The Championship always has its breakout performers, the only guaranteed quantities from year to year being Ross McCormack’s goals and Ian Holloway’s incoherent ramblings from the sideline or punditry studio. Predicting the top-performer in this capricious league is a calculated gamble. Will a breakout star from last year maintain his blistering form? Will a bonafide Football League veteran elevate his performances from the consistent to the sublime? Here are five players likely to over-perform this season, and perhaps set the league alight.
Wes Hoolahan – Norwich
In a drab Euros short on individual spark and vivacious attacking verve, Hoolahan looked the part of a continental magician. The 34-year-old Irishman was a cut above many of his peers, drifting into the sublime in spells against Sweden and France. Now in the Championship, the evergreen Canary will relish picking apart lumbering rearguards. Thundering volleys past Jon McLaughlin will be a bit easier than thrashing home versus Zlatan and co.
Norwich look a fearsome attacking unit, Hoolahan the center-piece alongside any combination of Steven Naismith, Alex Pritchard, Jacob Murphy, and Cameron Jerome. While Pritchard could be a threat to his number 10 role, Hoolahan’s fearsome form in Norwich’s opener against Blackburn is a sign that the Irish playmaker can still thrive in the Football League. While the veteran midfielder may not play every game of the gruelling Championship campaign, he’ll be the man to provide that touch of creativity in difficult moments. The Euros may not have been a curtain call, but a sign of things to come.