Johnny Phillips: Tough call, but I can’t see Leeds falling apart again

So what has this season got in store for us?

Picking a title winner is a mug’s game but here’s a few pointers for stories worth following throughout the division.

Certainly, relegated clubs are finding it easier to bounce back as Leicester and Southampton demonstrated.

Sheffield United aren’t exactly in the same strength due to a complete rebuild to an already struggling squad in terms of quality but their recruitment has been about good players for this level with experience of the Championship.

Kieffer Moore is a class act and should be amongst the goals. And a player of Gustavo Hamer’s quality should light up Bramall Lane in this division.

Scott Parker has a bloated squad to manage at Burnley and it will be difficult to repeat his achievements at Fulham and Bournemouth.

That said, of the 15 clubs relegated between 2018/19 and 2022/23 from the Premier League, seven have come straight back up so the sheer depth of player quality Parker has at his disposal might just be enough to make a difference.

Meanwhile, Rob Edwards’ Luton Town should be in great shape for a promotion push if they can keep hold of their strikers Carlton Morris and Elijah Adebayo, who link up really well.

Elsewhere, Martí Cifuentes has built a Queens Park Rangers team that is very hard to break down. It’s a remarkable turnaround from the tough times under Gareth Ainsworth when the team looked shorn of confidence.

The balance in attack isn’t quite there yet, though, and that looks likely to hold them back from competing towards the top-six.

I’m not sure Plymouth Argyle have picked the right man to lead them to success.

Wayne Rooney struggled badly at Birmingham City last season where he seemed to flounder without his former assistant Liam Rosenior.

Rooney’s record in the Championship is just one win in five without Rosenior by his side. This is surely a make or break job for the former England striker who desperately needs success if he is to stay in the dugout for any length of time.

West Bromwich Albion are among several clubs in a state of flux in terms of recruitment having lost some key figures in Cedric Kipre, Okay Yokuslu, Brandon Thomas-Asante and Conor Townsend.

Carlos Coberan does remain, though, and we should not forget the impressive way he turned Albion around from the flagging side that he inherited.

But away from home Albion struggled last season, winning just two of their last 13 away games, with 14 teams picking up more points away from home last season than the Baggies despite a top-six finish.

Corberan needs to address that if they are to succeed this time around.

I’m a big fan of John Mousinho’s work and Portsmouth’s style of play could well suit the Championship.

They like to press but can switch to a counter-attacking style when it suits. That flexibility served them well away from home last season where they took 47 points, the most of any EFL team.

Finally, let’s turn to Leeds United, the biggest club in the Championship once again.

Daniel Farke is preparing for his second season in charge at Elland Road, but can he build on the success of last season’s 90 points and get the Whites over the line to secure a return to the Premier League?

They are certainly better prepared than they were 12 months ago despite losing two key players in Archie Gray and Crysencio Summerville, and their pre-season form, even taken with a pinch of salt, suggests they should hit the ground running as opposed to last season’s slow start.

Leeds had one of the best defensive records in the Championship last season, so the permanent signing of Joe Rodon suggests they will be solid and hard to break down again.

In Joe Rothwell from Bournemouth and Jayden Bogle from Sheffield United, they have made two really solid acquisitions. With more players expected through the door at Elland Road it is hard to look past Farke’s men for a title winner.

Yet, as soon as a ball is kicked in this most competitive of divisions, the predictions on paper could be turned on their head. Take nothing for granted in the Championship.