Picking a Championship XI Capable of Shining in the Premier League
The highly competitive Football League Championship has plenty of players who impress on a weekly basis, but who looks capable of shining in the Premier League? In this slideshow we take a look at a best XI.
We do not include those who are on loan from other clubs, such as Middlesbrough's Patrick Bamford (Chelsea) and Watford's Matej Vydra (Udinese), but we do include some names who have experienced life in the top flight before—like Middlesbrough's Grant Leadbitter and Sheffield Wednesday's Keiren Westwood.
With so many players to choose from, we also bring you a list of honourable mentions. If there is anyone you feel deserves to be included, let us know below.
Honourable Mentions
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Players on Loan:
- Patrick Bamford, Middlesbrough (on loan from Chelsea)
- Kenneth Omeruo, Middlesbrough (on loan from Chelsea)
- Tomas Kalas, Middlesbrough (on loan from Chelsea)
- Alex Pritchard, Brentford (on loan from Tottenham Hotspur)
- Matej Vydra, Watford (on loan from Udinese)
Other Notable Mentions (in no particular order):
- Harry Arter, AFC Bournemouth
- Nathan Redmond, Norwich City
- Daniel Ayala, Middlesbrough
- Ross McCormack, Fulham
- Michail Antonio, Nottingham Forest
- Richard Keogh, Derby County
- James Tarkowski, Brentford
- Daryl Murphy, Ipswich Town
- Odion Ighalo, Watford
- Jordan Rhodes, Blackburn Rovers
- Chris Martin, Derby County
- Wes Hoolahan, Norwich City
- Rudy Gestede, Blackburn Rovers
- Dimitrios Konstantopoulos, Middlesbrough
- Benik Afobe, Wolverhampton Wanderers
- Tyrone Mings, Ipswich Town
- Bruno Ecuele Manga, Cardiff City
- Tom Lees, Sheffield Wednesday
- Britt Assombalonga, Nottingham Forest
GK: Keiren Westwood, Sheffield Wednesday
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Released by Sunderland at the end of the 2013/14 Premier League campaign, Keiren Westwood has been plying his trade in the Championship with Sheffield Wednesday this season.
Although Stuart Gray's side are still a long, long way from returning to the top flight, Westwood has been an outstanding performer in goal for the Owls.
In 14th place and with one game to go, Wednesday have conceded 48 goals all season. Only three teams, Bournemouth, Middlesbrough and Norwich City—currently in second, third and fourth place, respectively—have let in less.
Per Squawka, the former Manchester City, Carlisle United and Coventry City stopper has kept 17 clean sheets and can boast an average claim success rate of 98 percent. If Westwood can keep a clean sheet in Wednesday's final game of the season, he will break the club's existing record of 17, which has stood since 1978/79.
At 30, he still has a good few years ahead of him, if he can remain injury free. In January, rumours of a return to the Premier League had started to swirl, with Liverpool and Manchester City both linked with his name, as reported by Steve Doohan in the Mirror.
Former Tottenham Hotspur man Heurelho Gomes has impressed for Watford in 2014/15 and Dimitrios Konstantopoulos has also been in good form for Boro, yet Westwood is the 'keeper who most looks likely to shine were he to return to England's premier division.
LB: George Friend, Middlesbrough
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Good going forward, solid defensively—a huge part of Middlesbrough's current success is down to George Friend
The 27-year-old came to the Riverside Stadium in 2012 from Doncaster Rovers. A serial loanee when at Exeter City and Wolverhampton Wanderers, he has a lengthy list of clubs and plenty of experience to his name.
One of many players to have flourished under the tutelage of manager Aitor Karanka, Friend is reportedly a target for a number of clubs, including Queens Park Rangers and Crystal Palace.
In 2014, Sky Sports discussed his appeal: "The versatile defender, who can play centre-back or left-back, is regarded as one of the best defenders outside the Premier League and was named Middlesbrough's Player of the Season last term."
