
Staying in the Premier League is tough for any newly promoted team because the step up is huge. It's definitely proved that recently with last season's newly promoted team all going straight down, and this season's newly promoted teams all struggling.
But there have been some teams who have made the step up look very straightforward.
To stay in the Premier League, you need to have proven Premier League players, a clear identity in the way you play, and the ability to be adaptable. The majority of the teams on the list had all of them.
And here it is:
Wolves - 2018/19
Newcastle - 1993/94
Sheffield United - 2019/20
Fulham - 2022/23
Reading - 2006/07
Ipswich - 2000/01
Nottingham Forest - 1994/95
Birmingham - 2009/10
Leeds - 2020/21
Brentford - 2021/22
Brentford - 2021/22
Brentford finished 13th in their first Premier League and they looked like a Premier League team for much of a season as they comfortably finished in mid-table.
They were nearly sucked into a relegation fight following a drop off in form after Christmas, but the signing of Christian Eriksen gave them that extra bit of quality they needed to stay out of a dogfight and end the season strongly.
This team managed by Thomas Frank had a strong defence, a well drilled midfield, and a striker who knew where the back of the net was in Ivan Toney. They have since established themselves as a Premier League club.
Sheffield United - 2019/20
No one gave Sheffield United a chance when they came up in 2019, and they went on to silence their doubters by finishing 9th, and even putting themselves in contention for Europe.
They didn't have many stars in their team, but what they did have was a team spirit and that team spirit played a massive role in them having the season they had under Chris Wilder.
I only have them in this position because they didn't score many goals. Their top scorer scored just 6 goals that season in Lys Mousset and Oli McBurnie.
Birmingham - 2009/10
Birmingham finished 9th in their first season back in the Premier League under Alex McLeish, and they even briefly put themselves in contention for Europe.
I remember them going on an incredible run of form that season from the autumn right into the winter, and that incredible run played a huge role in the season they had.
That was the only season they had in the Premier League as they were relegated the following season, despite winning the League Cup.
Leeds - 2020/21
Leeds finished 9th in their first season back in the Premier League after 16 years away and they were probably the most entertaining team to watch.
They were a side who would start games on the front foot and with a lot of energy that season under Marcelo Bielsa, and they also gave some of the big teams a good game.
Kalvin Phillips was the heartbeat of that team as he would be the one who would dictate play in midfield by pinging those long passes from deep. They also had Patrick Bamford, who proved his doubters wrong by scoring 17 goals.
Reading - 2006/07
Reading finished 8th in their first ever season in the top flight and they went into it off the back of winning the Championship with a record breaking 106 points. A record that is yet to be broken.
They carried the momentum from their promotion campaign into their debut Premier League campaign and they kept it up for the majority of the season.
Manager Steve Coppell was named manager of the year that season, and his side had midfielders who would create and work hard, and strikers who could score goals.
Fulham - 2022/23
Fulham were a yo-yo club prior to their return to the Premier League in 2022 as they were a side who kept going up but ended up going straight back down.
They ditched that yo-yo tag for good in 2022 as their recruitment was much improved compared to prior seasons, and they had a striker who knew where the back of the net was in Aleksandar Mitrovic, who proved his doubters wrong by scoring 14 goals.
Manager Marco Silva, who had been criticized in the past for setting his teams up to be too open, also proved a point as he made them more resilient and tougher to beat.
They have since established themselves as a Premier League club under Silva's management.
Wolves - 2018/19
If this top 10 was about the best newly promoted teams I've seen, Wolves would be top of the list.
They finished 7th and qualified for Europe in their first season back in the Premier League under Nuno Espirito Santo. How many newly-promoted teams qualify for Europe?
They did spend a lot of money that season which enabled them to bring in some big name players including keeper Rui Patricio, who was Portugal's no.1 at the time, and Joao Moutinho, who was their player of the season and whose creativity was key for them that season.
As well as those two players they had captain Conor Coady, who was incredible all season in the middle of their solid three-man defence, and a striker who knew where the back of the net was in Raul Jimenez, who they initially had on loan before making his deal permanent at the of that season.
Ipswich - 2000/01
Ipswich finished 5th in their first season back in the Premier League and were the last newly promoted team to qualify for Europe before Wolves in did in 2019.
They did start slowly, but they soon grew as the season progressed and even put themselves in contention for a Champions League spot.
They also had a clinical striker up top in Marcus Stewart who scored 19 league goals that season. Only Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink scored more that season.
Nottingham Forest - 1994/95
Forest finished 3rd in their first season back in the Premier League after just a season away. Not many newly-promoted teams have finished this high and I don't think there will be any more.
They started the season incredibly as they won 8 of their opening 11 games and they ended the season in similar fashion, winning 9 of their final 11 games and that incredible run saw them qualify for Europe.
They had a strong team on paper, including the likes of Stuart Pearce, Alfie Haaland and Stan Collymore, who scored 22 league goals.
Newcastle - 1993/94
Like Forest, Newcastle also finished 3rd in what was their first Premier League season. I had to go with them at no.1 because their team had a bit more quality.
They had a lot of goals in their attack, which was lead by Peter Beardsley and Andy Cole, the latter of who scored a then record-breaking 34 goals to win the golden boot, and their midfield had players who would work hard in Lee Clark and Rob Lee.
Because of the goals they scored that season and the quality of players they had in other areas, I had to have them at no.1.
MY TOP 10
Newcastle - 1993/94
Nottingham Forest - 1994/95
Ipswich - 2000/01
Wolves - 2018/19
Fulham - 2022/23
Reading - 2006/07
Leeds - 2020/21
Birmingham - 2009/10
Sheffield United - 2019/20
Brentford - 2021/22
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