Where AI thinks Coventry City and Middlesbrough would finish in the Premier League next season | OneFootball

The Sky Blues and Boro are currently in the box seat for promotion

At present, it is hard to look beyond Coventry City and Middlesbrough as the two sides with the strongest chances of being automatically promoted from the Championship and back to the Premier League.

As the second tier campaign approaches the manic Christmas and New Year period, which coincides with a manic fixture schedule and the reopening of the transfer window, the Sky Blues and Teesside outfits remain firmly inside the top two, having embarked on remarkable runs of form throughout the opening four months of the season.

Those in the West Midlands are currently pinching themselves when thinking about what might be in store at the Coventry Building Society Arena in a handful of months, with Coventry yet to return to the Premier League after they were dramatically relegated on the final day of the 2000/01 season under Gordon Strachan after a second-half collapse against Aston Villa at Villa Park.

It has also been a number of years since Middlesbrough and their supporters last tasted the glitz and glamour of the top flight, having previously failed to re-establish themselves at the top table of English football in 2016/17, where they immediately fell back into the Championship alongside Hull City and Sunderland under the management of Aitor Karanka and Steve Agnew.

Of course, plenty has changed since then, especially in Coventry's case, with it often debated amongst supporters of many sides that there is a clear financial disparity which makes it extremely challenging for sides who are promoted from the Championship to survive past their first season back in the top-flight.

Fulham, AFC Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest all achieved survival after being promoted in 2021/22, but none of the six sides in the subsequent three seasons have been able to bridge the gap, although Sunderland are giving it their best shot this time around after breaking spending levels for a Premier League newcomer.

As such, Football League World asked AI-based chatbot, ChatGPT, where Coventry and Middlesbrough are likely to finish in the Premier League next season if they are to achieve promotion.

Coventry City tipped to have better Premier League fortunes than Middlesbrough in AI claim

After regaining their Championship status in 2020 under Mark Robins, Coventry have enjoyed a remarkable short-term transformation that has only continued under the ownership of Doug King and Robins' successor, Frank Lampard.

The former Chelsea midfielder guided City to a second play-off finish in three seasons after six months in charge last term, although they would come unstuck against Sunderland in the semi-finals.

A handful of tweaks have since been made, and the Midlands side have failed to look back, as they have led the division since September, scoring over 50 goals already.

Given the funding King has ploughed into his boyhood club, AI backs Lampard to be aware of where further depth and quality is required in order to compete against a plethora of established top-flight sides, and the Sky Blues have been tipped for a realistic 16th-place finish next term by AI - IF they are to win promotion, which could lay the foundations for a push up the standings in due course.

However, the same cannot quite be said when it comes to their divisional rivals from the North East, who have started the Kim Hellberg era in remarkable fashion.

The Swede was sourced by Steve Gibson as Rob Edwards' replacement, with the 42-year-old controversially moving to Wolverhampton Wanderers in November after just five months in charge.

Hellberg has not made many tweaks to his side, instead implementing a system which has allowed star names such as Hayden Hackney, Morgan Whittaker and David Strelec to flourish.

A handful of standout results, including a rout against play-off hopefuls Hull City at the MKM Stadium - in which Boro were 4-0 up after 44 minutes - have significantly boosted the club's promotion chances.

However, AI does not foresee a world in which the North East side are able to consolidate back in the Premier League, predicting an 18th-place finish, IF they are to be promoted come May.

It claims that Boro lack the depth and quality to survive at present, although Gibson would look to prove such doubters wrong and back Hellberg with the requisite tools and funds which would attract top-level quality and experience.

As previously mentioned, impressive runs of form have put Coventry and Middlesbrough in such a strong position. However, such is the unpredictability of the Championship, twists in the promotion race cannot be ruled out.

It must be said, though, that a clutch of sides below the automatic promotion contenders have all shown inconsistencies so far, which, in its own right, is making the play-off race an extremely compelling watch as January nears.

As such, Lampard and Hellberg will be relaying messages of focus to their respective squads, as keeping grounded could result in special occasions in the New Year and beyond.