Sheffield United’s Shot at Redemption

The automatic promotion places in the Championship last term went to Norwich and Watford, two clubs that were bouncing back at the first attempt.

Bournemouth, the other relegated team, made the play-offs. Parachute payments and the impact of Covid on the transfer market may have influenced that, with financial issues rife in the English second tier and the squads coming down proving too strong.

Sheffield United’s appointment of Slaviša Jokanović to steer their comeback mission means they have a manager who knows the level very well, but it will be more business-like, whereas Chris Wilder did really have a strong bond with players who he had brought up the ranks, including Irish duo Enda Stevens and John Egan.

It feels like United really need to succeed in going straight back up or they might just slip back into the Championship pack again. Egan and Stevens will both retain Premier ambitions and the former has age on his side. Yet he may have to re-evaluate his position if they don’t do it this year.

 

O’Shea’s Next Test

West Brom duo Dara O’Shea and Callum Robinson are in a similar position to the Sheffield United pair, and their club has a bit more practice of the yo-yo existence. They also have a new gaffer in the form of ex-Barnsley supremo Valerien Ismael. O’Shea only has half a season of experience at Championship level as his breakthrough came as they powered to promotion so the transition back after his rapid rise to the Premier League stage will be a test.

He has looked so accomplished with Ireland so the challenge now is to cope with a campaign where he will be expected to stand out. Up until now, everything he’s achieved has almost represented a pleasant surprise. That brings a new pressure and he has the maturity to deal with it.

 

Derby Drama

It’s been an eventful summer at Derby and an already strained pre-season took another disastrous turn when Wayne Rooney accidentally took out Jason Knight on the training ground, leaving the Dubliner out of the frame for the opening month of the season at the very least.

Financial issues have restricted recruitment and Knight has already accrued a fair bit of life experience for a 20-year-old.

The only potential upside of the pandemonium is that it might accelerate the progression of other Irish players on the books, with Wexford’s Festy Ebosele very much in the frame for involvement. Underage internationals Louie Watson and Eiran Cashin are also in or around the squad.

 

Bournemouth Boys

Bournemouth kicked off the season against West Brom last night and Irish duo Mark Travers and Gavin Kilkenny look set for greater involvement this term. Circumstances have opened the door for Travers with Asmir Begovic departing for Everton and then Covid issues holding up the planned loan arrival of Freddie Woodman.

He’s got the shirt for now but new boss Scott Parker is looking out for options and Travers’ display in a 2-2 draw was a mixed bag with O’Shea and Robinson both finding a way past their Irish colleague. Creative midfielder Kilkenny seems to be rated by Parker and took the chance to impress in a deep lying playmaker role. This could be huge for him.

 

Best of the Rest

Preston used to be a major talking point but it’s gone a little stale for Seani Maguire, who needs a reboot.

Alan Browne is their skipper and leading light. Callum O’Dowda could do with an injury-free run at Bristol City, while Darragh Lenihan, the captain of Blackburn, is as established as any Irish player at Championship level.

James Collins has made a notable move to join Mick McCarthy’s Cardiff and that could grow his profile. James McClean is set to depart Stoke as his relationship with Michael O’Neill is broken beyond repair.

Injury denied fresh recruit Sam Szmodics a debut in June, but Stephen Kenny will be keeping an eye on newly promoted Peterborough to see how he fares along with ex-U-21 player Jack Taylor.

 

The Other Leagues

There’s plenty of noteworthy Irish stories in League One and League Two and it’s the fate of loanees Troy Parrott and Gavin Bazunu in the third tier that will be of most interest to a wider audience. Bazunu has gone to Portsmouth who have realistic promotion aspirations and a proper
fanbase so the Dubliner will be dealing with the regular scrutiny that was absent in a closed doors season at Rochdale.

Parrott has gone to MK Dons – for whatever reason his loans all seem to be within a reasonable distance of London – and their positive attacking style should suit him.

They are looking for a new manager after the exit of Russell Martin but Parrott was in the plans regardless. Daryl Horgan won’t want to hang around in League One for too long and the key to that is bringing his Irish performance level to his Wycombe displays.

Another goalscoring season for Anthony Scully at Lincoln will raise his profile too, a club that also houses the much talked about Swords teenager Seán Roughan.