Championship Preview (O-Z)

Check out how your club will fare this season via our exhaustive guide to the Championship.

Portsmouth

Manager: Steve Cotterill. Returned to management with a bang at Notts County, guiding them to the League Two title last season. Cotterill chose not to take the reins at Meadow Lane on a permanent basis, preferring instead to take the Poisoned Chalice that is the Pompey hot-seat. Will be interesting to see how he fares if the off-field shenanigans continue.
Key man: Aaron Mokoena. Fresh from skippering the host nation at the 2010 World Cup, the South African defender should be full of confidence. Able to boast considerable Premier League pedigree, Mokoena's presence at the heart of the back four will allow Portsmouth supporters to breathe a little easier. Position last season: 20th (relegated from the Premier League) Players in: Ibrahima Sonko (loan, Stoke City) Players out: Lennard Sowah (free, Hamburg SV), Nadir Belhadj (undisclosed, Al-Sadd), Florent Cuvelier (undisclosed, Stoke City), Luke Wilkinson (free, Dagenham & Redbridge), Papa Bouba Diop (free, AEK Athens), David James (free, Bristol City) Our view:: Preserving the future of the club will be the priority Prediction: 12th Sky Bet odds: 16/1

Preston North End

Manager: Darren Ferguson. Will forever be known as Sir Alex Ferguson's son, and has offered little during his time at Preston to suggest he should be heralded in his own right. Knows he must start taking the club forward if he is to avoid the chopping block.
Key man: Sean St Ledger. Looked to be on his way out of Deepdale last season when he joined Middlesbrough on loan, but the North East outfit opted against making the move permanent. Their loss has been Preston's gain, as St Ledger remains one of the most assured centre-halves outside of the Premier League. Position last season: 17th Players in: Paul Hayes (free, Scunthorpe United), Matthew James (loan, Manchester United), Wayne Brown (free, Leicester City), Craig Morgan (400k, Peterborough United), David Gray (free, Manchester United), Andreas Arestidou (free, Shrewsbury Town) Players out: Chris Sedgwick (free, Sheffield Wednesday), Neil Mellor (loan, Sheffield Wednesday), Ross Wallace (undisclosed, Burnley), Neill Collins (undisclosed, Leeds United), Eddie Nolan (loan, Scunthorpe United), Veliche Shumulikoski (released), Liam Chilvers (released), Michael Hart (released) Our view:: May struggle to drag themselves clear of trouble. Prediction: 20th Sky Bet odds: 33/1

Queens Park Rangers

Manager: Neil Warnock. He may not be to everybody's taste, but there is no doubting that Warnock knows his way around the Championship. He will have everyone at Loftus Road pulling in the same direction and could be the man to unleash their potential.
Key man: Akos Buzsaky. Drifted in and out of the side at times last season, but really should be a first-team regular given the ability he possesses. Should Warnock be able to bring the best out of the Hungarian, Buzsaky could be one of the stars of the show this year. Position last season: 13th Players in: Jamie Mackie (undisclosed, Plymouth Argyle), Leon Clarke (free, Sheffield Wednesday), Paddy Kenny (£750k, Sheffield United), Shaun Derry (free, Crystal Palace), Clint Hill (unattached) Players out: Angelo Balanta (loan, Milton Keynes Dons), Matteo Alberti (loan, AC Lumezzane) Our view:: Can challenge for a play-off place. Prediction: 8th Sky Bet odds: 10/1

Reading

Manager: Brian McDermott. Turned Reading from relegation candidates into a solid top-half outfit upon inheriting the reins from Brendan Rodgers and will fancy that there is more to come from his side this season.
Key man: Gylfi Sigurdsson. Named Reading's Player of the Year for 2009/10, the young Icelander rose to the fore last season. Already recognised as a potential star of the future, the 20-year-old added goals to his repertoire last term and has started to attract attention from the top flight. Position last season: 9th Players in: Marcus Williams (free, Scunthorpe United), Andy Griffin (£500k, Stoke City) Players out: Andy White (free, Gillingham), Kalifa Cisse (undisclosed, Bristol City), Liam Rosenior, Mitchell Bryant, Radoslav Vasilev (all released), Oliver Bozanic (free, Central Coast Mariners), Marek Matejovsky (undisclosed, Sparta Prague), James Henry (undisclosed, Millwall) Our view:: Realistic top-six challengers. Prediction: 7th Sky Bet odds: 12/1

