The sun broke through the clouds, thousands of bubbles floated lazily across the ground and everyone connected with the club were united in celebration of the club's immediate return to the Premier League.

The players hastily put on T-shirts proclaiming "nothing beats being back" - and nobody wearing claret and blue inside Wembley was arguing.

Perhaps more than anything else, West Ham's 2-1 victory over Blackpool brought with it a sense of relief.

It appeared to be the same story with Allardyce, as he exhaled deeply before analysing a final that his team could so easily have lost had Blackpool been more clinical in front of goal.

Ricardo Vaz Te scored the winner for West Ham with two minutes remaining on the clock. Photo: PA

The 57-year-old had spent the last few weeks talking about the importance of his team dealing with the pressure that comes with a play-off campaign, of handling their tag as favourites. After his team dismissed Cardiff 5-0 on aggregate in their play-off semi-final it seemed as though the Hammers were peaking perfectly.

But there were times at Wembley, as Blackpool's Thomas Ince repeatedly embarrassed Hammers left-back Matthew Taylor while fellow winger Matt Phillips and forward Stephen Dobbie were presented with great chances, when it looked as though Allardyce's words would ultimately have a hollow ring to them.

To be fair to Allardyce, he had never ducked the issue of what defeat would mean and openly admitted before the final that the success of West Ham's season would be dependent on securing promotion.

Certainly, a defeat for West Ham would have raised more questions than will now be the case at Blackpool following their failure. At Bloomfield Road there will be no debate about the future prospects for manager Ian Holloway, nor about the financial stability or otherwise at the defeated club.

Allardyce himself talked at length about the bruising implications the Football League's decision to adopt Financial Fair Play Regulations would have had at West Ham if they not won promotion.

"Promotion means an awful lot, because now I have not got to face the huge problem of financial fair play and how West Ham would cope with it," said Allardyce.

"It would have been devastating - according to the owners we would have had to decimate the wage bill by £10m, off-load players for little or no fee and still achieve what the fans want."

Instead, Allardyce can now plan for a return to the Premier League, 11 years after he guided Bolton to the top flight via a 3-0 play-off victory over Preston at the Millennium Stadium. That Trotters side have only just been relegated from the top flight and Allardyce is now keen to put in place at Upton Park the sort of steady progress he managed at Bolton before leaving for Newcastle in 2007.

"The task now is keeping West Ham in the Premier League," he said. "At Bolton we did that from virtually nothing, what we have got to do is sustainable, steady growth at West Ham next season."

Listening to Allardyce speak after his team's victory it was obvious that he is a manager who is still driven by a desire to silence his doubters.

"I have had to suffer two sackings - at Newcastle and Blackburn - that were harsh to say the least," he added. "They did damage my reputation but at end of the day I am still achieving great things at the clubs I work for."

But perhaps a little closer to home, Saturday could be the day when the Hammers boss formed an important and much-needed bond with the club's supporters.

Allardyce, a straight-talking, no-nonsense northerner, has not always appeared to be the most natural fit at a club whose fan base still talk about their club as the academy of football, a view that harks back to the trio of players they produced in England's 1966 World Cup-winning side.

And during the course of the season there have been times when it seemed as though Allardyce and the West Ham fan base would never see eye-to-eye, with the manager branding some supporters "deluded" after they chanted "we are West Ham United and we play on the floor" during the Hammers' 2-0 win at Peterborough in March.
But even if some think Allardyce's team are the equivalent of a backstreet bruiser, nobody can argue that he has not made good on his promise to win promotion, even if, as Holloway mused afterwards, it was achieved by the finest of margins.

Yes, there were times during the campaign when Allardyce's Hammers appeared to be overly defensive, grinding out results rather than entertaining. But they scored 81 goals in their 46 regular season fixtures and picked up 86 points on their way to finishing third.

They might have dropped too many points at home but they had the best away record in the division. They were resilient and difficult to beat. They proved at Wembley that they have guts and courage.

"My job is about thrilling fans, giving them what they want and entertaining them," added Allardyce. "We have given them a great victory and a great end to season, getting back to where we want to be."

Some supporters might feel that Allardyce is pushing his luck by suggesting his side are a side of entertainers, but in winning promotion on Saturday he might just have proved that he is not such a bad fit at West Ham after all.

You could add to that the sight of a bling-heavy El-Hadji Diouf trying to blag his way into the Senegal dressing room by explaining to a steward that he is captain of the national team (he retired from international football in 2009) and a Premier League player (Doncaster were recently relegated to League One).

Then there were the supporters of the victorious African team waiting patiently outside in the cold for their triumphant heroes to emerge from their dressing room, enthusiastically surrounding Senegal-born Patrick Vieira when he appeared nearby.

If you wanted further evidence of the passion for Olympic football you could do worse than hear the noise created by the Oman supporters before Senegal's early goal, or the sight of Wigan's Oman goalkeeper Ali Al-Habsi, proudly wearing his national team's scarf and desperate for them to qualify so he could be part of the Olympics.

Senegal qualified for the Olympic football tournament after a 2-0 win over Oman. Photo: Getty

On one level, Monday evening's play-off match at the City of Coventry Stadium was a straightforward contest for the 16th and final place in the men's Olympic football tournament.

Senegal, with their number six up front and number nine in the centre of defence, were deserved winners. They scored in the second minute and again right at the end to reach the Olympic football tournament for the first time and become the fourth African team after Gabon, Morocco and Egypt to book their place at this summer's Games.

But as the one test event for this summer's tournament, it was also a chance to gauge what we can expect when the action begins.

There has been a lot of negative publicity around the football tournament, specifically with the prolonged wrangling over the participation of a combined Team GB.

The football associations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have been vocal in their opposition of a combined side, fearing it will compromise their individual status within world governing body Fifa.

Then there are the sluggish ticket sales. Before kick-off on Monday the organising committee's head of sport competition David Luckes chose to focus on the one million that have been snapped up, but there are 1.5 million that remain unsold.

Luckes is hopeful that Tuesday's group-stage draw will lead to a sudden upsurge in demand, but he does not yet know when the next period of resales will start.

Not long before kick-off on Monday the sparse crowd must have been a worrying sight to everyone with concerns about ticket sales. The Mexican waves did not go very far before foundering in the vast oceans of empty seats.

But trying to sell a football match between Senegal and Oman on Monday evening to a public whose local team - Coventry City - have just been relegated from the Championship was never going to be easy. Throw in the chilly, overcast conditions and I thought the crowd of 11,611 was pretty decent.

They also made a fair old noise too, with the organisers doing all they could to foster a sense of competition. Flags of both teams were handed out before kick-off and people were asked to tweet different hashtags to determine which of Senegal and Oman had the most support from the watching fans.

The city of Coventry has high hopes that it will be a big winner out of the Olympics. Only Wembley has sold more tickets for the Games than what is arguably the least glamorous or prestigious host venue for the football tournament (the others are London, Manchester, Newcastle, Cardiff and Glasgow).

As far back as 2006 a collection of key bodies, educational establishments, businesses and trusts formed a partnership to try to get the most out of the Olympics for the area and appointed a 2012 co-ordinator, one of the first in the country.

When Villa Park pulled out as a host venue for the region in 2009 and Coventry eventually took its place, the possibilities moved up another level.

"The football is the jewel in the crown for Coventry," said Tom Clift, the 2012 operations manager for Coventry.

"It is a huge honour and a great opportunity; it puts us on the map nationally and internationally."

Coventry will host eight match days in the men's and women's tournaments, more than any other venue. The Olympic torches are being manufactured at a company close to the football ground and the city has instigated a series of cultural and sporting projects.

"Coventry has arguably got one of the largest Olympic engagement projects of anyone outside London," added Clift. "The city has had a tough time in the last half century and this is putting some pride back in."

Clift is hopeful that there will be a full house of 32,500 for some of the matches staged in Coventry. Prior to Monday's game the Senegal ambassador had been invited to look at the facilities and Clift would be pleased if, having worked hard to make both of Monday's teams feel welcome, the African side were drawn to play at Coventry again.

Senegal assistant coach Aliou Cisse, a former Birmingham City and Portsmouth midfielder, insisted after his team's 2-0 victory that he did not have any preference who his team were drawn against in the tournament.