A consistent performer who is adored by the Boro support, Friend is part of a defence that has kept 20 clean sheets and conceded the least goals in the Championship this term, with 37.
CB: Lewis Dunk, Brighton and Hove Albion
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In 20th place, Brighton and Hove Albion are at the wrong end of the Championship table, yet the Seagulls can boast one of the brightest young central defenders in the division in Lewis Dunk.
The Brighton-born 23-year-old, who has already played more than 100 games in blue and white, is his side's current top scorer with seven strikes (in all competitions).
Brighton have conceded 54 goals this season, which gives them the second-best defence in the bottom half of the table (they are bettered only by Sheffield Wednesday, with 48). This is down in no small part to Dunk's 6'4" presence at the back.
The summer transfer window may be months away but already there seems to be interest linking Dunk with a move away from Falmer Stadium, with West Ham United, West Bromwich Albion and Everton all said to be keen, according to Adrian Kajumba in the Mirror.
Daniel Ayala would also have been in with a shout in this position, had the Middlesbrough defender not been forced onto the sidelines for large parts of 2014/15.
CB: Christophe Berra, Ipswich Town
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Scotland international Christophe Berra has been a rock in central defence for Ipswich Town since his move from Wolverhampton Wanderers in summer 2013.
The 30-year-old centre-back has already clocked up 96 appearances in the Premier League during his time at Molineux.
He notched five goals in his first season with the Tractor Boys—the joint third-highest player at the club in 2013/14, with manager Mick McCarthy branding him the "best centre-half in the Championship," as seen on Sky Sports.
He has scored six goals this season, most notably Ipswich's 83rd-minute winner in a 3-2 victory against Blackpool on April 11, which helped to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Berra has played every minute in all-but-one fixture for Ipswich this season, and in those 44 starts, he has has won 52 tackles, with a success rate of 55 percent. He has made 123 interceptions, 523 clearances and 54 blocks, per Squawka.
Berra also scored his first international goal since 2012 in a recent international friendly against Northern Ireland.
Derby County captain Richard Keogh was a close contender to make it into the list, but Berra's top-flight experience puts him slightly ahead of the 28-year-old.
RB: Simon Francis, AFC Bournemouth
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He has never played in the Premier League, but AFC Bournemouth right-back Simon Francis has a wealth of experience across the Championship and Leagues One and Two.
A consistent performer who missed only 45 minutes of league football in 2013/14, the 30-year-old has chalked up more than 170 appearances for the Cherries, who are currently one point from top spot in the Championship with one game to go.
Francis' overlapping runs with Matt Ritchie (who appears elsewhere in this slideshow) are key and have been responsible for much of Bournemouth's attacking play this season. He has created 71 chances for his team this term, as well as registering eight assists and scoring one goal.
WhoScored.com credits Francis as being very strong in the air and in tackling, with no significant weaknesses to his game.
LW: Bakary Sako, Wolverhampton Wanderers
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Bakary Sako swapped Saint-Etienne for Wolverhampton Wanderers in summer 2012, racking up nine goals and 11 assists in 37 Championship appearances during his first season at Molineux.
In 2013/14, the winger proved that his form was not a one-off—adding 15 assists and 12 goals to his account as Wolves battled to secure promotion from League One at the first time of asking.
This term, the Mali international has continued to impress for Kenny Jackett's side, and he is currently enjoying his highest-scoring season yet on English soil—with 14 goals, he is his side's second-highest top scorer behind Benik Afobe with 15.
Excellent at set pieces and an incredible dribbler, Sako has created 58 chances this season, according to Squawka.
It's also worth pointing out that he can do this.
Out of contract in June, the 27-year-old will be attracting many admiring glances in the coming months.
"To some degree, we have done well to keep him as long as we have. But I've been delighted with his attitude. It's good to have goals coming from a different source," Jackett told BBC Sport in February.
