Footy Accumulators EFL Specials Ahead of the 2023/24 Season

Leicester City are the favourites to win the Championship this season at odds of 3/1 having added the likes of Conor Coady, Harry Winks, Stephy Mavididi, Mads Hermansen and Callum Doyle to what is already a strong squad that contains the likes of Ricardo Pereira, Wilfried Ndidi, Jamie Vardy and more.

Meanwhile, Leeds are second favourites to win the division at 5/1 having also retained a large part of their squad from last season’s Premier League campaign. Daniel Farke’s side will likely be looking to recruit some more signings on top of the likes of Karl Darlow and Ethan Ampadu.

Stockport and Wrexham are expected to be in the hunt for automatic promotion from League Two this season. The former were beaten play-off finalists last campaign following a fourth-place finish, but, have recruited well this summer, adding the likes of Nick Powell, Ibou Touray, Jordan Smith, Jayden Richardson and Louie Barry to their squad.

Wrexham managed to accumulate 111 points in the National League during the 2022/23 campaign. Phil Parkinson’s side are expected to challenge at the top of League Two due to the overall quality of the squad that they earned promotion with.

Ellis Simms - Coventry (4 Places)

Ex-Everton striker Ellis Simms is looking to fill Viktor Gyokeres’ shoes at Coventry City in the 2023/24 season following the Sweden international’s move to Sporting Lisbon in the summer.

Simms impressed during his last spell in the Championship at Sunderland, as the 22-year-old managed to score seven goals in 17 matches for the Black Cats during 2022/23. On top of this, the Oldham-born striker also scored a memorable late equaliser for Everton against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last season.

Macauley Langstaff - Notts County (4 Places)

Notts County striker Macauley Langstaff will be hoping to repeat his National League heroics for the Magpies, having scored 42 goals in 47 matches. Interestingly, Langstaff will be partnered alongside ex-Sheffield United forward David McGoldrick for the upcoming campaign in what could be the most deadly strike pairing in League Two.

Will Grigg - Chesterfield (4 Places)

Northern Ireland striker Will Grigg made a surprise move to National League side Chesterfield this summer, seeing him re-unite with ex-Wigan Athletic boss Paul Cook.

Chesterfield are one of the pre-season favourites to win the National League this season and will be banking on Grigg finding the form he showed at Wigan where memorably scored 26 goals across all competitions for the Latics in the 2017/18 season, which included an FA Cup winner over Manchester City.

The 32-year-old has a good League One record, having scored 116 goals in 388 appearances. This will be the first time that Grigg has played at a level lower than England’s third-tier.

Huddersfield

Last season, Huddersfield managed to survive relegation to League One by nine points, although this would’ve been significantly closer had 22nd-placed Reading not received a six-point reduction following breaches of the profit and sustainability rules.

The Terriers have seen the likes of Duane Holmes, Rolando Aarons, Florian Kamberi, Tomas Vaclik and more leave the club, while only bringing in Tom Edwards (on loan from Stoke) and Chris Maxwell on a free transfer. Considering their troubles last season, Huddersfield’s lack of recruitment could pose a danger to their Championship status.

Exeter City

Exeter City finished 14th in League One last season, 11 points clear of the drop zone. However, like Huddersfield, their recruitment has been unconvincing as far, having seen key players such as Jamal Blackman, Jack Sparkes, Jake Caprice, Jevani Brown, Kevin McDonald, Archie Collins and Josh Key depart from St James’ Park.

City have opted for a youthful approach as they have promoted several academy players while adding Jack Aitchison, Zak Jules, Tom Carroll, Viljami Sinisalo (loan), Ryan Trevitt (loan) and Dion Rankine (loan) to their roster.

Crawley Town

Crawley Town finished 22nd in League Two last season, just three points above the drop zone. This doesn’t bode well for the 2023/24 campaign, especially when taking into consideration the strength of the newly-promoted sides in Wrexham and Notts County.

The Red Devils have seen several key players leave the club this summer, with the likes of Ashley Nadesan, Brandon Mason, Anthony Grant, Jordan Mutch, James Tilley, Tony Craig, Kwesi Appiah, Aramide Oteh and Jake Hessenthaler all heading for the exit door. So far, current manager Scott Lindsey has won just six of his 22 matches at the helm.

Leeds United and Leicester City are the two favourites for promotion from the Championship during the 2023/24 season, perhaps due to the quality of their squads, as well as the fact that Southampton were so poor during last season’s Premier League.

The Saints will be expected to challenge for the top two places having also retained a significant amount of their squad, while the likes of Sunderland will be keen to impress in the Championship once again, following their play-off semi-final appearance last time out after a sixth-place finish. The Black Cats have notably added the likes of Jobe Bellingham and Bradley Dack to their roster.

Plymouth are newly-promoted to the division following a 13-year absence. Argyle lost their second top scorer from last season, Nial Ennis on a free transfer to Blackburn Rovers and are yet to replace him or make any improvements to their attack, having made Morgan Whittaker’s move from Swansea permanent, while making a series of defensive additions.

• Latest match predictions
• Football tips
• Football accumulator tips
• Football bet of the day