouth and led them to promotion to the Premier League, only to be dismissed after just four games in the new season, which also saw three defeats and a total score of 0-16.
These examples show that even if a coach can lead a team to the Premier League, it doesn’t mean they can lead the team to relegation success. Once a team’s performance is not satisfactory, the management often chooses to change the manager at the first time.
Tactical choices are also very crucial
In the Championship, a strong offense or a solid defense can lead to good results. But in the Premier League, if you continue to stick to the previous style of play, the risk is very high.
For example, if Falque’s attacking soccer is too strong for his opponents and his defense can’t keep up, he will easily be counterattacked and lose even more. On the other hand, if you are like Parker’s defense-oriented, the team may not lose by a large margin, but it is also difficult to win, and will be criticized by the fans for “playing too conservative” over time.
More realistically, even a very good defense like Burnley’s may not be able to survive relegation in the EPL. After all, the level of attacking players in the EPL is very high, and a small mistake can lead to conceding a goal.
Successfully staying in the Premier League is not easy
Historically, many coaches who have been promoted to the Premier League have stepped down in the middle of the season due to substandard results. Very often, we can see clubs releasing statements saying, “Thank you for taking the team to promotion, but now we need a new direction.”
And those teams that have survived in the Premier League have often only taken off after a change of manager. For example, after Farke left Norwich, the team is still struggling in the Championship. Fulham and Bournemouth, on the other hand, have improved significantly and managed to stabilize their Premier League positions after bringing in Marco Silva and Anthony Ilora respectively.
Summary: Survival is far more difficult than promotion
Leeds United and Burnley fans can certainly celebrate now, but they have to realize that promotion to the Premier League is only the first step. The real challenge is to stay in the world’s most competitive league for the long term.
Both coaches have had similar experiences, and the upcoming season will be an opportunity for them not only to test their coaching abilities, but also a time of self-justification. They need to develop more practical tactics while bringing in new recruits with real strength in the transfer market in order to enhance their overall competitiveness.
If they can learn from their past mistakes, they may still have a chance to rewrite the fate of “promoted horses can’t escape relegation”.
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