Every Premier League team has dreams of lifting the famous trophy aloft come May, but there will always be some more concerned with avoiding the dreaded drop. While the title race draws the attention of millions, what makes the English top flight one of the best in the world is the fact the bottom half of the table is just as compelling as the battle for the Premier League crown. Each and every season the relegation dogfight provides untold amounts of drama with the bid for survival often coming down to the wire.
Last season Leeds, Leicester and Southampton were the unlucky three who failed to avoid the drop. Meanwhile Everton, Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth were the fortunate ones, leaving it late but ultimately ensuring their Premier League status for at least another year. Each of those three will have another tough challenge on their hands in repeating the trick though with this season’s relegation fight shaping up to be another belter. After five games some usual suspects are already down at the foot of the table but with underperforming big spenders Manchester United, Chelsea and Newcastle also lingering in the bottom half, no-one could possibly say with any certainty who will be playing Championship football next season. Regardless, here’s our attempt at predicting who will be front and centre of the relegation scrap this time round.
Luton Town – 1/5 to go down
Much of the talk about Luton leading up to this season was focused around how their stadium was not up to Premier League standards, and for the most part the same could be said for their performances on the pitch. The club is currently 18th after their opening five games having conceded 11 goals and scoring the league’s lowest tally of just three. Their slow start on the pitch is likely the result of a slow start to the summer transfer window in which they made a handful of signings over the first few months. If the club continues their poor start, the January transfer window will be vital in ensuring their survival. Their next two fixtures are against fellow relegation rivals Everton and Burnley; even though we are just four or five games into the new campaign, these already feel like relegation six-pointers. Walk away with nothing and the effect could be disastrous. The Premier League new boys will be a lot of neutrals’ favourite with their remarkable journey back to the top flight after 31 years of turmoil endearing them to many. However, despite the amazing job manager Rob Edwards has done with the Hatters, it is hard to see them making an appearance in the 2024/25 PL campaign.
Sheffield United – 8/11 to go down
Another newly promoted side, the Blades are second-favourites with the bookies to go straight back down despite finishing second in last season’s Championship, 10 points clear of third-placed Luton. United made a good crack of it when they last returned to the Premier League, defying all the odds to finish 9th in 2019/20 but few anticipate a repeat performance this time round. Much like Luton, the club have not had the best summer, bringing in relative unknowns with the exception of Gustavo Hamer to bolster their ranks. A singular point after a 2-2 against Everton at home is all they have to show for their efforts thus far but it’s not all doom and gloom. For the most part, the team’s performances have actually been pretty good, particularly Wes Foderingham who is enjoying a terrific start to the season in between the sticks. That was until their 8-0 drubbing at the hands of Newcastle last week. it’s ultimately about picking up points and if they continue this trend then they too will be destined for the drop.
Burnley – 2/1 to go down
Rounding off the trio of promoted teams on this list is Burnley who also find themselves amongst the contenders to go straight back down. While it isn’t out of the ordinary to see last season’s Championship teams in the conversation for relegation, Clarets manager Vincent Kompany wil feel hard done by that his side have been dealt this prediction from the bookmakers.
Punters backing Burnley to go down can do so at the best betting sites available in the UK. Burnley were by far the best team in England’s second-tier last season, earning 101 points and finishing 10 points clear of fellow relegation adversaries Sheffield United. Kompany has done an amazing job with the Lancashire club given the limited resources at his disposal after a financially devastating relegation from the Premier League the season prior. The brand of football they play is the best their fans have seen in a generation and is a style well-suited to the quality of the Premier League. Furthermore, he has made several new additions to his side over the summer giving him the best chance out of the newly promoted sides of staying up according to the bookies. A point from their opening five games leaves them in the bottom three but given the quality of opposition there can be few complaints.
Everton – 6/4 to go down
Much has been made of Everton’s plight in the past few years and with good reason. The club is in financial turmoil, having spent well over half a billion pounds since 2016 with little to no success on the pitch. With a big bill from their new stadium currently in development, and the financial situation seemingly worsening day-by-day, Everton fans were understandably furious when their side were just minutes away from a relegation to the Championship last season that could well have spelt the beginning of the end for this footballing institution. Despite underperforming the common belief is that their squad has too much talent to go down, but even so the Toffees are once again looking down the barrel of another relegation scrap. The club currently sit in 15th with four points from their opening six games and concerns were re-emerging that their luck might finally run out until they defeated Brentford. It’ll still be a long season ahead and Sean Dyche’s men have two must-win games against Bournemouth and Luton in the upcoming weeks, walk away with nothing and his side could be in serious trouble.
