With the full 2023/24 domestic season poised to start this week, in this article I have spoken to fans of West Midland clubs; Aston Villa, Wolverhampton Wanderers, West Bromwich Albion, Birmingham City and Walsall to gauge their outlooks on their teams seasons and their predictions.
Aston Villa
Aston Villa started the season with optimism last season with Steven Gerrard at the helm and the financial backing of the Villa owners. However, a dismal start to the season with consistent poor performances saw Villa flirt with relegation and sit 3 points above the bottom three. After a 3-0 defeat away to Fulham, Gerrard was sacked.
Unai Emery came to the helm and turned Villa into Europe chasers. Revitalising key players like Ollie Watkins who fired in 15 goals and 6 assists, Jacob Ramsey who showed tactical flexibility, Emiliano Martinez who steadied the ship and conceded fewer goals and John McGinn with invaluable leadership qualities, helped Villa reach the Europa Conference League and their first European outing for the first time in 13 years.
Villa fan Patrick:
I'm quite excited about Villa this season! Being in the Conference League is a good opportunity for us to win a European trophy. We've signed Pau Torres from Villareal who's worked with Emery before, Moussa Diaby from Leverkusen who's going to give us attacking depth and quality which we lacked with Bailey's injury issues and Youri Tielemans will show proven Premier League quality after leaving Leicester on a free. We've done some good business! Ollie Watkins scoring 15 goals in the Premier League last season, and being on fire in pre-season I'm excited.
Teams like Brighton and Newcastle coming off of good seasons and qualifying for Europe as well last season and investing well shows the quality growing in the league and the gap between the 'Big 6' shrinking.
The need for depth and fresh legs is vital, especially with a packed fixture schedule. I think we can finish 6th in the Premier League if we keep playing how we've been playing but I'm dreaming of a European trophy! I think that's the aim at Villa this season.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
A season in which they finished 13th, sacked manager Bruno Lage in October after being in the relegation zone and awful form on the road in the Premier League, last season is a season to forget for the Molineux faithful. Additionally, losing star man Ruben Neves to the riches of Saudi Arabia and Al-Hilal, Wolves have a tough assignment on their hand to rebuild their squad with players like Jimenez joining Fulham, Joao Moutinho leaving, Adama Traore's future in the air and Conor Coady joining relegated Leicester. Their has been clashes with the fans and Chinese ownership group FOSUN over the lack of investment in the summer window as the issue of squad depth quite frankly needs to be addressed if they wish to avoid flirting with relegation again this season.
Wolves fan Ross:
West Bromwich Albion
From sitting rock bottom of the Championship to missing out on the Play-offs by a point, Carlos Corberan completely revitalised the Baggies after a horrible start to the season in which the aim of reaching the Premier League went up in smoke. The relationship between the fans and the board was quickly deteriorating prior to Corberan's appointment with the enabling of Steve Bruce staying at the club for 'too long' by CEO Ron Gourlay's own admission. A change in spirit with new faces like Jed Wallace, Okay Yokuslu reigniting his career and Dara O'Shea solidifying his reputation as one of the top young centre backs in the country pushed Albion to the brink of the Play-offs. For Albion, the plan should be to invest in the squad again, get players back to full fitness after struggling with long-term injuries to key players like Daryl Dike and trying to go one step further and reach the play-offs and the Premier League.
West Brom fan Deko:
Birmingham City
Another season of mid table mediocrity loomed for the Blues as they finished 17th and secured Championship status for amother season following a 1-0 win over Millwall. John Eustace will be at the helm for the start of this Championship which is a rarity at Birmingham City and the seemingly spinning door of managerial appointments. A club which has now been taken over by new ownership and new ideas. Also American sports icon and NFL great Tom Brady gaining a minority ownership of the club, there is a sense of stability, increased chance of investment and willingness to progress at St Andrews.
Blues fan Adam:
Walsall
A season full of promise ended in mid-table mediocrity for the Saddlers following a poor run of form after the start of the new year. A long run of draws after Christmas and goals drying up after Danny Johnson returned back to parent club Mansfield Town after scoring 15 in the league dwindled Walsall's play-off hopes. Walsall boss Michael Flynn got sacked after a tough season with few positives. However, finishing 16th and solidifying League Two status can be seen as a positive especially with the gap in the football pyramid extending. Additionally, with the promotion of Hollywood superstar backed Wrexham and Notts County, competing financially will be a challenge.
Walsall fan Kameron:
League 2 this season looks a difficult one to get out of for teams like Walsall when you consider some of the money in the league with Wrexham, Notts County, Stockport, and Gillingham. However, I think it can be an enjoyable one for us: we have a new, young manager and a very exciting squad.
We have made a lot of progress in the transfer window, signing our top scorer from last season, Danny Johnson, on a permanent deal as well as picking up a few top quality players from rival teams. I think we can probably add 1 or 2 more in defensive areas to finish the window.
In terms of a prediction, I think finishing around 10th to 12th would be considered a decent season for ourselves and then we can build on that in 24/25 when the league should, hypothetically, be easier to get out of.
Comments