The 2025/2026 season has, to a large extent, been a throwback to times gone by, as some of the country’s oldest footballing names reappear in the national spotlight. When last did you see Sunderland occupying a Champions League position? And closer to home — just 20 minutes from Solihull — Coventry City sit top of the Championship after a 24-year absence from the Premier League.
Old Names, New Stories
We’ve also seen dynasties toppled and title defences ended before Christmas trees have even gone up around the country. Despite spending £450 million in the summer, Liverpool will, in all likelihood, not go back-to-back under Arne Slot. Their recent game at the Etihad Stadium on November 9 was viewed as a final chance to gain a foothold in the title race, even if the Manchester City vs Liverpool betting odds suggested otherwise.
Those football odds priced City at just 4/5 to win and looked good value after they ran out 3-0 winners.
The Return of the Long Throw and the Lost Arts
While it might have ended for the Reds, this season has revived a few ideas you thought were filed under nostalgia. Specifically, the long throw is back. Coaches are leaning on it as a set-piece in all but name, sending centre halves forward and turning the six-yard box into a scrap. Across the opening 11 matchweeks, every Premier League side attempted at least three throws of 20 metres into the area, with the league averaging just under four long throws per game, up more than 160% on last season.
9 – Since the start of last season, Brentford have scored nine Premier League goals from throw-in situations, at least double that of any other side (Crystal Palace on 4). Launch. pic.twitter.com/ge4WuXdSb6
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 9, 2025
You can see the broader tilt toward direct play in the passing data too. Long balls per match have climbed year on year, with early-season numbers comfortably surpassing 2024/25, and even goal kicks are travelling further as teams squeeze for second balls. What looked like a quirk a year ago now feels like a trend, as managers trade sterile possession for field position.
A Midlands Revival Built on Graft
If the top flight has gone a little old school, the Championship has embraced its own throwback as clubs roll up their sleeves to overcome the advantage parachute payments give relegated teams. As of November 11, the top six reads: Coventry City, Middlesbrough, Stoke City, Preston North End, Hull City, and Millwall. The real story is that none of last season’s relegated Premier League sides feature. Instead, tactics and coaching have so far overcome the chequebook.
At the summit, it remains to be seen whether Frank Lampard can lead the Sky Blues to the top flight and return Premier League football to this corner of the West Midlands, but the signs are very promising.
“We dealt with the game brilliantly from start to finish.” 🎙️
Watch Frank Lampard’s full post-match interview following today’s 1-0 win over Stoke City.
🔗 https://t.co/PoWtYavePH pic.twitter.com/C7UzjHK1la
— Coventry City (@Coventry_City) November 8, 2025
Closer to home, Solihull Moors sit 12th in the National League table on 23 points from 18 games. It’s been a mixed start, but recent wins over Gateshead and Truro City suggest a team beginning to find its rhythm. In a year where throwbacks are thriving, their grounded, hard-running style feels perfectly in step with the wider trend.
Again, the caveat is that there’s still a long way to go, and as is so often the case, winter tends to separate the hopeful from the hardened. The only real certainty at this stage is that the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Written by Ben Spencer
