Europe conquerors Manchester United, passing geniuses Arsenal and always-surprising Everton and Aston Villa are just a few of the big names that the new boys from the Championship will be pitted against next season.

West Brom, Stoke and Hull are the so-called "newbies" to England's top flight. After mixed seasons for all of them, with so many plus points throughout the 10-month ordeal of the Championship, all three clubs have ended up where they wanted to be - starting the 2008/09 season playing the world's finest players.

But, after all the hard work of promotion, can they maintain their status in the Premier League? The answer - most probably - is no.

'The gap between the top flight and the second tier in English football is becoming increasingly bigger and, with time, sides will struggle even more to close the growing chasm'


West Brom are a tad more established amongst the big boys, having played in the top flight between 2004 and 2006, before they were relegated after an amazing escape the season before.

Stoke and Hull, however, are less likely to know how to survive in the Premier League due to lack of appearances. You have to go back a couple of decades since Stoke's last crack at England's elite. And Hull? Well, they've never been there before.

The gap between the top flight and the second tier in English football is becoming increasingly bigger and, with time, sides will struggle even more to close the growing chasm, leading to complete isolation of the top flight.

Money, ownership, players, experience and stamina are only a few things that the three clubs will have to build their foundation on if they want to thrive in the Premier League.

They will also have to improve on their latest results against top-flight teams. Newcastle, Chelsea and Portsmouth were all opponents for at least one of the promoted sides last season, with the Premier League teams running out overall winners on each occasion.

West Brom may have a shadow of a chance as at least some of their players have vital experience - Dean Kiely, Jonathan Greening, Kevin Phillips. But they will have to spend big and look for ownership if they hope to avoid the drop to the Championship once again. As for Hull and Stoke, there is an infinite amount of needs and requirements that they just don't have to survive in the Premier League.

It will be an adventure for their fans - there are already many stories they can tell in years to come after the heroics of this season - but they'll have to prepare themselves for a different sort of campaign next time around. They'll more than likely be conceding more goals than they score, meaning their games will be scheduled first on Match Of The Day for all the wrong reasons!

All three of the newly-promoted sides will have to fight extra hard and - as the cliche goes - will have to see every game as a cup final if they want even the slimmest hope of maintaining their status in the top division for another season.