Middlesbrough – another club with recent Premiership experience – are current favourites. Manager Gordon Strachan has bought in Kris Boyd from Rangers; if Boyd reproduces his outstanding goalscoring record in the Championship, he could be play a vital part in Boro’s promotion bid.

Although the clubs relegated from the Premiership shouldn’t be entirely written off, Burnley look the best equipped for a serious promotion challenge: Chris Iwelumo’s arrival from Wolves looks like a shrewd investment. Both Hull City and Portsmouth have off field issues that could hinder their efforts to make an immediate return to the top tier.

Two of the teams that reached the play offs last season should challenge for promotion places. Nottingham Forest were outstanding at home last season and Leicester City – where former Swansea City boss Paolo Sousa replaces Nigel Pearson as manager – look capable of maintaining their form from 2009/2010. Cardiff City’s prospects are unclear, but they should still be capable of a top ten finish, a prospect that both Ipswich Town and QPR will be hoping to achieve.

It’ll be interesting to see how the new arrivals from League One will perform. Champions Norwich City return after one season but may have to settle for a mid table finish; Leeds United will probably lead the division in attendance numbers, but their season may depend on how well new signing Billy Paynter adapts to the Championship. Millwall should avoid relegation but may have to be content with a bottom half finish in their first season at this level since 2005/2006.

A number of teams look as if they may struggle. Scunthorpe always seem to be punching above their weight but selling Gary Hooper to Celtic leaves The Iron without a proven goal scorer. Barnsley need to improve at home, Crystal Palace entered administration but eventually owed their survival to an outstanding away record that culminated in a win at Sheffield Wednesday on the last day of the season.

However, every club in the nPower Football League Championship will start on equal terms when the season starts on the evening of Friday August 6th, when Watford travel to Norwich City (7:45pm kick off, live on Sky Sports 3).

This is the case for Alan Lee this Sunday. He and his new club Norwich City travel to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town in the East Anglian Derby. The striker is likely to get a rather unwelcoming reception from the home fans, that seems like a safe Championship English football bet to make!

However, Alan Lee doesn’t seem like the type of player to let this bother him. In fact, it seems reasonable to suggest that he might thrive on the stick given to him by Ipswich fans.

Speaking about Sunday’s game, Alan Lee revealed that he is yet to lose a local derby in his career and he ‘doesn’t aim to start’ this weekend. Overall, he admits that he ‘loves’ these type of games and that he will do everything he can ‘for Norwich City’.

Alan Lee is aware that three points would give Norwich City a huge boost in their bid to stay in the Championship this season. The on-loan man says that if his team repeat the performance shown against Watford on Monday, there should be ‘no problems’ at all in picking up the win.

As things stand, Norwich City are level on points with Barnsley and Nottingham Forest just above the relegation zone. With three games remaining, every point is crucial.

This means that, for Norwich City and Alan Lee, there is more at stake this weekend than local pride and bragging rights.

However, Championship managers and chairmen were very busy as well and many signings were made as clubs aim to improve their squad ahead of the final third of the season. Let’s take a look at the most significant signings to have taken place yesterday.

Championship leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers splashed the cash on Hearts captain Christophe Berra. It is thought that the 24-year-old midfielder moves to Wolves for a fee around the £2.5m mark.

Fellow high-flyers Cardiff City also managed to secure a transfer coup on deadline day as they brought in Sunderland striker Michael Chopra for a club-record fee of £4m. The former Newcastle man initially joins on loan, but will sign a permanent contract at the end of the season.

Another interesting move involving one of the higher placed teams was that of Arturo Lupoli. Having failed to make much of an impact at Norwich, his loan was terminated so that Sheffield United could swoop in and secure his services. It will be interesting to see how he does.

Speaking of Norwich, they were one of the busiest Championship clubs on deadline day as they brought in Fulham defender Adrian Leijer, non-league striker Cody McDonald and Rangers striker Alan Gow. This follows the signing of Chris Killen from Celtic a few days earlier.

Barnsley were also very busy as they signed Coventry striker Michael Misfud, Liverpool winger Adam Hammill and Fulham midfielder Andranik Teymourian on loan. They are obviously keen to freshen up a squad that has failed to win in their last six games in all competitions. The football odds are starting to suggest they could go down and this has forced them to act.

