Could all three relegated teams be promoted straight back to the Premier League?

Relegation from the Premier League can often lead to a lengthy rebuilding process for clubs, and for some it can be many years before they enjoy the delights of top-flight football again. But for other clubs, relegation proves to be nothing more than a blip, and after one season in the Championship, they’re back in the top tier once again as if it never happened.

This season, it looks as though all three of the sides relegated from the Premier League last season have a chance of earning promotion straight back. After the conclusion of gameweek 17 in the Championship, Norwich City, Bournemouth, and Watford made up the top three in the table. Interestingly, discussions around crypto gambling have also mentioned these teams, noting how fans are placing bets on their potential promotion. Although it must be said that things are incredibly tight in the top half, and the latest Championship odds indicate that things are very unpredictable.

There was always a debate surrounding which of the three teams would find it most difficult to adapt to life back in the Championship. For Norwich, their most recent stay in the Premier League lasted just a solitary season, so it’s no real surprise that they have been in good form this season. Not much has changed for the Canaries, with Daniel Farke still in charge and the core group of players still together.

For Bournemouth and Watford though, there were more question marks. The two teams had each spent five successive seasons in the top flight, having gained promotion together in the 2014-15 season. That kind of longer spell in the Premier League can make it more difficult to adapt when the club drops down a league again, as squads and managers can change, and rebuilding projects often take place.

But for these two, despite both boasting new managers this season, they have coped well with the drop in level. Much of Bournemouth and Watford’s respective squads have remained intact, and they’ve done well to keep in touch with the other clubs vying for promotion.

It may well be that playing behind closed doors has helped the relegated teams to find their footing easily in the division, as there hasn’t been the raucous atmosphere and rudimentary nature of Championship grounds to contend with for the sides so used to the plush surroundings of many Premier League stadiums. Players can get a culture shock when they drop down into such an intensely competitive division like the Championship, but both Bournemouth and Watford have handled the transition well.

If each of Norwich, Bournemouth and Watford were to win promotion back to the top flight, it would be the first time in Premier League history that such an event has occurred, and that proves how difficult it is to adapt to the Championship and experience instant success. There have been a few occasions where two of the relegated teams have been promoted straight back, but never all three.

There is still a long way to go in this Championship season, and there will no doubt be plenty of thrills and spills along the way. It could be that one or more of the relegated Premier League teams falls away as the season goes on, and such is the competitive nature of the division, it could also prove that none of them end up back in the top flight for the 2021-22 season.