He was also coy about the possibility of Newcastle duo Papiss Cisse and Demba Ba participating in the Olympics, stating only that although it was "important to have the best players possible" those who finally secured qualification on Monday deserved their chance because they had battled for months and months.

Senegal's victorious 18-man squad play in seven different countries, with four of the five home-based players hailing from the Diambars club co-founded by Vieira.

But it was clear from listening to the intelligent and dignified Cisse that whoever is eventually selected will understand the significance of playing for Senegal in the Olympics.

"It is an honour to represent our country and our continent," he said.

If everyone who participates feels the same way it should be a tournament to remember.

Is manager Graham Westley out of his depth, floundering around desperately trying to keep his head above water, and his team in League One?

Or is he in the midst of a much-needed overhaul at a bloated club, instigating a period of change that was always going to be difficult and painful but will eventually reap rich rewards?

The new North End boss won back-to-back promotions with previous club Stevenage, taking them from non-league to the higher reaches of League One.

He was brought in by chairman Peter Ridsdale - formerly of Leeds, Cardiff and Plymouth and himself a relatively new addition at Deepdale - in mid-January. Ridsdale took his time over the appointment, spending a month searching for the right man to succeed previous incumbent Phil Brown.

But the events since Westley took over have made largely miserable viewing for North End's supporters.

Graham Westley is trying to change the culture at Preston, but it isn't proving easy. Photo - Getty Images

The latest bizarre development in Westley's reign came last weekend when the manager claimed that members of his squad leaked the line-up for Saturday's match against Sheffield Wednesday to their opponents in advance of the game.

Westley said after the 2-0 defeat that he had been told about it during the second half of the match by someone in the opposition dug-out. The 44-year-old chose to go public with the news because he said it illustrated the different factions within his squad. "When you've got a number of different agendas these things happen," he said.

Striker Iain Hume did not seem to agree. He argued on Twitter that "the squad is close and it needs to stay that way". On this evidence then, at the very least, the manager and one of his senior players seem to be at odds.

A lack of unity appears to be a feature of Westley's time in charge so far. After succeeding Brown, he quickly got rid of senior professionals such as Clarke Carlisle and Ian Ashbee, while Paul Coutts was stripped of the captaincy and told to go away and think about his attitude.

A text from Westley to his squad on the eve of his first game in charge quickly appeared on various websites. There were several false, trumped up versions of it. The club disputes that it was sent at 2am on a Saturday and that it was the first means by which four players first learned they had been dropped. Nonetheless, Westley did text his players with words of encouragement and news of it was picked up by large sections of the media.

Every day after the 44-year-old's appointment seemed to bring about new changes. Westley reconfigured the club's Springfield training ground, reducing the size of the area for injured players. "The place was feeling to me more like a spa than a football training ground so we have shifted the facilities around," said the PNE boss.

Westley sometimes sounds more like a middle-manager than a football manager and unquestionably has his own way of doing things. His players often work a full day, with double training sessions the norm, and his philosophy requires a degree of buy-in from his players that I suspect makes it difficult for him to take over a club in mid-season.

This is not to say that Westley has not brought in players of his own choosing. He has - and lots of them. He has signed enough new faces to field a fresh starting XI.

Westley's new additions mean he now has a first-team squad of more than 30 players, far more than Preston can afford, especially considering attendances at Deepdale are now regularly on the wrong side of 10,000. The list on the back of the match programme seems to go on forever.

Despite the seeming abundance of selection options, Aaron Brown, a central defender by trade who arrived at the club in January having been unable to secure regular first-team football at Aldershot, was up front at Wednesday.

It hints at Westley's dissatisfaction with his squad and his desperation to put points on the board.

Results show that the new signings have failed to improve form. Under Westley, North End have won twice in 15 games, scoring eight goals. Preston contested three successive goalless home draws in late February and early March and looked completely devoid of attacking spark.

Westley has a reputation for building robust and competitive teams and is keen to stress that he is working hard with his players to build from the back, create a solid base, and maintains that in time he will win over the doubters in the stands. It did not sound that way last Tuesday at the end of an inept 3-1 home defeat against Brentford as fans booed Westley all the way from the dugout to the tunnel at the final whistle.

It took the manager two hours to appear in front of the media after that defeat but when he finally showed up he admitted the performance had left him ashamed and embarrassed. He added that he would take it on the chin and hinted at significant changes in the summer.

Just as well because the sad truth is that more than 40 players have represented the club this campaign and of these in excess of 20 have made their debuts.

North End are now 16th in the table, six points above the relegation zone with six fixtures remaining and a tough run-in that includes games against MK Dons, Huddersfield and Charlton. If they had not won seven of their first nine league matches they would now be in horrific trouble.

The club are appealing for a bumper crowd on Saturday to celebrate the birthday of Sir Tom Finney, who turns 90 on Thursday.

In one sense Finney is an ever-present at Deepdale as his image looks down from the stand named in his honour. I imagine that he cannot be very impressed by what he has seen in recent months.

He scored three goals in his first four matches and his arrival added new impetus to a team that had already cast aside their mediocre early-season form and started to charge up the Championship table.

He slotted straight in and formed an instant rapport with fellow forward Noel Hunt, whose form improved playing alongside Roberts. Striker Simon Church had waited patiently for his chance most of last season and must have thought his time had come once Shane Long was sold to West Brom in the summer. Church found himself back on the bench after the arrival of Roberts but has been fulsome in his praise of the veteran forward and his impact at the club.

"He has been a catalyst to really kick us on," said Church. "He is the nicest guy ever."

Roberts has been in good form since his January move to Reading. Photo - Getty images

Going into Tuesday's match at Peterborough, the Royals had lost twice in 17 games, winning 14 of them, but they came unstuck at London Road, losing 3-1 while Roberts picked up a hamstring injury.

It was a particularly poor result given that the Royals face a season-defining set of fixtures. Starting with Blackpool on Saturday, they play the teams in fifth, third, 10th, fourth and first. But if Roberts is harbouring any secret fears about the coming month he is keeping them very much to himself.

"It is exciting. This is where you want to be - trying to make things happen," said the 34-year-old. "These are the moments when you really find out about yourself."

If Reading needed any further motivation beyond the carrot of promotion after a four-year absence from the top flight, then there is the disappointment of last season. While Roberts ended the 2010-11 campaign celebrating a final-day win at Wolves that guaranteed Rovers' Premier League survival, the Royals lost the Championship play-off final, an exhilarating late-season surge brought to an abrupt end with a 4-2 defeat against Swansea at Wembley.

"There is no doubt that last season is a motivating factor for the squad," added Roberts. "I was part of a West Brom team that lost a semi-final against Bolton in 2000-01 and we went on to get promotion the following season.

"I can sense the same thing here - a determination to go one better."

Reading might have to negotiate the next few weeks without Roberts but the Grenada striker has seen enough to realise that manager Brian McDermott has assembled a squad equipped to cope with the loss of any individual.

"The manager is very particular about the personalities he brings in. Forget about their obvious quality as players, they are all good people and really motivated, and that is not always the case in a big squad," added Roberts. "His man-management is outstanding."

And according to the veteran striker, McDermott has clearly take on board the observation made years ago by legendary Liverpool manager Bill Shankly that football is a simple game made complicated by people who should know better.

"Reading play 4-4-2 every week and try to win every single game," explained Roberts.

"Some clubs changes formation to counteract the opposition, packing the midfield, whereas we play with two wingers every week who look to supply the front two.

"It might be old school but it is very exciting. When I look around the leagues I do not see many other teams doing that but it is exactly how I understand football to be played."

Roberts does not say so explicitly but it is clear he feels some managers over-complicate their planning, tweaking the formation so often that they confuse their own players. That is not a problem at Reading, where every players knows what is expected of them every single week. During the final weeks of the season, under extreme pressure, this clarity of thought can only be an asset.

They have plenty of experience in the likes of Adam Federici, Ian Harte, Kaspars Gorkss, Mikele Leigertwood, Hayden Mullins and Jobi McAnuff. And even though they lost at Posh they created numerous chances and do not seem to have hit a creative wall like West Ham, who have drawn their last four matches 1-1.

However, if anyone at the Madejski Stadium did need any further encouragement to succeed over the next eight weeks, they could do a lot worse than ask Roberts about his time at Wigan.

