Football Season Guide

Bradford are coming from a bitterly disappointing 2017/18 season that saw them look like direct promotion contenders in the first half of the campaign, only to completely collapse after the turn of the year. The appointment of Simon Grayson did not change their fortunes. Grayson, who signed on a short-term deal, was offered an extension when the season ended, but left the club's hierarchy stunned by declining their offer. The Bantams opted to promote from within and replaced Grayson with 32-year-old Michael Collins, who managed their U18 side last season. Of course, appointing such a young manager could well backfire, but the Bantams will obviously be hoping for Collins to follow the paths of Lee Johnson and Karl Robinson, who both became experienced Football League managers after being appointed while very young. Given their managerial change, there was little surprise that the Bantams had a summer squad clear-out. They parted ways with several key men, such as Charlie Wyke, Tony McMahon, Dominic Poleon, Nicky Law and skipper Romain Vincelot. However, Bradford are among the clubs with the biggest pulling power in League One and there is little surprise that hey have made several promising signings over the course of the summer, some of which, such as Sean Scannell and Hope Akpan, are even established players at Championship level. Despite all the changes they have had over the summer, Bradford once again look like one of the strongest sides in the league and will be determined to put the disappointment that was 2017/18 behind them.