The boys are back in town

It may not have the glitz and glamour of Europe's bigger leagues, but life in the English Championship does have one major advantage - it kicks off a whole week earlier.

Supporters of Premier League teams still have at least another six days to wait for the beautiful game to return to their lives while fans of Italian football have even longer to cold turkey.

But for those of us whose teams are wallowing in the second tier of the English league, the long and barren summer football drought has already come to an end.

It's hard to find positives about life lower down the pyramid but the one-week head-start is certainly a bonus, especially after a summer devoid of World and European cups.

Coincidentally, Sheffield United got this season rolling when they took on Middlesbrough on Friday night. Deadlines mean I can't comment on the result but history suggests we were probably on the end of a good spanking. Either that, or we conceded the only goal of the game in the 98th minute.

The question is though, who is going to end up top of this particular pile over the course of the entire season?

The 24 teams fighting it out in the division are doing so in a bid to win the richest prize in world football - promotion to the Premier League. Estimates suggest it is worth £50 million a year, which is why clubs are so desperate to get promoted.

So who will be there or thereabouts when the dust settles next May? Instinctively I will have to go with Middlesbrough as my favourites for promotion. They have sold one or two stars over the summer but they still have plenty left and have added to their squad wisely.

Ironically, relegation could be the best thing that ever happened to Gareth Southgate. I'm sure he didn't feel that way a couple of months ago, but I think it may be his big chance to show he really can manage a team properly.

So Boro top, then who? Well, chatting to a couple of friends at a barbecue recently, they suggested Newcastle will also be there or thereabouts. Well I am not so sure about that.

England's comedy club do still have a pretty decent team on paper. But their ability to get themselves into problems on and off the pitch is unrivalled anywhere in European football.

One of the keys to bouncing back from relegation is to spend your summer reorganising and preparing for life in a lower division. Newcastle didn't even manage to find themselves a proper manager during that time.

It is possible the remaining players could pull together and scrap like mad to get back up. But equally there is a chance the problems surrounding the club could just end up further demoralising a bunch of players who can't exactly be bursting with optimism. In fact I would go as far as to say if the opening few results go against them, there is a real danger they could end up doing a Leeds.

The other relegated side, West Brom, do have a good chance of going back whence they came. They have been yo-yoing between the two divisions for years now and there is every chance the rebound club will do just that again. Joining them in that chasing pack should be Reading, Ipswich, Preston, Cardiff and Derby and possibly QPR.

What about Sheffield United then, I hear you cry. Or maybe whisper. Well, sadly I think we missed our big chance to get back into the Premier last season. Since then we have sold our best player to Spurs, lost our goalkeeper to a cough medicine incident and entered the season with our strikers either unfit, suspended or useless.

Then again, being a Blade is always about hope and I certainly have no intention of giving that up. Yet.

Win, lose, draw, promoted, relegated... whatever. Ultimately there is only one thing that really matters: proper football is back.

Ferrari's tantrum

I have to say I found it rather amusing the way Ferrari chucked their teddy out of the pram this week when they weren't allowed to give Michael Schumacher a run out in their current car.

The rules state quite clearly that teams are not allowed to circuit test their 2009 cars while the season is underway. Ferrari, however, were hoping for special dispensation from the rest of the grid to allow Schumacher some time behind the wheel of a car he has never driven before.

But three teams - led by Williams - blocked that move, saying they saw no reason why Ferrari should get special treatment when a similar situation earlier in the season saw Jaime Alguersuari thrown in at the deep end for Torro Rosso without any testing.

And that made Ferrari all stroppy:

"Guess who opposed the test? A team that hasn't won anything for years and yet didn't pass over the opportunity to demonstrate once more a lack of spirit of fair play."

What an absolute load of nonsense from the Italians. Why on earth should all the other teams feel obliged to give Ferrari special treatment just because it is Michael Schumacher coming for a drive?

With their season fizzling out into nothingness, asking Michael to take over from the injured Massa is starting to look like little more than a publicity stunt. They could easily have given the seat to one of their two test drivers who have had more than enough time in the current car. It would have been far more logical and forward thinking to do that. Probably safer too.

Instead they got all sentimental and asked a legend to climb back in the cockpit when it was neither practical nor sensible. And then they have the cheek to expect the other teams to bow to their might when they need a favour. Grow up.

I have nothing against Michael and I am actually looking forward to seeing him back out on the track. But that doesn't change the fact that getting him to fill in was not the most logical or well thought out move the team have ever made.

Expecting other teams to give them special treatment because of who they are and who their returning driver happens to be stinks of arrogance and snobbery.

Well done Williams.

Your say

Malachy Portelli, e-mail, writes:

"I am too young to remember Sir Bobby Robson, but from what I've heard this past week I can say that he was a true gentleman and proved so in various episodes in his life.

"The one thing I also liked about him was his honesty and hardworking mentality, such was stated when he managed the team I support, FC Barcelona, for a year and won a treble of trophies (not the treble we know nowadays) working alongside players such as the Brazilian Ronaldo when he was top notch.

"On the Man City saga, I have to agree with you that they should be really ashamed. As if the players they bought love the crest on their hearts more than they love the cash in their wallets. Keep it up, your column is always interesting."

Hugh von Brockdorff, e-mail, writes:

"I read with interest the reaction to my letter of July 26 and thank you for allowing us have our say. I stand by my stance and would like to defend my choice of words when referring to Manchester City as a 'project'.

"Through the Premier League, the Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment hope to emulate the success Emirates have enjoyed at Arsenal by raising the profile of Abu Dhabi globally. At the same time, they aim to regenerate an area and community of Manchester which was hit by rising crime and the collapse of the housing market, adding to the already serious problems of derelict land and high unemployment in Eastlands. "City in the Community is the cornerstone of the club and beneficially affects the lives of thousands every year. It certainly is a major positive 'project' for Manchester. I compare this to the intentions of the American owners of some well-known neighbours outside the city, whose intentions are purely profit, and feel that Man City are blessed to be part of a massive project."

P. Muscat, e-mail, writes:

"I have been following the debate over Manchester City over the past couple of weeks with interest. I am actually a City fan, which makes me considerably involved in what people are saying.

"I find myself in a strange position of desperately wanting success for my team but being slightly embarrassed by the way we are going about it. You can spend large amounts of money and maintain your dignity if you are not flash or extravagant.

"However, we are being both flash and extravagant and making ourselves a bit of a laughing stock.

"I have heard on television and read in the newspapers how everybody is starting to hate us because of our approach to the transfer market. As I said, I want City to succeed very much but I think the way the club is going any success will be at the expense of the public opinion of the club I have followed for 40 years."

sportscolumnist@timesofmalta.com