The striker was in the Latics side that defeated Reading 3-1 on the final day of the 2004-05 season to win promotion to the top flight for the first time in the club's 73-year history.
A few weeks ago he was back at the DW Stadium and was struck by the number of photographs still hanging there of that promotion-winning team.

"They were some of the happiest days of my life," said Roberts.

"Fans never forget a team that achieves something like that, something really special. In years to come when I go back to Reading I would like to be remembered for leaving a mark on the club. "

The following day he went there and asked for a trial. Slightly bemused, the coaching staff looked at the smiling yet determined 11-year-old with the broken English and explained that the club did not just take on young players who turned up unannounced. He would have to be scouted like everybody else.

Running home afterwards, having left details of the school he attended and buoyed by the promise that somebody from Coventry would come to watch him play, Bigirimana was surprised when a member of the coaching staff stopped him.

"They asked if I had all the equipment, boots, shin pads and stuff like that," Bigirimana told BBC Sport. "I said 'yes' but I did not. They said they saw me running fast but to tell you the truth I was jogging.

"The next day they gave me a trial. It was near the end of the season but they took me on for the following campaign. It must have been a miracle."

Gael Bigirimana (left) is a popular member of the squad at Coventry. Photo - Getty images

Miracle or not, seven years later the 18-year-old has just been named the Football League Championship Apprentice of the Year for a season in which he has made a significant impact at the struggling second-tier club.

He has so far played 21 times for the first team after making his debut against Leicester in August and quickly became a cult figure among the club's supporters with a series of skilful and wholehearted performances in the centre of midfield.

"He has a good touch and has shown a maturity beyond his years," said Sky Blues manager Andy Thorn. "He has acquitted himself well."

Performing in such a pivotal position in a struggling side is a big responsibility for somebody in their debut season and Thorn is candid enough to admit that the youngster's form started to tail off. Bigirimana has not played for the first team since their match against Southampton in January. Even so, he had made enough of an impression to reportedly be the subject of a recent approach from Championship rivals Burnley, who wanted to sign the youngster on loan.

Bigirimana himself sounded philosophical when asked about his return to the youth side after a prolonged taste of first-team action.

"Football is full of disappointments," he explained. "Each one must make you a better player. Besides, the youth team are pushing for the league title and it is great to be able to help my friends there."

This upbeat, selfless attitude is part of the reason why players in the younger age groups look up to him. He told me that one of the things he needed to work on is developing a selfish streak in front of goal. He has infuriated his coaches at times this season by passing to a team-mate when he should have gone for goal himself. When I asked him about his ambitions he talked more about wanting his team-mates to succeed than listing any particular aspirations for himself.

He has regularly volunteered to visit schools in the area to talk to the younger pupils about his story and I imagine it must make for gripping listening because Bigirimana's journey in life sounds like the plot for a Hollywood script.

He is a refugee from the war-torn African country of Burundi who came to England in 2004. His mother arrived first before Gael followed with his father, two brothers and a sister.

Back in Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi, he played football at every opportunity, barefooted, on the streets. Prior to his arrival in England he lived briefly in Uganda and had his first experience of wearing boots and playing in a structured competition.

He had not been at Coventry City for more than a handful of training sessions before he approached the coach and asked to be moved to a higher age group. He explained that he was not finding his own group challenging enough.

It quickly became obvious that the boy from Burundi was a gifted footballer who loved to entertain and played with a freedom that endeared him to those around him. However, it was equally apparent that he understood the value of hard work.

"His determination to achieve manifests itself in his being the first at training and the last to leave," said Coventry academy manager Gregor Rioch.

Bigirimana is a deeply religious man who believes that everything that has happened to him is part of God's plan. The setbacks have been designed to make him stronger. He clearly has a huge determination to overcome any obstacles in his way.

This season he has attended extra sessions with the club's education officer on a Thursday afternoon to catch up on the studies he has missed as a consequence of his involvement with the first team. It is the sort of application that helped earn him his Apprentice of the Year award and should stand him in good stead for a successful career.

Thorn told me Bigirimana can have a "massive, massive future in the game" and added: "Gael's is an amazing story and just shows with the right dedication, work ethic and commitment what you can actually achieve."

As Bigirimana walked off the stage in London on Sunday evening clutching his award he had a huge grin on his face; don't bet against there being plenty more.

Bumpy, abrasive and with a bounce that could send a football into space, it was painful to play on and a poor spectacle to watch. The Preston players wore long tights for every home game, which tells you all you need to know about the quality of the surface.

Few tears were shed then when plastic pitches were formally outlawed in the Premier League and Football League in 1995, relegated, in the process, to little more than a footnote in the history of English professional football.

But all that could be about to change. An increasing number of Football League clubs are thinking of rolling back the years and going artificial again, albeit using a modern, high-tech surface that bears little resemblance to its predecessor.

Before a club can install an artificial surface, there would need to be a change to regulations. For that to happen, there would need to be a vote at an annual general meeting, with the motion only succeeding if it gets a majority of 50% plus one of all 72 clubs AND 50% plus one of the Championship clubs.

In short, we are still a considerable period of time away from a possible return to artificial surfaces. Certainly, everybody I spoke to talked in terms of years not months.

The Football League has no comment to make at the moment but I understand they are happy to let the clubs decide. They have already heard what the League's deputy operations director, Michael Tattersall, has to say after he gave a presentation to all 72 clubs in November and they will discuss the issue again in February. But it seems clear there is a real desire to find out more about the benefits of a return to artificial surfaces.

Luton played on an artificial surface at Kenilworth Road. Photo: Luton Town Football Club

Not surprisingly, by far the strongest area of support comes from within League Two, where even relatively modest revenue streams can make a huge difference, especially with every club set to lose £46,000 per season when the new television deal kicks in next summer.

Accrington Stanley chief executive Rob Heys is convinced an artificial surface offers several advantages. "There is the revenue that could be gained from hiring the pitch out, as well as the money that will be saved in maintenance," he told BBC Sport.

"We could use the surface for training, from the first team to youth sides. Then there is the community benefit. We could get people inside the ground seven days a week rather than 23 times a year."

Heys estimates that installing an artificial surface would cost as much as £500,000 but is confident that, with the right business model, the money would be easily recouped. "Technology has come a long way and the more you look at all the advantages, the more the drawbacks pale into insignificance," he said.

Some top-flight matches in Italy, France, the Netherlands and Switzerland already take place on artificial turf, so do some Champions League and Europa League games. Even some internationals tournaments, too. England's Euro 2008 qualifier against Russia took place on an artificial surface at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.

Scotland has a number of clubs with artificial pitches, among them Scottish Division Two side Airdrie United, who installed theirs in the summer of 2010.

"It has made the stadium more of a focal point in the community," Diamonds chairman Jim Ballantyne told BBC Sport. "Within time, especially given the weather in Scotland, lots of teams will have one. It is a case of when not if."

Not everyone is in favour. Burnley chief executive Paul Fletcher - no relation - says there is one drawback that cannot be overcome.

"I don't think the spectators would like it because it would be like watching a game of five-a-side football," said Fletcher, a former Clarets striker who has also played a key role in stadium development at clubs such as Huddersfield, Bolton and Coventry.

He also says we should not understimate the impact artificial surfaces have on the body. "The players of my era have had major problems with hips and joints as they have got older," said the 60-year-old. "Modern pitches have shock pads and they are getting better and better but, in my view, they will never replace the beautiful surface of grass."

Burnley play at Turf Moor on a desso surface that combines grass and artificial fibres. It can be used up to three times a week and Fletcher believes it allows clubs to provide the best available spectacle for their fans. The use of this desso surface is widespread in the Premier League and Championship.

However, Heys says it is too expensive for a club such as Accrington and could not be used as often as a true artificial pitch. What's more, he reckons that an artificial surface would provide a much more satisfying experience for fans than the games played at the Crown Ground at the back end of winter when the pitch is churned up and uneven.

League One side Wycombe Wanderers have been one of the driving forces as far as the reintroduction of artificial surfaces is concerned. It is three years since they first considered the idea and, despite Fletcher's view, their vice-chairman, Brian Kane, believes that there has been a significant shift of attitude in recent months.

