Aston Villa will return to the Premier League after a three year absence

Aston Villa season preview: How have Championship play-off winners done in first Premier League season?

Football

Wed July 31, 2019 · 7y ago

Aston Villa are the latest side to take on the Premier League after winning the Sky Bet Championship play-offs, but history is against them as only four of the last ten teams have avoided relegation.

Villa ended their three-year Premier League hiatus by beating Derby at Wembley in May, and they've pushed the boat out in the transfer window by splashing out over £100m on new recruits.

Fulham famously made a similar outlay last season but ended up going straight back down, but Dean Smith hopes his Villa side can do a lot better with their investment this time around.

There are instances of play-off winners succeeding, with three of the last ten finishing 11th or higher, but 60% have gone right back down.

Here PA Sport looks back at the last ten play-off winners have done in the Premier League...

2009 - Burnley

League position next season: 18th (relegated).

Despite a famous 1-0 win over defending champions Manchester United early on in the season, Burnley were relegated after local rivals Bolton convinced Clarets manager Owen Coyle to join them in January. Brian Laws took over and was unable to save the Turf Moor outfit from immediate relegation.

2010 - Blackpool

League position next season: 19th (relegated).

Blackpool made it to 39 points but were still relegated. Their tally would have made it to joint-14th the season before but, despite the best efforts of Ian Holloway and star player Charlie Adam, they were unable to stave off relegation to the Championship.

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2011 - Swansea

League position next season: 11th.

Brendan Rodgers guided Swansea to an impressive mid-table finish in the 2011-12 season. Playing an expansive style of football with players like on-loan midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson and Danny Graham, the Swans achieved notable home wins against Arsenal and eventual champions Manchester City.

2012 - West Ham

League position next season: 10th.

After Roberto Vaz Te's late winner against Blackpool in the play-off final, West Ham went on to achieve a mid-table finish under Sam Allardyce. With 11 clean sheets during the season the Hammers were a strong defensive unit, with just enough threat up top to comfortably survive in the Premier League.

2013 - Crystal Palace

League position next season: 11th.

Crystal Palace finished mid-table under the dependable Tony Pulis. Julian Speroni kept 12 clean sheets and they were involved in one of the most dramatic Premier League games of all time when they came from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 with title-chasing Liverpool.

2014 - QPR

League position next season: 20th (relegated).

This was QPR's second relegation from the top-flight in three years. Manager Harry Redknapp resigned for health reasons in February 2015, and QPR's selection of expensive signings could only see them finish with 30 points and end up at the foot of the table.

2015 - Norwich

League position next season: 19th (relegated).

After a fairly comfortable journey through the play-offs, Norwich struggled in the Premier League, conceding 67 goals during their campaign. Eventually the Canaries finished five points from safety but did cause a shock when they beat Manchester United 2-1 away from home.

2016 - Hull

League position next season: 18th (relegated).

Steve Bruce's departure just weeks after beating Sheffield Wednesday in the play-off final was a sign of things to come at Hull. Although there were results like their 2-0 win over Liverpool, they conceded a whopping 80 goals during the season - including a 7-1 defeat at home against Spurs.

2017 - Huddersfield

League position next season: 16th

In a team with little star power, Huddersfield did the unlikely and survived a full season under the tutelage of David Wagner. Their strong performances saw Wagner pick up the August manager of the month award and his team eventually finished four points ahead of Swansea in the relegation places.

2018 - Fulham

League position next season: 19th (relegated).

Fulham's relegation fears were confirmed when they lost 4-1 to Watford in April. With 81 goals conceded and two managers - Slavisa Jokanovic and Claudio Ranieri - sacked during the season, relegation was a formality.

Our big season guide for the 2019/20 Sky Bet EFL campaign