Jeff Stelling thinks two things could mean West Ham stop Wolves winning automatic promotion | OneFootball

West Ham and Wolves are the two favourites to finish in the Championship's top two - but talkSPORT presenter Jeff Stelling isn't so sure

Sports broadcasting icon Jeff Stelling believes that the bolstering of West Ham's attacking unit between now and the summer transfer deadline could lead to the Hammers pipping Wolves to automatic promotion from the Championship.

Both West Ham and Wolves, as well as Burnley, dropped from the Premier League earlier this year, with the former returning to the level for the first time in 14 years.

Significant money has already been recouped with the sales of individuals such as Mateus Fernandes and Crysencio Summerville, but there's been little strengthening of Nuno Espirito Santo's squad yet, with Manor Solomon and Joel Veltman the only two players arriving at the London Stadium so far.

Wolves and West Ham have some serious Championship firepower

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Wolves have had a similarly minimal turnover since their drop to the Championship, although there was a big shock when Rob Edwards was sacked as manager, to be replaced by Portuguese coach Cesar Peixoto.

Standard Liege winger Rafiki Said is the only fully new face that has joined for a fee, whilst the return of veteran striker Raul Jimenez was a real feel good moment - landing ex-England international right-back Kieran Trippier is also being seen as a coup.

Losing only Joao Gomes so far from their main crop of star players after his move to Midlands rivals Aston Villa, Wolves are in a strong position heading into their season opener against Blackburn Rovers, and right now, the aforementioned Stelling sees them as an automatic promotion finisher, with only Middlesbrough ahead of them.

Jeff Stelling issues Championship promotion prediction involving West Ham & Wolves

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That could all change in the last two-and-a-half weeks of the transfer window, though.

Transfer business in the Championship has been somewhat of a slow burner, mainly due to the knock-on effect of the FIFA World Cup and late pre-seasons for top flight clubs.

Wolves may be ready to spend more money, but also potentially cash in on some assets ahead of the September 1 deadline, but West Ham look ready to splash the cash significantly too.

And whilst ex-Sky Sports presenter Stelling currently has Wolves in second position in his predicted table, that will change if West Ham land a marquee striker or two in the next two weeks.

"I think Wolves might go up automatically too. I think they might need to spend again," Stelling said on talkSPORT.

"I've got a lot of experience in Kieran Trippier and Raúl Jiménez, and you saw Raúl Jiménez at the World Cup; he looks well capable of scoring goals in the Championship.

"West Ham I've got in the playoffs; I think they've lost too many and not enough incoming. So I've got them in the playoff.

"But I tell you what, if they sign Troy Parrott and Jamie Vardy, then I'll flip that round with Wolves. But that's an if at the moment."

West Ham of course have been linked with both Parrott and Vardy in recent weeks, as Nuno looks to add to Taty Castellanos and Pablo at the centre-forward spot, with Niclas Fullkrug likely to depart again.

The Hammers had an opening offer of around €18m-€20m turned down for Republic of Ireland international striker Parrott, but they are expected to improve that bid imminently, whilst the more experienced Vardy is being considered as a potential option by the east London club's hierarchy.

Troy Parrott could be game-changing for West Ham more than Jamie Vardy

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Whilst former England international forward Vardy still seemingly has something left in the tank after a short stint in Serie A with Cremonese, where he scored seven times, the 39-year-old realistically isn't going to be considered as the player to lead the line in 2026-27 for West Ham.

Parrott however is different. His loan spells within the EFL in the past haven't exactly seen him be prolific, with his 2022-23 spell with Preston North End in the Championship only seeing him find the back of the net three times, but a move to the Netherlands has proved incredibly beneficial.

His loan stint at Excelsior in 2023-24, where he scored 17 times in all competitions, was a good start, but Parrott's 51 goals in 95 outings for AZ Alkmaar across the past two seasons has been nothing short of fantastic.

Aged just 24 still, there's still plenty more to come from Parrott now he's unlocked the goalscoring part of his game, and even though it may take West Ham the best part of more than £20 million to bring him back to London, the centre-forward could be the game-changer that is needed.