"People said it would never happen but that has changed," he said. "There has been a groundswell from the bottom up. Clubs like Chelsea do not need the revenue they would get from letting out their pitch but clubs like Wycombe and Accrington do."

The Chairboys share their Adams Park stadium with rugby union team London Wasps but Kane says that arrangement would not stop them installing an artificial surface. Governing bodies in both union and league require an additional shock pad under the surface but both support their games being played on artificial surfaces.

Would Wycombe benefit from an artificial surface at Adams Park? Photo: Getty Images

"I'm very upbeat," said Kane. "When I started out I thought I would never see it within my lifetime but, within 10 years, I think we will see it at quite a number of clubs."

Heys, a more recent convert, is also strident in his belief that the return to artificial surfaces is a very realistic possibility, pointing out that it will be "a very viable alternative to grass in the near future".

But, besides the issue of spectator satisfaction, there are obstacles. For example, there are question marks over the impact artifical surfaces will have on the integrity of the Football League, given that it could be argued the home team has an unfair advantage.

The other is the stance of the Football Association, who banned the installation of new artificial surfaces in 1988, six years before the last one was finally ripped up. As things stand, FA Cup ties cannot be played on artificial pitches.

Support within the Championship appears to be substantially less than in Leagues One and Two, too. It is unknown whether second-tier teams could be persuaded to vote for a surface they do not favour.

Perhaps the over-riding issue is this: If an artificial surface can help a League Two club thrive, or even simply survive - and in the process become an integral part of its community - is that such a bad thing?

Or will it always be the case that real football can only be played on grass?

Graham Brookland, lifelong supporter and the club's communications and website manager, had to sort out the problem, but not before noticing the expression on 13-year-old son Oliver's face.

"The look of pure joy on his face took me back to when I was a kid," said Brookland. "Oliver goes to school and gets ribbed for supporting the Shots but now he can saying that his team is playing Man United."

The game against Manchester United has caught the imagination of supporters. Photo: PA

Brookland was chairman of the supporters club back then and had been in love with the Shots ever since he saw them demolish Cambridge United 6-0 in 1974. He was at the Recreation Ground when he heard the news that the club were no more.

"It is not possible to describe a moment like that," added Brookland. "There is an emptiness and an anger, the why, what and how?"

The following day Brookland met another devastated supporter, Terry Owens, at the Crimea pub opposite the Recreation Ground, which had already been padlocked by Rushmoor Borough Council, and resolved to form a new club.

"Terry and I did a lot of work," added Brookland. "We started a new company with two £1 shares, he has number one and I have number two. Mine sits in a cabinet."

They roped in as many people to help as they could. Owens, a local businessman who eventually spent six years as the club's chairman, acted as the frontman, while Brookland's brother David, a chartered accountant, helped with the finances. Brookland himself had been made redundant from his role in the City and had plenty of time to devote to the club.

They had no idea where they would play or what league they would be in. The Conference turned them down, as did the Southern League, but they were eventually allowed to enter Isthmian League Division Three. They looked into playing at the Aldershot military ground but eventually persuaded the council to grant them a licence to use the Rec.

The only player that remained was Chris Tomlinson, the groundsman's son, but Steve Wignall, who had made more than 150 appearances for the previous club, was put in charge of the newly formed Aldershot Town and cobbled a team together.

Their first fixture was against Clapton and Brookland can still instantly recall the attendance that day even though it was more than 19 years ago. They had budgeted for 700 but 1,493 turned up. It proved to be the lowest gate of the season.

The Shots went on to climb through five levels of the football pyramid before returning to the Football League with promotion to League Two in 2008. It was a remarkable journey but after several seasons of establishing themselves in the fourth tier, the draw against United has given the club new impetus.

"It is massive for us," added Brookland. "This has set our profile again, I think we needed it, it has given us a new incentive."

Aldershot FC played United twice, firstly in a League Cup tie in 1970 and then a friendly in 1982 organised after the Falklands War to raise money for the South Atlantic Fund. The Shots lost 3-1 at home back in 1970, with George Best, Denis Law and Brian Kidd on the scoresheet in front of a crowd of 18,500.

The capacity these days is a little under 7,500, but the tie has required a lot of organisation, with Brookland wryly noting that he seems to be spending more time on his part-time role with the club than his job as assistant secretary of the Army Football Association.

It hasn't done much for the club's form, with the Shots losing five straight League Two fixtures after their victory over Rochdale in the previous round.

They returned to form at Dagenham & Redbridge on Saturday with a 5-2 win.

Manager Dean Holdsworth, who played against Manchester United as a member of Wimbledon's Crazy Gang, rested Darren Jones, Ben Herd and Danny Hylton for the match at Victoria Road.

"We couldn't have allowed them to be booked or they would have missed the game on Tuesday and I would have opened myself up to some criticism with the gamble, but the gamble's paid off," said Holdsworth.

Current chairman Kris Machala said shortly after the draw that it was "the best thing to happen to the club in 40 years".

But in many ways the significance of the draw is much more personal than the revenue the club will generate and the raised profile it has given them.

Brookland, now 45, reckons that he wanted to form a new club back in 1992 so that there was a team for the people of Aldershot to support. Success was one thing, but secondary to the identity that having a local side gives to a town and its people.

It was a desire perfectly encapsulated on the look of joy on his son's face when the draw was made.

It would be something of a miracle if the Shots inflicted on their opponents the sort of hammering Sir Alex Ferguson's team had at the hands of rivals City on Sunday.

Indeed, the Shots may well get hammered by their illustrious opponents, but that is to miss the point. This tale is about the refusal to let a club die and the heights that determination can reach.

I'm told it was a reluctant "yes" from many of the clubs, who felt they had no choice. If they voted "no", the Premier League threatened to withdraw over £5m of funding that they give to lower league clubs each year for youth development.

It is all tied in with the Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP), which will radically modernise youth development in England, introducing a four-tier academy system. The new deal will see every club receive an increase in their funding for a guaranteed four-year period, with the amount determined by their academy status.

Against a background of a reduced tv deal and an uncertain economic climate, most Football League clubs are understood to have welcomed the funding increase - but Peterborough director of football Barry Fry told me the Premier League's threat felt like blackmail.

The idea is that it will help the most-talented players realise their potential. Ultimately, this will benefit not only the club that develops them but also the England team.

"This is a bigger step change than Howard Wilkinson's Charter for Quality," said a Premier League spokesman. "That was an incredible piece of work, which everybody bought into. But that was a stake in the ground and everybody has marched past it. The new plan is a great example of English football working together to raise standards across the board."

There is widespread support for many of the ideas and aspirations contained with EPPP at Football League level. I have spoken to chairmen, managers, academy directors and players. All of them believe the new system will succeed in many of its aims.

Manchester City's Joe Hart began his career at Shrewsbury and is now the national team's first-choice goalkeeper. Photo: Getty

But the insistence that the new set-up is combined with an overhaul of the tribunal system, currently used to determine a fee when clubs cannot reach agreement for the transfer of a home-grown player, has infuriated many in the Football League.

Two years ago, the Football League agreed to enter discussions about a new formula. This has bounced back and forth between the two bodies for most of 2011 but the Premier League has now made its final offer.

There will be a fixed tariff dependent on how long a player has been at the selling club. For example, the fee is fixed at £3,000-per-year for a player's development from nine to 11-years-old. The fee from 12 to 16 will depend on a club's academy status but will range from £12,500 to £40,000.

This will bring to an end Premier League clubs paying large fees for the best young talent in the Football League. Chelsea this week reportedly shelled out an initial £1.5m to MK Dons for 14-year-old Oluwaseyi Ojo. Under the new system they would be able to buy him for less than £150,000.

An academy director at a Championship club told me it was the flawed nature of the current tribunal system that forced Premier League clubs to pay a competitive price. The Premier League argues the bolt-on amounts the selling club will receive if the player is a success at his new club will ensure it is a fair system.

But this is dependent on a player going on to establish himself at a top-flight club. The academy director I spoke to believes it will lead to a situation where Premier League clubs "hoover up" the best young players aged nine to 16 at lower league clubs.

It will be worth a top-flight club buying several young players for under £100,000 on the basis they can afford for several to fall by the wayside - as long as some succeed.

