Record £15.5m signing has fired Swansea to second in the Championship after going 1,022 days without a goal for the clubThirty-eight days ago Borja Bastón replaced Oli McBurnie in the final throes of Swansea’s third pre-season friendly. It was there at St James Park in Exeter where the Spaniard’s improbable resurrection began in earnest, with his return to the first-team fold after an 805-day hiatus paving the way for an extraordinary rebirth that has led to the striker firing Swansea to second in the Championship and topping the goalscoring charts, with five goals in five games. In weeks Borja has gone from a lesser-spotted misfit to something of an undroppable force.A £15.5m club-record signing three years ago, Borja proved a...
The Croatian midfielder, on loan from Benfica, on his family’s road trip with West Brom fans and his love of Harry PotterNot for the first time Filip Krovinovic is smiling. It is bucketing down at West Bromwich Albion’s training base but after making light of the British climate and highlighting Luka Modric as his idol, the Croatian playmaker, whom Slaven Bilic made his first signing this summer, is describing how his older brother, Tomislav, and his family also became an instant hit with fans after joining them on a supporters’ coach for the opening-day win at Nottingham Forest.“They loved it,” Krovinovic says. “They liked the atmosphere on the bus. They took some beers and some fans took a picture with...
Despite a small squad and a handful of new recruits Leeds’s performance at Bristol City put down a markerLeeds’s season is 90 minutes old but they could not have made a more convincing start than a 3-1 win at Bristol City. The caveat is that blazing starts are nothing new under Marcelo Bielsa and he acknowledged that this is ground zero in terms of achieving the Premier League return he stuck around to realise. The wry smile and sheepish chuckle that greeted a question asking if his team’s suffocating performance in platinum and pink surpassed his expectations said as much. “I know perfectly well that this is a long season and all of the things that happen at the start...
Jack Grealish, who deserves a bigger stage, leads the talent ready to take the step up to the highest levelAs a fascinating Championship season draws to a close we select 10 players who could thrive in the Premier League next season. We have not included players who have been on loan from Premier League clubs this season, such as Harry Wilson and Tammy Abraham, and neither have we picked players from the two automatically promoted teams (Norwich and Sheffield United) as those players are set to play in the top division next season anyway. Related: Pleasure of promotion is potent despite likelihood of pain to follow | Paul Wilson Continue reading...
Suspension of disbelief will be necessary as fans of Norwich, Sheffield United and either Aston Villa or Derby contemplate Premier League life. Luckily football supporters are good at thatIt was a privilege to be at Elland Road for the play-off second leg between Leeds and Derby, not only because it was one of the most grippingly exciting Championship games of the season but because it was a throwback to a rawness and immediacy that is gradually disappearing from football at the top level.Walking in to the ground late along with hundreds of others affected by an M62 closure in late afternoon, it was impossible not to be struck by the raucousness and sheer volume that could be created by 36,000...