Star strikers can come from the most unlikely of sources – who could have predicted, for example, that the little-heralded arrival of Teemu Pukki would be the most significant transfer of last summer as he fired Norwich City to the Championship title?
A tally of 29 goals saw the Finn top the scoring charts, while Tammy Abraham and Billy Sharp were key to the successes of Aston Villa and Sheffield United in joining them in the Premier League.
There are plenty of contenders to follow in their steps and lead their sides to promotion. Here are eight of the players who could be banging in the goals this season…
Aleksandar Mitrovic (Fulham)
Even in these mad times, there aren’t too many £22 million strikers knocking about in the Championship. Aleksandar Mitrovic could prove to be worth every penny after knocking back reported interest from far and wide this summer to sign a new five-year deal.
The Serb’s bullish style hasn’t made him popular everywhere but he’s certainly a fan favourite at the Cottagers, coming away with far more credit than most after a disastrous Premier League return for the club with 11 goals.
Combined with 12 strikes in 20 in a half-season to lead Fulham to promotion the year before, it’s obvious that the ex-Newcastle man will be one tough challenge for second-tier defences this season. Fulham know exactly how to get the best out of the towering forward, and his new contract is a massive boost to their chances of bouncing back at the first time of asking.
Karlan Grant (Huddersfield Town)
Few Premier League sides would invest in a third-tier striker these days, but Huddersfield’s mid-season purchase of Karlan Grant proved a superb piece of thinking by a side destined for a return to the Championship.
14 goals in 28 League One games saw the rapid forward swept out of Charlton and he continued his form in the top division, becoming the basement side’s top scorer for the season with his four goals. The first of those saw him pick up a special piece of history, as the youngest player ever to score in all seven domestic professional competitions.
Still only 21, his pace brought a new dimension to an ailing team last year and that energy, along with a deadly eye for goal, could make him one of the stars of the season as Town eye an instant return to the top.
Bobby Reid (Cardiff City)
This time two years ago, Bristol City boss Lee Johnson was preparing one of his most inspired moves – turning Bobby Reid, who had graduated out of the Robins’ academy and into the first team, from midfielder to striker. The result was a remarkable transformation into one of the league’s top marksmen.
19 Championship goals convinced Cardiff to bring him across the border last summer and he showed glimpses of what he could produce at the highest level with five strikes in their doomed Premier League campaign.
The Bluebirds seem well placed to push for an instant return to the top this season but they will need firepower to get them there. They have the perfect man to provide that in Reid, and if manager Neil Warnock can get the best out of him then both team and player could be topping charts at the end of the season.
Oliver McBurnie (Swansea City)
Swansea have a new boss this season with Steve Cooper brought in to replace the Brighton-bound Graham Potter, but the key man will be the same in the shape of Oliver McBurnie, the English-born Scottish international making quite the impact in Wales.
Under-17 World Cup winner Cooper knows all about developing youth, making him a perfect fit for the fledgling Swans in their second season back in the Championship. After the departure of Dan James to Manchester United, McBurnie is top of their youth roster and will be expected to build on a very impressive 22-goal haul in the league last year.
With his socks rolled down, the lanky striker appears quite the throwback but he is undoubtedly a star for the future. While his side may not be ready for a promotion push just yet, another successful season will certainly leave the 23-year-old primed for a shot at the big time.
Kemar Roofe (Leeds United)
Leeds missed out on a long-awaited Premier League return last season, but with Marcelo Bielsa remaining in charge they are hot favourites to right the wrongs this time around.
One of their biggest problems was the lack of an established centre-forward, with Roofe given the brief most frequently and responding with 15 goals in 33 Championship games, making him the club’s top scorer for the second year running despite two spells on the sidelines.
Any side looking for promotion will typically need a 20-goal-a-season figurehead and that is what will be expected of the former Oxford forward. With Helder Costa joining an already fearsome attacking line-up for United’s next promotion assault, if Roofe stays injury-free there is no excuse for anything other than a prolific season.
Lewis Grabban (Nottingham Forest)
With the ill-fated reign of Martin O’Neill coming to an end, the player who could benefit most from the transfer of power at Nottingham Forest is star striker Lewis Grabban. After notching 14 goals in the first half of last season under Aitor Karanka, he scored just twice more once the Irishman had taken the helm.
Injuries played a small part but the difference across the whole club was clear, with new boss Sabri Lamouchi aiming to reverse the trend this season. The player he can rely on most to deliver the goods is Grabban, who also scored 20 goals in the second-tier in 2017-18 in loan spells with Sunderland and Aston Villa.
His Premier League career never hit off but the 31-year-old has proven himself to be one of the most dangerous marksmen in the Championship, and he should be set to rack up the goals once again this season.
Nick Powell (Stoke City)
There’s always been a strong whiff of unfulfilled potential around Nick Powell, a striker who burst onto the scene at Crewe and earned a big-money move to Manchester United but saw chances limited and injuries hamper his attempts to kick-start his career time and time again.
Only in the past couple of years has he been able to find some consistency, scoring 15 goals in Wigan Athletic’s League One-winning campaign before notching eight more last season to secure their survival. With his contract in Lancashire at an end, the 25-year-old has decided to move to Stoke.
With Nathan Jones tipped for success in the Potters’ hot seat this season following Gary Rowett’s disastrous tenure, Powell could have the opportunity to lead the line for one of the Championship’s promotion chasers. With chances to revive his career running out, this might turn out to be the perfect match.
James Collins (Luton Town)
There was plenty of talent at the top end of the League One scoring charts that will get the opportunity to prove their abilities at the next level this season, with Charlton Athletic’s Lyle Taylor and Barnsley forwards Kieffer Moore and Cauley Woodrow leading their sides to promotions.
Nobody matched James Collins’ tally of 25 goals for champions Luton though. After proving himself a regular scorer for Shrewsbury Town and Crawley Town, he moved to the Hatters in 2017 and has led the line for two successive promotions to elevate the club from the fourth tier to the second.
International recognition came his way earlier in the year with a call-up for the Republic of Ireland, for whom he qualifies through his mother, although he is yet to make his debut. That’s one target for the new season but the main objective will be proving he can translate his prolificacy in the lower leagues in his first shot at the Championship.