CM: Grant Leadbitter, Middlesbrough
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Grant Leadbitter already has 66 Premier League games under his belt, from his time with hometown club Sunderland
Now impressing for Middlesbrough, the 29-year-old is one of many players at the Riverside Stadium who has been improved by the 2013 arrival of manager Aitor Karanka, and he looks like he would transition well into the top flight should Boro win promotion.
Leadbitter is currently enjoying his most successful scoring season to date, with 12 goals and eight assists (in all competitions).
Plus, as Karanka's team captain when Jonathan Woodgate is not available—which, as we know, is a lot—he is one of the most important parts of the Boro lineup.
CM: Will Hughes, Derby County
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Last season's Football League Young Player of the Year, Derby County's Will Hughes has already attracted a good amount of interest from clubs in the Premier League.
Should he achieve promotion via the playoffs or make a summer switch, chances are the 20-year-old will make an impact in England's top flight.
In the face of mounting speculation, the England under-21 international opted to extend his contract at Pride Park in July, as seen on BBC Sport.
Playing week in, week out, he has already racked up over 100 games in central midfield for the Rams and, in late 2013, early rumours touting him as Liverpool's next Steven Gerrard were already being tentatively made, per Alan Nixon of the Mirror.
Hughes has registered six assists and two goals for Steve McClaren's promotion-chasing side this term and has created 46 chances for his team, per Squawka.
RM: Matt Ritchie, AFC Bournemouth
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Matt Ritchie has been outstanding for Bournemouth this season, and the 25-year-old looks like he would be a hit in the Premier League.
Ritchie has featured in every league game in 2014/15, and he currently leads the Championship assists charts with 17—a big leap from last season's two. He has also weighed in with 13 of the 95 goals that his side have scored so far this term and has created 95 chances for the Cherries, according to Squawka.
The former Portsmouth and Swindon Town man was called up for the first time to represent Scotland in March, as seen on BBC Sport. He also topped FourFourTwo's Football League Top 50 this year and has sealed promotion into the top flight.
In his last two outings for Eddie Howe's side, Ritchie has notched two crucial goals and two assists in a draw against Sheffield Wednesday and a win against Bolton Wanderers. As reported by Stuart Fraser in the Daily Mail, "no player in the top four tiers of English league football has had a hand in more goals this season."
It's fair to say that it's been a good campaign for Ritchie.
CF: Troy Deeney, Watford
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Troy Deeney was an easy choice for this slideshow.
The 26-year-old has scored 21 goals in 41 Championship appearances this term, has 10 assists to his name and has been part of a Watford front line—in addition to Odion Ighalo, Matej Vydra and Fernando Forestieri—that has plundered 90 goals in 2014/15.
This is the third season in a row that Deeney has scored 20 or more goals for the Hornets, and he was recently named Championship Player of the Month in March, as seen on the Football League's website, and voted into the PFA Championship Team of the Year, per BBC Sport.
In January, the Watford club captain was linked to West Bromwich Albion and Swansea City, as reported by Sami Mokbel in the Daily Mail.
Slavisa Jokanovic's side have already wrapped up promotion to the Premier League, where you can expect Deeney to be a force next season.
CF: Callum Wilson, AFC Bournemouth
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It's hard to believe that this is Callum Wilson's first full season playing Championship football, yet the 23-year-old has set the division alight with his 20 (and counting...) league goals for Bournemouth.
Last term, the striker netted 21 League One strikes for Coventry City, and Wilson has featured in all-but-one game for Eddie Howe's team in 2014/15, following his summer switch to Dean Court.
The Cherries have provided us with one of the biggest and most surprising success stories of the current campaign, and the England under-21 international has played a huge role in their 95 goals and the lofty position they currently occupy in the table.
Already linked with Chelsea, according to the Express' Ben Jefferson, don't be too shocked to see Wilson terrorising opposing defenders in the Premier League in 2015/16.
All player stats come from ESPNFC.com and Transfermarkt.com, unless linked or stated otherwise.
