Charlton Athletic: What can be expected of the Championship returnees in the 2025-26 season?

Worries of financial struggles in 2020 and the years of disappointment in the recruitment department seem long gone as Nathan Jones and SE7 Partners have guided the Addicks back to the second tier of English football, winning at Wembley in May.

It is certainly common that fans see the League One playoff winners as an easy pick for relegation. However, relegation is not what Nathan Jones’ projects are about. The Welshman created a project at Luton that saw them promoted from League Two to the Championship, and very promptly into the Premier League.

It is hard to say that there are many football fans who would enjoy the style of football Jones is likely to bring to the Championship in the coming season, but it is the truth that the result is key in football. As many League One sides found out last season, facing this Charlton side is a gruelling task.

It was a back three of Macaulay Gillesphey, Lloyd Jones and Kayne Ramsay that fought so valiantly as the Addicks lost just four games after the turn of the year. Over the summer, Jones made sure to prioritise his defence as he has brought in excellent shot-stopper Thomas Kaminski, left-sided centre-back Amari’i Bell and also recruiting another Luton Town defender in Reece Burke.

It is also clear that some depth is needed for his wing-backs, particularly with the departure of Thierry Small, who left for Preston at the end of his contract.

As well as having trialists Joe Bennett and Dexter Lembikisa involved in pre-season, Jones picked up experienced Championship wing-back Joe Rankin-Costello – who is likely to be key as his versatility means he can be expected to play in central midfield.

Conor Coventry and Greg Docherty were vital in midfield as Charlton got promoted, the former having the second most interceptions per 90 in the league and the latter working hard on the pitch and leading his team, with the armband on his shoulder.

However, a key issue that many fans picked up on was a lack of creativity. An aging Luke Berry found it hard to stay fit towards the end of the season, while Alex Gilbert and Karoy Anderson would be concerns if starting in the Championship.

As a result, Gilbert has returned to Middlesbrough and Charlton have picked up Harvey Knibbs and Sonny Carey – two of the most impressive attacking midfielders in League One last season. Between them, they scored 22 goals and Nathan Jones has stated that this was a huge part in their signings.

Another player who could fill the gap left behind by Thierry Small is Rob Apter. An exciting prospect in League One, Apter has completed a move to the Championship in a role that will be very interesting to see for Charlton fans. In pre-season, he has impressed with his positioning and timing of run (as well as crossing) on the right-hand side. He is naturally a winger, but clearly will play a deeper role in Nathan Jones’ side.

In the 2024/25 season, Matty Godden scored 18 goals, ranking him highly amongst League One’s strikers. However, they have added the League One’s highest-ranked striker for goals last season, paying a reported £3.5m initial fee for Charlie Kelman, who was part of the Leyton Orient side defeated by the Addicks at Wembley.

Additionally, they have added a strong and very quick striker in Tanto Olaofe, arriving from Stockport County after scoring nine league goals last season.

All of this means that Charlton will have a very strong and resilient team, set up to grind out the results and get points on the board. With the number of incomings in the summer, it may take some time to gel properly – as could arguably be seen with Oxford last season. The defence is very strong and has experience as well as quality, but the attack will certainly need time to adapt and gel with the rest of the team before they can possibly gain consistent wins.

All in all, Charlton can be expected to put up a very good fight and, although they will see themselves in the relegation battle at points in the season, they have an excellent manager and an excellent fanbase to see them through and to survive in the first season back.