Leeds United, Leicester City quartet in the Championship team of the season as Szmodics, Clarke misses out

Sammie Szmodics and Jack Clarke are notable absentees as four stars from Leeds United and Leicester City make the 23/24 Championship squad.

If you don’t agree with any of the inclusions below, don’t come throwing bricks at our window as WhoScored’s rating system is used as a guide to form this cream of the crop Championship XI (minimum 30 Championship appearances required to be eligible)…

GK: John Ruddy (Birmingham City)
Very few positives came out of Birmingham City’s season as they slipped from being in play-off contention to suffering relegation on the final day, but Ruddy can certainly hold his head high.

The 37-year-old has played in all but two of Birmingham’s games this season as the former England international has shown he still has plenty to offer. With my biased hat on, I’d argue that Rotherham United’s Viktor Johansson is unlucky to miss out. Still, Ruddy’s tally of 11 is decent for a goalkeeper playing for a relegated side.

RB: Perry Ng (Cardiff City)
Shock early-season play-off contenders Cardiff City slipped to a mid-table finish, but that can be considered a superior performance after battling relegation last season. Manager Erol Bulut’s future is uncertain, with Greek side Panathinaikos sniffing around (according to Turkish outlet Photospore) so the German could be on the move and be chased out the door by Ng, who should attract interest from elsewhere in the summer.

The 28-year-old won the club’s Player of the Year award in 2022/23 and has a strong case for the award this season after finishing the 2023/24 campaign as Cardiff’s top scorer. But his tally of six speaks volumes about how their forwards have underperformed.

CB: Jacob Greaves (Hull City)
The Tigers narrowly missed the playoffs this season and this did it It cost future head coach Liam Rosenior hard.

Ambitious owner Acun Ilicali has clearly not seen enough return on his investment this season and will want promotion in 2024/25, but his resolve will be tested this summer with interest in 22-year-old Jaden Philogene , and for the 23-year-old. The inevitable chills in the coming months. The pair undoubtedly have £15m-plus talents and the latter has been a consistent rock in defense for four consecutive seasons.

CB: Wesley Hoedt (Watford)
It’s been an unhappy couple of years for Watford as they’ve broken their promotion/relegation yo-yo, but their positive finish to the campaign under rookie manager Tom Cleverley (I feel really, really old) bodes well for next season.

Former Southampton star Hoedt has been a major asset for Watford in the Championship and can hold his head high after what has arguably been his best season in England to date.

LB: Leif Davis (Ipswich Town)
Ipswich splashed around £1m to pry Davis away from fellow Championship side Leeds United and it proved to be a major coup.

After being named in last season’s League One Team of the Season, the influential 23-year-old – like his talented squad – enjoyed a dream season back in the Championship, bagging 18 assists in 43 games for repatriates from the Premier League.

CM: Gabriel Sara (Norwich City)
The Canaries paid £6m to sign Sara from Brazilian outfit Sao Paulo last summer and he has been one of their few standout performers in what has been a disappointing 2022/23 campaign.

David Wagner was under serious pressure earlier this season but Norwich have grown in the campaign and Sara has picked up where he left off to help his side book their place in the play-offs. The deep-lying playmaker has been involved in 25 goals in his 46 games and netted the odd man out along the way.

CM: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (Leicester City)
Having previously shone for Luton Town at this level, Dewsbury-Hall were expected to fire Leicester for promotion and even after a sticky spot during the match, he did just that as Enzo Maresca’s side finished on 98 points to win the league title.

Dewsbury-Hall have successfully emerged from the shadows of James Maddison and Harvey Barnes, but like the former Leicester duo, he may be sold this summer as Leicester look to resolve their financial Fair Play issues ahead of their return to the Premier League.

MORE CHAMPIONSHIP COVERAGE ON F365…
👉 The two records that prove why four Premier League teams should be relegated for Leeds and Saints
👉 Wrexham boss comments on completing bold Vardy transfer, with Leicester future uncertain
👉 Cheer up Leeds, the Premier League is a dysfunctional, uncompetitive, mocking competition

RW: Abdul Fatawu (Leicester City)
20-year-old Fataku’s form helped Leicester get on track during the promotion clash. He was involved in six goals in their title-winning wins against West Brom, Southampton and Leicester and that was enough to push him into this XI ahead of Plymouth Argyle’s Morgan Whittaker.

Sporting Lisbon is renowned for developing young players and Fatawu is another potential elite talent to progress through their academy. After racking up 20 clean sheets en route to a Championship promotion medal, the talented winger will be the subject of interest from Leicester and beyond in the summer.

CAM: Georginio Rutter (Leeds United)
Rutter looked set to be a big bust after struggling in the Premier League following his record £36m move to Leeds United from Hoffenheim in January 2023.

But he has been active in his preferred attacking midfield role and has now flourished in the Championship, scoring six goals and 18 assists this season. It was good, but the division’s top scorer – Blackburn Rovers’ Szmodics – would rightly be bothered by his omission.

LW: Crysencio Summerville (Leeds United)
While Rutter is somewhat fortunate to go ahead of Szmodics, Summerville’s inclusion was never in doubt as the Leeds United star’s supreme performances mean Sunderland’s Jack Clarke is sidelined.

Leeds did well to keep Summerville last summer but will need to win the play-offs if they are to keep him next season. with Liverpool-bound Arne Slot reportedly ‘wild’ about his fellow Dutchman.

ST: Adam Armstrong (Southampton)
There are three certainties in life: death, taxes and Armstrong tearing it up in the Championship as he struggles to replicate the same level of form in the Premier League. He is a Dwight Gayle/Cameron Jerome.

His stellar form in the second tier for Blackburn earned him a move to the Premier League when Southampton snapped him up. After only managing to score twice last season in the top flight, Armstrong has returned to his best this season and is the only player other than Szmodics to break the 20-goal mark this term.

More: Leeds United | Leicester City | Championship