Scunthorpe United

Manager: Nigel Adkins. Kept the Iron up last season and is still highly regarded among the Glanford Park faithful. Is expected to face another tough test this season and avoiding relegation is likely to represent the height of Scunthorpe's ambition.
Key man: Chris Dagnall. With Gary Hooper having left for Celtic, the goalscoring burden has been placed squarely on the shoulders of new arrival Dagnall. An impressive strike rate during his time at Rochdale suggests he knows where the back of the net it is, but he remains untested at this level. Position last season: 20th Players in: Chris Dagnall (free, Rochdale), Bobby Grant (260k, Accrington Stanley), Michael Collins (undisclosed, Huddersfield Town), Eddie Nolan (loan, Preston North End) Players out: Peter Winn (free, Stevenage Borough), Paul Hayes (free, Preston North End), Marcus Williams (free, Reading), Grant McCann (free, Peterborough United), Matt Sparrow (free, Brighton), Josh Lillis (loan, Rochdale), Gary Hooper (£2m, Celtic), Jake Picton (released), Ben May (released), Josh Lillis (loan, Rochdale) Our view:: Difficult to see the Iron beating the drop. Prediction: 24th Sky Bet odds: 125/1

Sheffield United

Manager: Kevin Blackwell. It has been another busy summer for the Blades boss, as he attempts to piece together a squad capable of pushing for promotion. The turnaround of players during Blackwell's time at Bramall Lane has hardly helped his cause, but United remain a force to be reckoned with.
Key man: Chris Morgan. A born leader, Morgan is the heartbeat of Blackwell's side. A local lad with well over 200 appearances for the club under his belt, the experienced centre-half guarantees 100 per cent commitment every time he takes to the field. Position last season: 8th Players in: Daniel Bogdanovic (free, Barnsley), Johannes Ertl (free, Crystal Palace), Simon Walton (loan, Plymouth Argyle), Rob Kozluk (unattached), Nyron Nosworthy (loan, Sunderland), Leon Britton (free, Swansea City), Steve Simonsen (free, Stoke City) Players out: Gary Naysmith (free, Huddersfield Town), Paddy Kenny (£750k, Queens Park Rangers), Ian Bennett (free, Huddersfield Town), Jordon Stewart (undisclosed, Skoda Xanthi), Billy Sharp (£1.15m, Doncaster Rovers), Glen Little (free, Aldershot), Henri Camara, Jonathan Fortune, Derek Geary, Justin Haber, Liban Abdi (all released), Sam Wedgbury (free, Macclesfield Town), James Harper (free, Hull City), Kyel Reid (free, Charlton Athletic) Our view:: Mid-table mediocrity. Prediction: 11th Sky Bet odds: 14/1

Swansea City

Manager: Brendan Rodgers. Inherits a side that only narrowly missed out on the play-offs last season, but is in need of some fine tuning. A good friend of Jose Mourinho, he may need to ask the Real Madrid boss for a few tips on how to bring the best out of misfiring frontmen.
Key man: Ferrie Bodde. A few years ago Bodde was destined for the Premier League, but a series of serious injuries have held him back. Should the Dutchman manage to steer clear of the treatment table, he will add graft and guile to the Swans' midfield. Position last season: 7th Players in: Scott Donnelly (compensation fee, Aldershot), Neil Taylor (compensation fee, Wrexham) Players out: Federico Bessone (free, Leeds United), Guillem Bauza (released), Marcos Painter (free, Brighton & Hove Albion), James Burgin, Daniel Sheehan, Kirean Howard (all released), Leon Britton (free, Sheffield United), Lee Trundle (released) Our view: A lack of firepower could hold them back. Prediction: 10th Sky Bet odds: 20/1

Watford

Manager: Malky Mackay. Endured a difficult debut season in the Vicarage Road hot-seat, with the Hornets finding themselves locked in a basement battle for long periods. Unfortunately for Mackay, it is difficult to see the 2010/11 campaign playing out any different.
Key man: Danny Graham. Provided a decent return during his first season with the club, with Watford's attacking arsenal far from razor sharp. If he can better that tally this season he will consider the campaign to have been a success. Position last season: 16th Players in: Tom Aldred (unattached), Rene Gilmartin (unattached) Players out: Richard Lee (free, Brentford), Will Hoskins (free, Bristol Rovers), Jure Travner (loan, St. Mirren) Jay DeMerit (free, Bristol Rovers), Billy Gibson (released), Jonathan North (released), Jordan Parkes (free, Barnet), Mat Sadler (loan, Shrewsbury Town), Jon Harley (free, Notts County), Lewis Young (free, Burton Albion), Rob Kiernan (loan, Yeovil Town) Our view:: Could be a long, hard season. Prediction: 22nd Sky Bet odds: 40/1