Premier League 2018-19: Which Promoted Team Has The Best Chance Of Staying Up?
Fulham
Fulham finished third in the Championship table last season. They had the second best attack in the league, scoring 79 goals in total, but their defence was only 7th best as they let in 46 goals. In spite of this statistic, Fulham were one of the toughest sides in the Championship to beat, losing just eight games over the course of the season.
Led by Serbian manager Slaviša Jokanović, who has been with the London side since December of 2015, Fulham squeezed past Derby with a 2-1 win over the course of two legs in the play-off semi-final, before narrowly beating Aston Villa by the scoreline of 1-0 in the final.
How do they play? Well, statistically speaking, Fulham were one of the most accurate passing sides in all of England over the course of last season and their style isn't too far away from the likes of Guardiola's Manchester City. Fulham keep the ball a lot and make huge efforts to win it back whenever they lose it, with Tom Cairney and Stefan Johansen often pulling the strings in the middle of the park.
It's a system that could work well in the top flight, but that sort of playstyle needs good players to back it up. Fortunately, Fulham seem to have spent very well over the summer, pulling off a real coup by adding Jean Michel Seri to their ranks while also shoring up their defence with the addition of highly-rated England prospect Alfie Mawson and French full-back Maxime Le Marchand.
Turning Aleksandar Mitrovic's loan deal into a permanent move was another shrewd move, with the big Serb netting 12 times in 17 games for Fulham last season, and The Cottagers will also be looking to their young superstar, Ryan Sessegnon, to keep on scoring in the top flight. Sessegnon is one of the hottest youngsters in all of Europe right now and his performances could make or break Fulham's season.
It's important to note that Fulham started last season quite poorly, winning just one of their first six fixtures, and didn't even start to break into the playoff places until matchday 29. A similarly slow start in the Premier League could prove fatal to Fulham's hopes of survival, so they need to hit the ground running this year.
If they can do that, they have a nice balance to their squad and a sound system which could give them a real chance of staying up, but Mitrovic and Sessegnon's goals alone won't be enough, so they'll need everyone to pitch in.