Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna has discusses the standard at the top of the Championship this season between his side, Leeds United and Leicester City.
It now looks set to be a three-horse race for those two automatic promotion spots in the final month of the campaign with Southampton’s form having tailed off over the last few weeks.
In any normal season, the points tally all three have amassed would’ve already had them on the verge of securing a place in the top two. Sheffield United finished in second last season on 91 points.
This time around, however, there is a distinct possibility that one team could end up finishing on 100 points and still miss out on finishing in the automatics.
Leicester defender Conor Coady said as early as last month that it would take 100 and each of the three sides’ results over Easter would indicate that is going to be the case.
McKenna makes claim about Leeds and Leicester this season
For Ipswich, this is now the second season in a row they have been involved in a promotion race of the highest standard. Their tally of 98 points last season was only just enough to finish second in League One.
It would be fair to say they have very much defied expectations by lasting the pace in such an impressive standard of promotion race having just come up.
The Tractor Boys have been competing against some of the strongest sides in several years to be relegated, which is predominantly down to the fact they had all been Premier League clubs for a minimum of three seasons. In Leicester and Southampton’s case, much longer.
Ipswich boss McKenna has been speaking in an interview with Sky Sports this week about the standard of the promotion race. He believes it is the strongest the top of the league has ever been.
He said: “It’s been two incredible seasons we’ve been a part of, and we have to look at the positives of being involved in it.
“The teams we are competing with are as strong as we’ve ever seen at the top of the Championship. It’s a mixture of that, and everyone really performing well and pushing each other.”
MacAnthony shares his Championship promotion predictions
The intense nature of the race has got people from across football sharing their predictions on how it may end.
Peterborough United chairman Darragh MacAnthony was one of them this week, with his club actually involved in a pretty exciting race of their own in League One.
He has tipped both Leeds and Ipswich to get the job done, with Leicester actually missing out all together, as Southampton win the play-offs.
He said: “Leeds to win, Ipswich second. And then I’d like Coventry to gate crash the play offs but I don’t think it’ll happen, so I’ll take Southampton.”