One of them delivered an underdog story for the ages, winning the title at preseason odds of 5,000-1 in 2016.
Another was a mainstay in the league for 11 years on the back of its famous conveyor belt of young talent.
The other’s back story in England’s top division is from pretty much a generation ago but isn’t to be sniffed at — from back-to-back runners-up finishes in the 1980s to nearly qualifying for the Champions League in 2001.
Leicester, Southampton and Ipswich — whose most famous fan is pop star Ed Sheeran — are all big names in their own right as they return to the Premier League following promotion from the Championship.
All arrive with an attacking, easy-on-the-eye style of play that has become the norm these days.
And all will no doubt have their challenges this season. Just like the three promoted teams in the Premier League last year — Burnley, Luton and Sheffield United — who all wound up getting relegated after just one season.
Here’s a look at the latest promoted clubs:
LEICESTER
The club from central England — the author of that famous Premier League title triumph eight years ago — has had a turbulent summer, having lost the manager who led the team to promotion as winner of the Championship. Enzo Maresca joined Chelsea in June and has been replaced at Leicester by Steve Cooper, who was fired by Nottingham Forest in December. Leicester also could soon be handed a points deduction after becoming the latest team to fall foul of the Premier League’s financial rules, dating to the club’s time in the top division in the three years up to and including the 2022-23 season. Leicester has appealed against its charge — if that fails, a points deduction could be applied during the season. Some things don’t change, though. The team returns to the Premier League with Jamie Vardy, the former England striker now aged 37, still its chief goal scorer. Vardy might miss the start of the season — which for Leicester is on Monday at home to Tottenham — because of injury.
SOUTHAMPTON
Southampton was in the Premier League from 2012-2023, a period notable for the club churning out a glut of talented academy players who followed in the footsteps of the likes of Gareth Bale and Theo Walcott. The club’s ability to buy cheap and sell big waned, leading to relegation, but the team was reinvented in the Championship as a heavily possession-based side under Russell Martin, who guided Southampton back to the Premier League via the playoffs to defy preseason expectations. The Saints have been bolstered by the signing of Chile striker Ben Brereton Diaz and the return of experienced midfielder Adam Lallana, who left in 2014 and has since played for Liverpool and Brighton. Martin’s team will be overmatched but that won’t stop Southampton sticking to its style of play, even if it means an immediate return to the Championship after a lucrative year in the top flight.
IPSWICH
Expect plenty of sightings of Sheeran at Ipswich’s Portman Road ground for the club’s first season in the Premier League since 2002. The British pop star is Ipswich’s most famous fan and has sponsored the team’s jerseys for the past three seasons. Indeed, he is an honorary member of the squad, with the No. 17 shirt reserved for him. On the field, Ipswich – nicknamed the “Tractor Boys” in a nod to the region’s rural location — will start among the likely relegation candidates but should be one of the most fun teams to watch after back-to-back promotions which have put them way ahead of schedule under their American owners in the investment group Gamechanger 20. Ipswich has been revitalized since Kieran McKenna became manager in December 2021 with the team in 12th place in the third tier — a level it hadn’t previously been since 1957. McKenna is former Northern Ireland youth-team player who retired early because of injuries and preaches expansive, attacking football as a coach. He used to be part of Manchester United’s coaching team.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
