Proof that top flight is not leagues apart...

Does it feel different? What’s the standard like? Is it tougher? More direct? Since my loan move from Fulham to Ipswich Town I’ve been asked every question under the sun about the differences between the Premier League and the Championship. The perception is that the gap is huge but while there are obvious differences, from my experience, the two leagues are much closer than you might think.

It might live in the shadow of the top flight over here but when you look at the Championship as a stand-alone European league, it holds its own against the very best. According to research carried out a couple of years back, it’s the richest non-top-flight league in the world. It’s also the sixth richest league in Europe and has the highest attendance figures after the Premier League, La Liga and the Bundesliga, which means more people watch England’s second tier than the Italian, French and Dutch top divisions.

And that is because it’s incredibly entertaining and very competitive. For starters, you’ve only got to look at the pedigree of some of the clubs involved, not to mention the places they represent. Sheffield, Nottingham, Cardiff, Bristol, Southampton, Birmingham, Ipswich – these aren’t obscure rural places (well, some might be a little more than others, as I’m finding out) and neither are their clubs small. There are English and European champions among that little group alone, Ipswich being one of them, and that’s something that can often get overlooked.

So what about on the pitch? Well, it doesn’t feel much different at all, and given the crowds in the Championship, games certainly have the same sense of occasion as they do in the Premier League. As for the hit-and-hope reputation, I’ve played against quite a few teams now and haven’t come across one who are interested only in kicking it long. If anything, I’ve seen sides overplaying. And I should mention that it was Ipswich’s reputation for playing decent football that was one of the reasons I chose to come here this season. At times, I’ve been blown away by some of our combination football – lots of movement on and off the ball and one and two-touch passing for long periods.

But where the Championship differs is that you don’t get that throughout games. Championship football can be quite erratic – it chops and changes – and for that reason I’d say the tempo is greater than the top flight. But it’s important to differentiate between tempo and pace. When there is less control and consistency in the play, possession changes constantly and stats show that if you don’t have the ball, you tend to run more. Pace is a different matter. There are plenty of Championship players who have all the technical ability in the world but just lack that bit of speed. That’s not to say that you don’t get lightning fast players in the Championship, too.

But as a rule I’d say you’re more likely to get away with a mistake in the Championship, just because players generally aren’t as quick. As for the physicality, people often say it’s brutal, but I don’t think it’s more physical than the Premier League. And everyone is just as fit, too.

One aspect of Championship football that I’ve really warmed to this season is how tight it is. The majority of clubs are on a genuinely similar level, which means anything can happen.

So, two months and ten games in, am I pleasantly surprised about what I’ve discovered so far? Not at all. I’ve never really considered the Championship a huge step down. I’ve always known how interesting this league is and the expectations and respect I’ve always had for it have only been confirmed since I got here.