Middlesbrough now know their 23 opponents in the Championship next season, with Leeds United’s defeat to Southampton in the play-off final at Wembley condemning them to another year in the second tier.
Theirs was the final Championship spot to be decided for next season, with Portsmouth, Derby County and Oxford United already confirmed to be coming up from League One as Rotherham United, Huddersfield Town and Birmingham City dropped out due to relegation.
Luton Town, Sheffield United and Burnley will also be back in the second tier next term after all failing to survive their first year back in the Premier League. As well as the Saints, they are replaced by Leicester City and Ipswich Town – with Boro now clear who they must beat if they are to achieve their ambition of making it back to the Premier League next year.
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As far as travel for Boro and supporters next season, the changes mean that Boro will travel slightly more next season – at least in the league alone. That doesn’t include potential cup games where, last term, a Carabao Cup run was largely spent on the road as Michael Carrick’s side reached the semi-finals.
But in the Championship alone, Boro’s travelling last season has increased slightly, from 8.904 miles travelled last term, to 8,936 miles in the upcoming campaign. That might have been significantly more had Leeds earned promotion over Southampton, with Daniel Farke’s side becoming the first side in Championship history to gain 90 points and not win promotion.
In terms of miles lost, with big trips to Ipswich and Southampton scratched from the schedule, in total – going from the Riverside to the opposition ground and back – 2,132 miles have been lost on last season’s journeying. But with Portsmouth and a first trip to Oxford United’s Kassam Stadium added to the destinations list and Yorkshire teams like Rotherham and Huddersfield lost, there are 2,164 miles extra to travel to the new sides in the division.
Carrick’s side proved good travellers last term too. As well as their success in the Carabao Cup, they lost only eight of their 23 away games last season to finish sixth in the Championship table made up of only away results. It’s at the Riverside where they’ll be looking for the biggest improvements, with only ten wins in 23 leaving them 12th in the home table.