There is an argument this will most benefit top-flight clubs who currently do not have a successful record in youth development.

The academy director told me: "Do you think Manchester United are too bothered about EPPP? They already have a first-class system and this is probably just extra paperwork for them. It is clubs that don't work well who will be desperate to put it in place because it will make their lives easier."

He believes this will stunt the long-term development of players who have moved to a club where they suddenly find themselves a long way from the first team.

John Bostock moved from Crystal Palace to Tottenham after a tribunal set his fee, but has found first-team opportunites at White Hart Lane limited. Photo: Getty

A good example is John Bostock, who joined Crystal Palace as an eight-year old and made his first-team debut aged 15. He was controversially signed by Tottenham as a 16-year-old, with a tribunal setting an initial fee of £700,000, with a further £1.25m dependent on first-team appearances.

However, he has yet to make a Premier League appearance for Spurs and has been loaned out to Brentford and Hull, his path to the first team blocked by seasoned professionals.

Under the new system, we could see a lot of youngsters at top-flight clubs being loaned to lower leagues to gain first-team experience.

What's more, the changes could lead to a scenario where academy directors at Football League clubs will have to try to instigate an auction to force up the price if a top-flight club shows an interest in one of their younger players.

The academy director added: "If a Premier League club came in for one of my 12-year-olds and the tariff said I could only get £20,000, I would have to try to start a bidding war by trying to get other clubs interested in him. This would probably involve an agent - and I would have to try to persuade the player's parents to take the biggest offer."

Of the 72 Football League clubs, only Hereford and Morecambe do not have a youth development system. The changes are unlikely to lead to an immediate reduction in the number of academies because the new system actually increases funding for clubs.

But the chairman of a League Two club told me that, further down the line, when the fixed period of extra funding has ended and lower league clubs are losing their best young players for next to nothing, many will decide to scrap their youth systems.

The academy director agrees. He added: "Youth systems at Championship clubs will survive because they will be able to cherry-pick from smaller clubs. But, for the likes of Barnet and Stevenage, I imagine it will be the end for them."

The Premier League itself is adamant that it is a fair system and the reforms are necessary. But they could cause a long-term problem that will transform the landscape of youth development in the Football League.

You can follow me throughout the season on Twitter: @Paul__Fletcher

Birmingham and Leicester both radically overhauled their squads in the summer - and on the evidence at St Andrew's on Sunday it is the club which acted out of financial necessity that is starting to look in better shape.

Blues defeated the Foxes 2-0 to win their third straight fixture in all competitions and deserved their three points after a second-half performance during which they rattled opponents who had not conceded in 412 minutes of Championship action coming into the contest.

It was a second-half display that added to a growing feeling around the club that, within the playing squad at least, an unsettling and uncertain summer belongs firmly in the past.

Despite Sunday's win, Birmingham boss Chris Hughton says the season will be a "tough one". Photo: Getty

Birmingham won their first major trophy in 48 years last season when they defeated Arsenal in the Carling Cup final but their relegation from the Premier League, combined with problems at boardroom level, ushered in an age of austerity which led to 20 first-team players leaving in an attempt to raise money and cut costs.

Until the transfer window closed at the end of August, new manager Chris Hughton did not know exactly who would be left, and, with the exception of two cash buys, had to rebuild his side with a mixture of loan signings and free transfers.

Perhaps not surprisingly, several Blues players have suggested the season did not really start until the end of August. Results have certainly improved since then, with one win from Birmingham's first four league fixtures giving way to three victories in five since the start of September.

"When you lose so many players, rebuilding takes time," said Hughton. "You just never know how long it will take. We have benefited from the window closing and we now have a bit more consistency."

And despite losing the likes of Sebastian Larsson, Roger Johnson, Craig Gardner, Scott Dann and Cameron Jerome, they still possess quality players. Four from the XI that started against Arsenal - Stephen Carr, Liam Ridgewell, Keith Fahey and Nikola Zigic - figured at some stage against Leicester, while the excellent Jean Beausejour, who came on as a substitute against the Gunners, remains at the club and struck the woodwork with a fierce drive on Sunday.

Hughton has bolstered his squad with some good signings. Winger Chris Burke arrived early in the summer, followed by players such as striker Marlon King - a scorer from the penalty spot against the Foxes - and New Zealand forward Chris Wood, who is on loan from West Bromwich Albion and showed great composure to slot home his eighth Championship goal of the season against Sven-Goran Eriksson's side.

"We have got a confidence and belief now and we have all gelled together," said Wood, who illuminated an occasionally dour contest with one exquisite flick that played King through on goal.

Blues have also benefited from the return from injury of Zigic, King and Fahey, but it may yet transpire that the Europa League campaign that is currently giving the club's supporters a great deal of pleasure will undermine their hopes of a high finish in the league.

Birmingham have sold out their allocation for Thursday's match at Club Bruges and the fans celebrated their opening goal against the Foxes by chanting "we're all going on a European tour".

But the Championship is an unforgiving competition and, as Leicester themselves are currently finding, will test the strongest of squads.

While Hughton's team prepare to travel to Bruges they will miss another round of midweek Championship fixtures. It means they will have three games in hand on most other teams, lending a slightly skewed appearance to their current position of 15th in the table, but also leaving them playing catch-up on everyone else.

"We want to be in contention," added Hughton. "As long as we know that we are in a position to have a go [to win promotion] that is the aim. But it is a tough one with the European campaign."

Stephen Carr and Darius Vassell demonstrate the depth of experience in both squads. Photo: Getty

Leicester manager Eriksson probably has a squad with enough depth and quality to contemplate both the Europa League and the Championship but the over-riding focus of his season is winning promotion to the Premier League.

After watching his team concede their second at St Andrew's, the Swede was left scratching his head as he looked on from the sidelines.

Bankrolled by the club's wealthy Thai owners, Eriksson spent an estimated £10m in the summer on 12 new players and his team's 4-0 thrashing of Derby before the international break suggested they were starting to match on the pitch the power they possess on paper.

The Foxes boss had toyed with different systems earlier in the season but after playing a 4-3-3 formation at Barnsley in mid-September, he has settled on a 4-4-2 with a midfield diamond - and it seemed to be working as they climbed from a low of 17th to eighth after the win over the Rams.

Leicester were on a nine-match unbeaten run going into Sunday's fixture and looked very solid in the first half. The match was still up for grabs after Blues took the lead but the Foxes were always vulnerable to a counter-attack after they had been reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of Matt Mills.

Nonetheless, even when Leicester had their full complement of players they lacked width and attacking invention. The unflappable Eriksson chose to pick out the positives after the match, noting that the Championship table can change quickly, and that victories over Watford and Millwall in the next six days will put them back on track.

"I think we are starting to look like a good, solid football team," said the Foxes' veteran manager.

"I wish that we created a little bit more in the first half today and we should do that with the possession we had but we can work on that.

"At the end I think it will be a good season."

But with a quarter of the campaign gone and the table starting to take shape, Eriksson's team are already seven points adrift of leaders Southampton - and they have plenty of improving to do if their manager's prediction is to be realised.

You can follow me throughout the season at twitter.com/Paul__Fletcher

While City, bankrolled by their Abu Dhabi owners, have gone on to assemble one of the most expensive squads in history, crippling off-the-field problems at Home Park have left Argyle with a small squad of old heads and willing youngsters scrapping for the club's Football League survival.

"When I think about how we fought and worked so hard to get the club from League Two into the Championship and to see how quickly we have gone right back down, it is very difficult," said French goalkeeper Romain Larrieu, who has been at the club since 2000 and is their longest-serving player at Home Park.

"Considering the size of the hole that apparently exists in our finances, I do not even think that we got to live the dream. I have been through it all and I do not know what happened. Funnily enough, nobody has admitted to me that they made mistakes."

Larrieu has endured the frustration of the club's slide down into League Two. Photo: Getty Images

Every month this year the players have had to accept at least a partial deferment of their wages. There have been months when they have not received any at all.

"I try to detach myself from it but it drives you mad," added Larrieu, who is now acting assistant manager at the club following the dismissal of Peter Reid on 18 September.

"If this had happened when I was younger I would be in very big trouble. Some months we have been given 20% or 30% and if you are on a good contract then that is still a decent wage, but for some of the younger players that does not leave them with enough to pay their rent.

