EPL Yo-Yo: How the Promoted Teams Can Avoid Relegation

Being promoted to the Premiership is the holy grail for second-tier football teams in England—but in many cases the dream turns out to be an utter nightmare.

In the past five seasons, at least one (and usually two) of the three promoted teams have gone straight back down.

This season, Derby County, Sunderland, and Birmingham City are the upstarts—and so far Derby have looked to be by far the least-equipped to succeed.

Derby County

After conceding 17 goals in the opening quarter of the season, Derby need to get better if they're to last more than a year in the Premiership.

At the other end of the park, Derby have only managed five goals—all at home. They remain the only side in the league not to register a goal or a point on the road, despite spending over 9m € on strikers Rob Earnshaw and Kenny Miller.

Derby will hope that the return of midfield prodigy Giles Barnes will help them establish some sort of form over the coming weeks. At present, they lie just two points out of 17th place, and their next game against Fulham is shaping up to be a must-win.

Funds have been promised in January to buy new players, but Billy Davies and his team have a long way to go before then.

My Prediction: Relegation.

I don't think Derby will get enough points between now and the New Year to give themselves a chance of staying up, regardless of who they buy in January.

Birmingham City

Steve Bruce's men are 13th place in the table after the opening nine games.

They may not be lighting up the league, but at least they've managed to grind out points.

The early season form of Cameron Jerome has been a real plus, with his three goals helping Birmingham to victory over Derby in August.

One advantage for Birmingham is their depth on attack: McSheffrey, Kapo, Forssell, Jerome, Vine, and O'Connor have all vied for starting places, though Vine has now left on a short-term loan deal.

An impending takeover by Carson Yeung could complicate matters for Birmingham, with rumours of a new manager swirling around the team.

An away match against Man City will be a demanding one, given City's recent form—but decent play at home could give Birmingham a real chance to avoid relegation.

My Prediction: Safety.

Birmingham's firepower will give them an edge over teams like Wigan and Reading. Look for them to stay up.

Sunderland

Roy Keane's ability to turn Sunderland from Championship stragglers to league winners in the space of a few months had some pundits proclaiming the Black Cats to be dark horse contenders for a European spot.

Not so thus far.

Eight points in nine fixtures shows that Sunderland are capable of picking up points at home, but they've struggled away from Wearside.

Big-money deals for Craig Gordon, Paul McShane, and Michael Chopra raised some eyebrows, but Keane clearly has faith in his signings.

Though the loss of Dean Whitehead was a blow, Etuhu, Miller, and Yorke have filled the midfield fairly well so far.

Sunderland's next game is away to West Ham, who are only two points above them at the moment. Keane knows his side need to keep ticking off points to avoid the relegation zone.

The best thing Sunderland have going for them may be the fact that Keane will certainly have one or two tricks up his sleeve before the end of the year—if he learned anything from Alex Ferguson, that is.

My Prediction: Relegation, just.

Sunderland will be competitive, but unless they buy a couple more players in January, I think their inexperience will doom them.