Eight matches into Lincoln City’s return to the Championship, one thing has become clear. We belong here.
That is not the same as saying we will definitely stay up. Nobody should be making that sort of declaration in September, especially in a division capable of making sensible predictions look ridiculous within a fortnight. Still, 11 points from our first eight league matches represents a perfectly respectable start for a promoted side playing at this level for the first time in 65 years.
More importantly, those points have not arrived through blind luck.
City Already Have an Identity
The obvious concern when Michael Skubala left for Bristol City was whether the structure that carried us to the League One title would leave with him.
It has not.
Chris Cohen and Tom Shaw were already part of the operation, which is why their appointment always felt more like continuity than a reset. As I argued when explainin why I thought Lincoln City could survive in the Championship, we did not need to become somebody else simply because the opposition had become stronger.
We needed to remain recognisably Lincoln City.
That is exactly what has happened. We are aggressive in duels, organised without the ball and perfectly happy to make matches uncomfortable. We do not need 65 per cent possession or 700 passes to feel as though we have influenced a game.
The away victories at Bolton, Preston, and Bristol City all finished 1–0. They were not carbon copies, but they shared the same basic qualities: concentration, physical commitment, and a willingness to defend the result once we had something to protect.
Three away wins by the same scoreline might not appeal to everyone. I am not sure many Imps supporters will be complaining.
The Championship Punishes Small Mistakes
The step up in quality has been obvious as well.
We led at Middlesbrough before losing 2–1, and Swansea overturned another Lincoln advantage with two goals in four second-half minutes on Saturday. Against some League One opponents, we might have survived those spells. Championship teams tend to punish them.
That is probably the biggest lesson from the opening eight matches. City do not need to reinvent themselves, but we do need to manage the difficult moments better.
The Swansea defeat was frustrating because Reeco Hackett’s penalty had given us a deserved lead. Moussa Yeo equalised in the 47th minute, Stephen Eustáquio scored in the 51st, and the entire afternoon turned before we had properly settled into the second half.
That is the division. You can do plenty right and still lose control of a match remarkably quickly.
Expectations Will Keep Changing
Before the season, Lincoln was an obvious relegation pick for plenty of bookmakers like Betway Sports. We had just come up, lost the head coach who took us up and entered a division containing clubs with far greater budgets.
Eight games have provided more evidence, but they have not settled anything. Supporters and pundits revise their expectations after every result, and betting markets do much the same.
City could remain comfortably clear of trouble, but injuries and a poor run of form could quickly drag us towards it. That uncertainty is not unique to us. Every Championship table contains teams that start better or worse than expected before eventually finding their level.
We Still Need More Goals
Six goals in eight league matches tells us where the most obvious improvement is required.
Freddie Draper delivered the winners at Preston and Bristol City, while Hackett has provided a threat from different areas. Even so, we cannot expect every away match to finish 1–0.
There will be afternoons when City concede first or need to score twice. Creating a little more without weakening the qualities that make us competitive is the next challenge.
That does not mean throwing away the direct play, pressing or physical edge. Those are not embarrassing traits to be disguised now we are in the Championship. They are part of the reason we are here.
The Championship will keep asking different questions. Some opponents will dominate the ball. Others will sit back and expect us to create. The winter schedule will test the squad in ways the opening weeks have not.
It Is a Start We Would Have Taken
If someone had offered us 11 points after eight matches, I think most supporters would have accepted without asking for the details.
We have won three, drawn two and lost three. We have beaten established Championship sides away from home, remained competitive in most matches and already discovered how severely this level punishes a lapse.
City have not proved they will survive. Nobody can do that in September.
What we have proved is that we are not here simply to admire the surroundings. The Imps have an identity, a plan and enough about them to make Championship teams uncomfortable.
Comments Welcome!