"There have been so many deferred payments that I could honestly not tell you how much I am owed."

Larrieu laughed when asked what had been the lowest point over the last few months, pointing out that there were so many contenders. Eventually he opted for the day he found out the club were preparing to enter administration and had been issued with a 10-point deduction.

It was Monday 21 February and the squad had been at Home Park before heading off to Brighton for a league fixture the following day. At the same time there had been a meeting of the board at the stadium, during which it was decided to serve notice of the club's intention to appoint an administrator.

"Nobody from the board came out to tell us," added Larrieu. "We found out watching the news on the coach. Out of respect, we should have been told directly, we should not have found out that way."

That points deduction left Argyle eight adrift of safety at the bottom of League One. Perhaps not surprisingly, they lost 4-0 at Brighton.

During his time in charge former boss Reid sold his 1986 FA Cup runners-up medal to raise funds that he used to help pay the rent of some of his younger players.

He also paid the club's heating bill. There have been loans from the Professional Footballers' Association, numerous auctions, fund-raising events, bucket collections and donations as supporters of the club rallied to keep them alive.

Larrieu is keen to stress how difficult it has been for the backroom staff, the people who work in the office and have found the months of uncertainty with little or no pay incredibly difficult. He is also keen to emphasise how fantastic the Argyle's supporters have been. It is obvious that he cares deeply about the club and is desperate for it to survive.

"It has been a case of one broken promise after another and it has been very difficult on all the staff," he said. "As players we have never used the situation as an excuse but whoever says it does not play on your mind is an idiot."

Mpenza is long gone and last season ended in the club's second relegation in two seasons. The players that remained thought that a takeover would have been completed by the time they returned from holiday in the summer but the season started and nothing had been done.

Reid, who had to sell or release in the region of 40 players during his 15 months in charge, was left with only three senior players over the summer in Larrieu, Carl Fletcher and Onismor Bhasera. He attempted to bolster his threadbare squad at the end of August by bringing in defender Simon King from Gillingham on loan. King, whose wages are currently being paid by his parent club, was desperate to play regular football again after two injury-ravaged years.

"The first day I had a chat with the gaffer, who told me about the training session we were about to have," said King. "But the next thing I knew I was in a players' meeting discussing whether we would go on strike and not play against Burton the following Saturday. I was like 'what is going on here?' but if I had missed yet another pay day I'm sure I would have felt the same."

Fletcher, now in temporary charge at the club, said at the time: "You would not treat your worst enemy the way we have been treated." It was rumoured that some players were so broke they were considering selling their houses and cars.

The players called off the strike after they were promised 40% of their September salary and, almost two months on, there does appear to be hope for Argyle. A takeover by Devon-based hotelier James Brent has been agreed in principle with the club's joint administrators. Brent has requested a meeting with the players to explain his plans, a move that prompted Larrieu to wryly observe that "we will finally have some first-hand information."

On the pitch, the club won their first league fixture of the season last Saturday, a 2-0 defeat of Macclesfield. The starting XI against Macc had just four players aged 26 or over. Goalscorer Warren Feeney had the distinction of being the only player in his 30s.

Prior to that game the club had taken only one point from their opening nine games. King had noticed that the poor form was starting to affect some of the young players; their heads would drop when Argyle fell behind.

In the dressing after Saturday's victory there was a sense of quiet satisfaction. The players shook hands and congratulated each other. There is much hard work left to be done but for the club's battered and bruised players there is hope that better times lie ahead.

"So many players have been and gone over the last few years and they did not have the time to see what this club can become," added Larrieu.

"But now we have turned a corner. This week is better than last week and each day takes us nearer to being a normal football club again."

You can follow me throughout the season at twitter.com/Paul__Fletcher

In the past 12 months, Adkins has guided Saints to promotion from League One, enjoyed a successful summer in the transfer market (the club pocketed £12m from Arsenal for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain while buying the likes of full-back Danny Fox from Burnley and Jack Cork from Chelsea) and overseen a strong start to the Championship season.

But perhaps his biggest achievement, possibly even the secret of his success, has been to build a winning culture at a club where it was questionable whether everyone was pulling in the same direction.

Adkins has proved to be a steady and reliable figure at Southampton. Photo: Getty Images

"I often use the phrase 'together as one' and that is what we are," the 46-year-old Adkins told me. "We are a club that is united. "A club is about its people and we are trying to give everyone the opportunity to be best they can be. We have a very honest and hardworking group of players and staff. Everyone is very ambitious and we are building a culture and an environment where people can work hard."

Saints dismissed Pardew just three games into last season's League One campaign following a 4-0 thumping of Bristol Rovers. At first glance, the timing of the sacking appeared ludicrous, not least because it came at the end of a transfer window during which he had signed the likes of Ryan Dickson, Frazer Richardson, Danny Butterfield and Guiherme do Prado.

It was suggested Pardew's departure was because of a strained relationship not only with a large number of the club's coaching staff but also with chairman Nicola Cortese, who, I understand, wanted a manager whose perspective extended beyond the first team.

Many Saints supporters were initially unhappy with the decision to sack Pardew, who is now in charge of Premier League Newcastle. Some felt it was a rash decision by Cortese, a man who has not always enjoyed a smooth relationship with the club's fanbase.

But if Cortese, a former Swiss banker, was looking for a man with a grasp of modern management techniques to try to build and foster a winning culture, he certainly picked the right one in Adkins. The Birkenhead-born Saints boss sometimes sounds like he has swallowed a middle-management text book and is a world away from the old-school flying-teacups approach adopted by many running football clubs.

Adkins was brought in from Scunthorpe, where he had been the physiotherapist before his elevation to the role of manager in 2006. In his time in charge at Glanford Park, he oversaw promotion from League One twice but also failed to prevent relegation from the Championship in 2008.

Saints lost their opening fixture under Adkins - a 2-0 defeat at MK Dons that left the team in the bottom four - but they won their final six games of last season to clinch automatic promotion. They did it playing a brand of fast, skilful and attacking football that sat comfortably with supporters used to watching the likes of Matthew Le Tissier.

Southampton won their first four games of the current Championship season, including a 5-2 thrashing of Ipswich at Portman Road, although by that stage the doubters had long since been silenced. Saints are second in the table after Saturday's 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest.

I am told that Southampton's unquestionably talented squad, which boasts players such as Adam Lallana, Jose Fonte, Lee Barnard and Rickie Lambert, have benefitted from their manager's even temperament and analytical approach.

He believes in studying every match with his players in order to help them improve. He compiles a post-game report that is made up of five positives and one negative. He will use a video display and then discuss his thoughts with the squad. When this is done, he draws a blue line under the name of the opponent on his whiteboard and starts preparing for the next fixture.

He told me he still draws upon some of the lessons he learned during his first managerial role, in the early 1980s, as boss of Birkenhead Sunday League Division Five club Renbad Rovers. Adkins was a player at Tranmere but had already started to think about life beyond his playing career.

Renbad won promotion all the way to the Premier Division under Adkins, who went on to win back-to-back titles at League of Wales side Bangor City in the mid-1990s before he left to become Scunthorpe's physio, a role he occupied for a decade before his return to management.

Optimism is growing in a certain corner of the south coast that Adkins could perhaps add another promotion to his CV in May. But he knows it will be difficult.

"This season is going to be so tough for everybody and there are probably about 15 or 16 teams who believe they have got a chance of promotion," said Adkins.

"We are one of them. The staff at the club have got to keep pushing the squad as hard as they can. We have got to push them, pull them, carry them, drive them on - and we have got to do it together."

Cortese set out a five-year plan when he took over at Saints to transform the club from a third-tier outfit struggling to fulfil its potential to a side back in the top flight for the first time since their relegation from the Premier League in 2005.

Adkins is not planning any celebrations to mark his first year in charge - he did not even realise the anniversary of his appointment was imminent until someone pointed it out to him last week - but if Saints do win promotion again the champagne corks are sure to start flying.

Fast forward 12 months and the 30-year-old is gearing up for Leicester's trip to Barnsley as the Championship resumes after the international break.

He has exchanged one of the most famous clubs in England for one of the most ambitious.