Watford were another team to make a couple of signings in a bid to claw themselves away from the drop zone. They have brought in Latvian winger Aleksandrs Cauna on-loan and also completed the permanent signing of Don Cowie who joins from SPL club Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

So, Wolves and Cardiff were the biggest spenders as they look to secure promotion to the Premier League, with Norwich, Barnsley and Watford the busiest teams as they aim to secure their Championship status for another year.

However, as soon as Glenn Roeder was sacked as Norwich City manager last week, Jamie Cureton was immediately recalled to the squad. He then completed a remarkable week by starting, scoring and helping Norwich City to a comfortable 4-0 victory over the club he had been on loan at previously, Barnsley.

Former Norwich City goalkeeper Bryan Gunn was in charge for the match and Jamie Cureton admits that he much prefers playing under the caretaker boss than Glenn Roeder. In fact, the former Reading striker has been rather critical of the previous regime.

Speaking about the former manager, Jamie Cureton revealed that a number of the players felt Glenn Roeder ‘didn’t have faith in the team’. This then led to fear of failure and lack of confidence. Jamie Cureton went on to admit that, under Glenn Roeder, the players couldn’t play with any ‘freedom’.

With Bryan Gunn at the helm temporarily though, Jamie Cureton was much more comfortable. He said that he ‘wasn’t afraid to make a mistake’ because Bryan Gunn wasn’t ‘screaming and shouting’ on the touchline, much like Glenn Roeder had been doing during his time at Carrow Road.

Overall, I think it is fair to say that Jamie Cureton is much happier now that the former Newcastle boss has left the club. He can start concentrating on being a Norwich City player again and do all he can to steer the club away from relegation.

As for who the next permanent manager of Norwich City will be, well Bryan Gunn did his chances no harm with the victory at the weekend. However, the football odds are still suggesting that Paul Ince and Aidy Boothroyd are the front runners, with the board expected to make a decision by the end of the week.

It was the Reading striker’s 7th goal in 14 matches while on-loan at Norwich City and there is no doubt that Glenn Roeder will want to hold onto him if at all possible. Speaking about this, the Norwich boss admitted that Leroy Lita is ‘the sort of striker we ought to be trying to sign’.

Whether this is happens though is very much in Reading’s hands. Leroy Lita’s contract expires in the summer, so they must decide whether to sell him in January or risk losing him for free when his contract comes to an end.

Should they opt to cash in on the striker, it is thought that £300,000 would be enough to secure his signature. This, despite Norwich’s financial restrictions, should be in their reach. However, Leroy Lita’s high wage demands may prove to be the stumbling block.

The low asking price for someone who is a proven goal scorer may also alert some of the higher placed clubs. Perhaps Premier League side West Brom will take a punt on Leroy Lita? Or maybe Wolves or Birmingham would like him to fire them to promotion?

A lot depends on the player himself as well. If he has enjoyed his loan spell and Norwich and wants to stay, he may have to take a wage cut. He would very much be the ‘big fish in a small pond’ at Carrow Road though and I imagine he enjoys this. Plus, he is guaranteed first-team football, something he wouldn’t be at the likes of West Brom, Wolves and Birmingham.

In the mean time, Leroy Lita has two games left for Norwich City as they take on Crystal Palace on Boxing Day and Nottingham Forest three days later. Then, it is up to Reading, Norwich City and Leroy Lita to decide on his future.

One thing for sure though, is that the football odds are far more likely to back Norwich City to achieve a decent league position if they manage to hold onto Leroy Lita.

The Canaries have been in desperate need for a striker with a physical presence. Darrel Russell – who normally operates in midfield – has been forced to move up front in recent weeks to partner either Jamie Cureton or Arturo Lupoli. Now that Antoine Sibierski has arrived, the Norwich fans will be hoping they can pick up their first win of the season against Plymouth Argyle in their next game.

So what type of player are Norwich getting? Well, as with any 34-year-old moving down a division, he will bring experience to what is a relatively young Norwich squad. He will also provide Glenn Roeder with the ‘target man’ he has been craving since the departure of Dion Dublin at the end of last season. It is the second time Glenn Roeder has signed the Frenchman, he brought him to Newcastle United on transfer deadline day in August 2006.

