With the second half of the EFL Championship underway and another transfer window behind us, top-tier football clubs have already begun planning the 2022/23 season. Part of planning a new season involves going over expiring contracts and deciding which players should stay in the club and which ones should be added to the squad.
In the past few months, many Championship players have attracted the attention of Premier League clubs and when the summer transfer window begins, some exciting moves are expected to happen. Join us as we go over some of the players that could be joining Premier League sides next season.
Aleksandar Mitrović
Fulham’s number one striker, the Serbian Aleksandar Mitrović has been one of the main stars of this year’s Championship. With 27 goals and seven assists, Mitrović is off to smash the Championship goal record, which currently belongs to Brentford’s Ivan Toney. Toney hit the back of the net 31 times last season, but Mitrović seems to be on the right track to set a new all-time high. With Fulham currently priced by Championship betting odds to join the Premier League next season at odds of 1/80, Mitrović is likely is to play in the top tier of English football either way.
Nonetheless, the Serbian’s goal-scoring ability has attracted the attention of several Premier League clubs. Mitrović has a current market value of £16.2 million, but any potential deal would only take place for a lot more than that. For now, he has turned down any possibility of leaving Fulham before the end of the season, but the summer transfer window could very well change that.
Philip Billing
The 25-year-old Danish midfielder is currently one of Bournemouth’s key assets and one that has attracted the attention of several clubs currently playing the Premier League. In the current season, Billing has improved his numbers scoring seven goals and assisting five times in 23 appearances.
Much like Mitrovic, Billing has shut down any possibility of leaving Bournemouth before the end of the season, but he has been linked with several Premier League clubs, including Norwich City and Newcastle United. In addition, Billing has on several occasions stated his desire to play in the Premier League. Even if Bournemouth fails in their attempt at getting promoted, we will likely be seeing Billing play in the PL next season.
Ben Brereton Díaz
It is undeniable that Ben Brereton has been of the main stars of this season’s Championship. At only 22 years old, the Blackburn Rovers striker is undergoing the best year of his career. With 20 goals and one assist in just 27 appearances, the Chilean player has quickly become one of the most sought-after players in the Championship. In addition, he has recently gone down in Blackburn Rover’s history, becoming the 24th player in the history of the club to score 20 goals or more in a single Championship campaign.
More recently, Díaz was linked to a potential transfer to West Ham rumoured to be valued at £28.5 million. For now, Blackburn is keen on keeping the player until the end of the season in order to not disturb the club’s attempt to be promoted back to Premier League. Nonetheless, it seems that next year the player will be making the jump to a new club that can compete for a place in European competitions.
While these are some of the top contenders to join Premier League sides next season, Reading’s John Swift, Fulham’s Fabio Carvalho and West Bromwich Albion’s Sam Johnstone have also been associated with big-money transfers.