The east Midlands club are bankrolled by their Thai owners - the wealthy Raksriaksorn family who own a firm that sells duty-free goods at Thailand's airports - and have strengthened way beyond the means of many top-flight clubs, let alone most of their Championship rivals, as Sven-Goran Eriksson's team attempt to fast-track promotion to the Premier League.

Konchesky is confident Leicester will handle the pressure to succeed. Photo: Getty Images

Big signings equal huge expectations but a return of four points from their opening four league games, including back-to-back home defeats, created an early build-up of pressure that was partially relieved by a 3-2 home win over high-flying Southampton in the previous fixture.

"After [losing] the first two home games it was crucial that we defeated Saints," Konchesky told me. "The home games have been very tough because of the expectations of the fans.

"We have spent a lot of money and the supporters want us to win every game but the Championship is a tough league."

To be able to shut out the pressure Konchesky tries not to look too far ahead, just focusing on the next game, while he reckons that activities such as a recent trip to the races have helped to foster a good team spirit.

Konchesky is also confident that his time on Merseyside will help him withstand the pressure at Leicester.

Twelve months ago a slightly fortunate goalless draw at Birmingham marked a solid if unspectacular start to his Anfield career but the defender's time at Liverpool coincided with a troubled period for the club.

New manager Roy Hodgson struggled to establish himself following his move from Fulham and he left the club after a 3-1 defeat at Blackburn on 5 January. That fixture also proved to be the last of the 18 appearances Konchesky made in a Liverpool shirt.

Konchesky's time at Anfield was not helped by an unwise Facebook comment made by the player's mother, who branded some of the club's supporters "Scouse scum". On the field he did not lack effort and his attitude was excellent but he struggled to adjust to the standards required of a club aiming for a top-four finish. He was honest enough to hold his hands up after his mistake late in a fixture at Tottenham in late November cost his team a 2-1 defeat. Konchesky did not play after Kenny Dalglish returned to the club in early January and was loaned out to Nottingham Forest, before joining Leicester permanently.

"I enjoyed my time at Liverpool, the experience of being at a top club," added Konchesky. "I wish them nothing but good luck.

"The tough times were when I was not playing but I was at a club where there is constant pressure, every season, so hopefully from leaving there to come here I am now used to high expectations."

Konchesky, who has previously also played for Charlton, Tottenham and West Ham, won both of his England caps under his current boss Eriksson. The first came in a 3-1 friendly defeat against Australia in 2003 and the second saw him feature as a substitute in a 3-2 win over Argentina in 2005. He reckons the Swede was a big factor in his move to the King Power Stadium.

"Sven is a nice man and a great coach," added Konchesky. "He has been there with England and he can calm things down and give us confidence.

"Everyone is talking about Leicester and I wanted to be a part of it."

Konchesky, who had his best game in a Leicester shirt against Saints, sounded relaxed and confident as he discussed Leicester's prospects of promotion.

"With 46 league games in the Championship it is very long but with the cup competitions as well we want to be playing a lot more games than that," he added.

Konchesky, who became a father for the third time last week, has clearly put a difficult year behind him and is keen to use his experience positively. He is also hopeful that Liverpool fans have not seen the last of him.

Next season the left-back would like to be back at Anfield, as part of a Leicester team playing in the top flight for the first time since 2004.

"Last season there was not a one clear outstanding team in the division, and I include QPR in that," said Rangers midfielder Shaun Derry, who played 45 league games last season as the London club won the second-tier title.

"I think there are two this year in West Ham and Leicester. Looking at their squads, they blow the rest of the chasing pack away in terms of quality."

The gritty Sam Allardyce and traditional footballing purists of West Ham might not appear to be a natural fit but the former Bolton, Newcastle and Blackburn boss has the experience and leadership skills to oversee an immediate return to the top flight at Upton Park.

Realistically the club might lose some of their proven Premier League performers before the transfer window closes but so far pretty much all of their key players remain. In addition, the Hammers have signed two excellent Championship performers in Matt Taylor and Kevin Nolan, who skippered Newcastle to promotion back to the top flight in 2010.

Nolan knows the pressure is on to win promotion this season. Photo: Getty Images

"I want to get this fantastic club back to where it belongs," said Nolan in an interview to be broadcast on Football Focus on 6 August.

"There is no doubt about it, we want to be promoted and do it automatically. We have to win promotion to the Premier League, we deserve to be there with the players we have but we have to prove it.

"The fans at Newcastle were fantastic and when I finish here I want to be able to come back and watch a game and hope that the supporters come up to me to shake my hand rather than throw things at me. The expectation levels between West Ham and my former club Newcastle is very similiar."

In many ways, Leicester are the story of the summer in English football. Former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson, bankrolled by the Thai consortium that took over the club last season, has spent beyond the reach of many top-flight clubs, let alone Championship sides.

Eriksson was busy in the transfer market after his arrival last October trying to fast-track his team into the Premier League. The likes of Darius Vassell, Yakubu, Diomansy Kamara, Souleymane Bamba and Miguel Vitor arrived, although the Foxes finished the season 10th, eight points short of the play-offs.

Undeterred, the Swede is once again spending to succeed. Neil Danns, Kasper Schmeichel, Sean St Ledger, David Nugent, Matt Mills, Paul Konchesky, John Pantsil and loan duo Michael Johnson and Gelson Fernandes have all been brought in as the Foxes make a full-on push for promotion.

"Leicester have not exactly built gradually but have gone all out for one of the top spots," added Derry.

"For me, everything revolves around West Ham but if Leicester can get on their coat tails and stick in there, I think both of them could be a number of points clear at the end of the season."

Beyond the Foxes and the Hammers there are numerous teams who could justifiably expect to push for a play-off place. The appointment of Steve McClaren at Nottingham Forest means there are two former England managers in this season's Championship.

"I'm from Nottingham and I get the impression the fans have taken to McClaren, and when there are 27,000 or so supporters backing the team at home, Forest take some stopping," added Derry.

"Jonathan Greening will be a good signing in midfield. Experience will be crucial for teams hoping to do well. A few years ago there was a strong emphasis on youth but we showed last season at QPR that having the right know-how throughout the side is vital."

In Greening and Andy Reid, Forest have two wily midfielders who are comfortable in possession and should be able to supply Forest's ample array of wide men and strikers.

This time last year a lot of the talk surrounded Gordon Strachan's Middlesbrough. That proved to be a spectacular failure and the Scot quit in mid-October "tortured" by his failure to build a winning side on Teesside.

They have gone relatively unnoticed this summer, with attention focused elsewhere.
However, they won six of their last 11 games last season under Tony Mowbray and look strong providing they can replace striker Leroy Lita, who has just been sold to Swansea.

Another team to keep an eye on is Ipswich Town, who might have lost talented youngster Connor Wickham but appear to have bolstered their squad wisely with the experienced trio of defender Ivar Ingimarsson, midfielder Lee Bowyer and striker Michael Chopra.

"I have got Ipswich in my top six," added Derry. "They are my dark horses, a team that appears to have slipped under the radar."

Birmingham have arguably lost too many important players that have not been replaced since their relegation, while Cardiff's entire forward line of Michael Chopra, Jay Bothroyd, Chris Burke and Craig Bellamy have left the club.

But to discount them entirely would be foolish as the Championship is a league that consistently confounds expectations. Hardly anybody tipped Norwich and Swansea for promotion before last season started, while many had the Swans down as relegation material.

"I tried to put a table together the other day," said Derry. "After my top two it was an impossible task. You could toss a coin with regard to about a dozen teams for the four play-off places."

However, I reckon that one thing is for sure. If West Ham or Leicester do not go up, the men currently in charge of them will be seeking employment.

You can follow me throughout the season at twitter.com/Paul__Fletcher

To supporters of the Tigers he was the man who took the club into the Premier League and defied the odds to keep them there (for one season at least), winning at Arsenal and Tottenham, and grabbing points at Chelsea and Liverpool.

He made headlines with his half-time team-talk on the pitch at Manchester City on Boxing Day 2008 and his ropey rendition of Sloop John B after securing survival on the final day of the season.

Brown is now hoping his upbeat and colourful management style can revive the fortunes of Preston North End, who were relegated to League One last season after a decade of second-tier football.