In terms of some other moves involving Championship clubs yesterday, there were two others that stood out to me. Blackpool have made a good loan signing by securing Rangers midfielder Alan Gow until January. The 25-year-old – who could sign permanently in January – is an attacking midfielder and should excel in the Championship.

Then there is departure of Coventry midfielder Julian Gray to Premier League side Fulham. This is a strange transfer really and I’m not sure why a loan deal was agreed as opposed to a permanent transfer. Regardless though, it will be a huge loss for Chris Coleman at Coventry. He is one of their better players and considering they have lost their last two games, it isn’t ideal that he is leaving. They will be searching for a replacement in the loan market I’m sure.

One of the most significant factors of the whole transfer window though, in my view, is that fact that Reading have managed to hold onto prize assets Kevin Doyle and Stephen Hunt. With reference to Championship football odds, they remain one of the promotion favourites having kept these two players.

As ever, it will be interesting to see how the players that have moved to the Championship – such as Antoine Sibierski – will adapt to playing in what is a very physical and competitive league.

Arturo Lupoli does have experience at Championship level and this would have played its part in Norwich City manager Glenn Roeder making a move for the striker. He enjoyed a successful loan spell at Derby County during the 2006/2007 season when the Rams won promotion to the Premier League.

The players’ comments suggest that he is very happy to be moving back to England, speaking about the move he said that he was ‘hoping to contribute’ to a ‘great season for Norwich City’. One thing for sure is that if Arturo Lupoli fulfills some of his potential during his spell at Carrow Road, the Norwich fans are in for a treat. He is a very skilliful player with an eye for goal and I think he will shine – like he did for Derby – at Championship level.

Glenn Roeder seems to have an excellent relationship with Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger as it is rumoured that the Frenchman recommended Lupoli to the Norwich boss. Considering everything he has achieved in football, there are certainly worse people to take advice off than Arsene Wenger!

Glenn Roeder – who has now made seven additions to his Norwich squad – is now looking to add a ‘more physical striker’ to partner either Arturo Lupoli or last season’s top goalscorer Jamie Cureton in attack. Whoever this player turns out to be, they will be joining Ryan Bertrand, Dejan Stefanovic, Elliot Omozusi, Sammy Clingan, David Bell, Wes Hoolahan and of course Arturo Lupoli as the new signings at Carrow Road.

The Norwich squad is certainly looking stronger in my opinion. The players they shipped out in the summer included Dion Dublin and Darren Huckerby, but they are slowly building a squad that may alter the Championship football odds somewhat.

Of course time will tell how well the new set of players gel together, but after three wins out of three in pre-season; it is so far so good for Glenn Roeder’s Norwich City revolution.

Glenn Roeder has been actively seeking a left winger since he decided not to renew Darren Huckerby’s contract at the end of last season and now it appears that he has got his man. Considering that Wes Hoolahan was one of Blackpool’s best players last season, it seems he has got his man at a very reasonable price as well.

So, what type of player are Norwich getting? Can he fill the shoes of the departing Darren Huckerby? Well, I think they are different types of players. Darren Huckerby relied more on bursts of pace and a direct approach to taking on defenders, whereas Wes Hoolahan is more of a skilful player who can ‘thread the ball through the eye of a needle’ according to his new manager.

One thing is for sure – if Wes Hoolahan can win over the Carrow Road faithful in the same way that Darren Huckerby did during his time at Norwich, he won’t go far wrong. The former Manchester City winger was a huge player for Norwich and it will be interesting to see how Wes Hoolahan adapts to his new club.

This is Glenn Roeder’s second signing of the summer after he secured the signature of Sammy Clingan from Nottingham Forest earlier this month. However, it is a list the one time Newcastle United manager must continue to add to as Norwich’s squad is rather depleted following a summer clear-out.

A look at Championship football odds will tell you that Norwich are one of the favourites to be relegated to League One. However, if Glenn Roeder can secure more players in the Wes Hoolahan bracket of quality, he will be hoping that this is far from the case.