That has continued this summer, with high earners such as Andy Lonergan and Sean St Ledger leaving, while the out-of-contract Billy Jones left earlier in the summer and, to the chagrin of many supporters, Keith Treacy was sold to Burnley earlier this week.

Brown is confident that his North End team can win promotion. Photo: Getty Images

North End were a modest outfit who often punched above their weight in the Championship, twice reaching the play-off final. Despite the recent problems, they are now a big fish in League One, which looks very competitive. The two Sheffield clubs - United and Wednesday - Huddersfield, Charlton and Scunthorpe are among those who will fancy their chances.

One might think Brown would be keen to talk down his team's prospects of promotion. That would be wrong. Very wrong.

"What does League One look like? Hopefully it looks like Preston at the top with everyone trying to catch them," said Brown, sitting in his modest manager's office at the club's training ground on the outskirts of Preston.

"I would rather be a big scalp than not. I want to set the standard in this division and I want this to be a one-season stay.

"The people that work for Preston have got to be thinking in terms of first or second tier. That has to be the mentality for the whole group."

Season-ticket sales would suggest that, allied with some competitive pricing, Brown's unbreakable optimism has proved infectious. The club had 6,100 season-ticket holders last season. Despite relegation and the loss of key players, North End will have almost 7,000 this coming campaign.

In conversation it quickly becomes obvious that Brown wants the pressure of an expectant and large crowd. Last season he watched Sheffield Wednesday labour to a 1-0 win over Leyton Orient at Hillsborough. He noted how quickly the crowd got on the back of the home team, who struggled to cope with the pressure to succeed.

"Our biggest hurdle this season will be stopping teams coming to Deepdale and enjoying themselves but we have got to be big enough to get the ball down and play. We have got more than enough to cover what the opposition throws at us."

North End have brought in goalkeeper Iain Turner, Burnley defender Clark Carlisle and trialist Brian McLean this summer, while Neil Mellor is back from a season-long loan at Wednesday.

They also have some promising young players such as striker Jamie Proctor, who has taken the number nine shirt, and defender Conor McLaughlin. Brown is desperate to bring in an experienced left-back and following the departure of left winger Treacy his side now appears to lack balance, but otherwise he reckons PNE are raring to go ahead of Saturday's opener against Colchester.

"We will hit the ground running, we are fit and strong and a number of players have told me what they want to do and achieve. I'm not saying what it is but it's music to my ears," added Brown.

Tranmere boss Les Parry agrees that Brown will ensure PNE are competitive, suggesting they will be "fit, organised and difficult to beat".

But the Rovers manager is picking out Huddersfield as his team to watch. The Terriers have fallen short in the play-offs over the previous two seasons, with the 3-0 final defeat by Peterborough in May a particularly painful experience for boss Lee Clark.

"I know Lee quite well and he does not want to go through that hurt again," added Parry. "They might have lost Lee Peltier and Anthony Pilkington but he has brought in some good players. I saw them in pre-season and Donal McDermott, signed from Manchester City, looked a real handful."

Charlton probably win the award for most extensive summer rebuilding, with manager Chris Powell signing 15 new players so far, and a similar number leaving the Valley.

Powell won his first four games after his appointment as manager in January but lost his next four and his team's promotion challenge subsequently faded. Four years after their relegation from the top flight, Addicks fans must be desperately hoping their club's problems have bottomed out.

Brentford look like an interesting outside bet for a top-six place. Midfielder Jonathan Douglas, signed from Swindon, and striker Clayton Donaldson, who has joined from Crewe, both look like excellent signings. Parry tried to sign the Bradford-born Donaldson but could not match his wage demands.

The Sheffield derby will take place in the third tier of English football for the first time in more than 30 years. It will arguably be the biggest single fixture in the League One calendar and bring the division more into national focus.

But you can rest assured that Brown will be doing everything possible to ensure that it is Preston who spend the season hogging the limelight.

You can follow me throughout the season at twitter.com/Paul__Fletcher

He enjoyed the relaxed seaside lifestyle and the relatively temperate weather on the English Riviera, he met Kelly and fell in love, and his football team were on the rise, reaching last season's League Two play-off final.

But Branston, a strong and uncompromising central defender, has given it all up to join the fourth tier's perennial under-achievers Bradford City.

Bye bye palm trees, hello two-bed in Pudsey.

Branston is a natural leader who has been made Bradford skipper. Photo: Getty Images

Branston is no stranger to taking a chance, gambling on his next move. According to Soccerbase, he has made nine permanent moves and 13 loans spells since he started out as a trainee at Leicester in 1997. It strikes me as a life of endlessly depressing hotel rooms and handshakes with new team-mates. But the bubbly Branston sees it differently.

"Martin O'Neill was my manager at Leicester and he told me to go out to the lower leagues, to take it all in, embrace it and become a better person and player. He was right," said the intelligent and in-yer-face Branston.

"Some hotels have been awful. One was choc-a-block with first-team players and youth-teamers. It was filthy and the food was terrible. I dropped a stone in weight.

"But moving to different clubs is something that has helped me. If the manager at your club does not want you, then you don't play anymore. Simple. A loan move has always been a great option, playing games, meeting people. I try to take every positive I can."

Branston claims he has just finished the hardest pre-season of his career and has relished the opportunity to impress upon his team-mates his unwavering desire to make a success of his move north. In training the other day, one of Bradford's younger players came out of a challenge with him sporting a black eye. When the player in question asked Branston if he should not have taken it a little easier, the defender laughed.

"I train how I play, I cannot turn it on and off," added Branston. "If there is a ball to be won, I win it, play it simple, pick the other player up afterwards and shake his hand. Young players must realise they have to have a winning mentality."

It is perhaps not surprising that manager Peter Jackson, now 50 but once upon a time a no-nonsense centre half with the Bantams, has made Branston his skipper.

The west Yorkshire club have finished 10th, ninth, 14th and 18th since their relegation to the bottom tier in 2007. Both Stuart McCall - another club legend - and Peter Taylor failed to build a winning team at Valley Parade, but Jackson is determined to arrest that sustained trend of mediocrity and wants Branston to make sure that a youngish squad understands the importance of grinding out results during a long season.

The skipper points to the likes of striker James Hanson, midfielders Dave Syers, Lee Bullock, Michael Flynn and fellow defender Luke Oliver as the experienced core of a squad that he hopes can challenge for promotion.

"We have an outside chance," he said. "It will be a big transitional season. We're a young vibrant squad with exciting players like Dominic Rowe, Chris Mitchell and former Falkirk forward Mark Stewart.

"Team spirit is massive in this division and we need to stick together. If we don't it could be a long season."

Branston reckons that Shrewsbury will be one of the teams to watch, with wily and experienced manager Graham Turner capable of improving on last season's fourth-placed finish.

He is backing his former club Torquay to recover from the loss of manager Paul Buckle to Bristol Rovers. "They have got players with a bright future," said the defender. "The club has got a solid fanbase of 2,000 and I hope the team can kick on again because they deserve success."

But he reckons that all four teams relegated from League One last season - Bristol Rovers, Swindon, Plymouth and Dagenham & Redbridge - may find it surprisingly difficult to adjust.

Rovers' new manager Buckle has brought in 15 new players and it will be interesting to see how successfully they gel.

"Buckle knows what he is doing but I would not have signed that many," said Branston. "He is putting himself under massive pressure.

"Swindon are a good club and they will be a side for others to worry about. I think that new boss Paulo Di Canio will want players with proven ability, although a lot of his signings have not played in this division before."

Di Canio was a flamboyant and outspoken player but the 43-year-old is completely unproven in management. He has signed players from Italy, Ghana, Namibia, the Netherlands and Algeria. Without doubt, a bold and brave venture has been undertaken at the County Ground and I don't think it will take long before we find out if it has been a foolish one.

Crawley, promoted from the Blue Square Bet Premier last season, are the bookies' favourites and several clubs will feel that, with a following wind, they could trouble the top end of the table.

Chesterfield, Wycombe, Bury and Stevenage won promotion last season - and who would have picked those four before the season began?

I am certain that unfancied teams will again emerge out of the pack this season, and I would not be surprised if the unflinching Branston has made sure that the Bantams are one of them.

You can follow me throughout the season at twitter.com/Paul__Fletcher