MIXING IT WITH THE BIG BOYS

SAM SHEPPEY LOOKS AT HOW A PREMIER FEW OF THE BIGGEST LEAGUE UNDERDOGS FARED AGAINST THE ELITE...

- SAM SHEPPEY

THE rise of Luton Town has been remarkable to witness. The Hatters played Non-League football ten years ago but now find themselves going toe-to-toe with the Premier League's big guns.

The gulf in revenue between Luton and the rest of the league has been well documented, with Kenilworth Road's capacity of 10,356 a record low for a ground to host a Premier League game.

There have been other clubs who have broken through in the face of adversity to mix it with the big boys. Here are three to have done so and how they fared in their first season:

AFC Bournemouth 2015-16: 16th place (42 points)

Promoted to the Premier League after storming to the Championship title with a superb haul of 90 points, Bournemouth became the smallest fish in a large pond.

Cherries legend Eddie Howe spearheaded his team to the crown, a team many predicted would fall straight back down to the Championship.

However, Bournemouth would stay up, finishing their first-ever Premier League season with 42 points in 16th place. It was an impressive feat for a club with a stadium capacity of 11,000 - the team defied expectations.

The Cherries snapped up talents such as Josh King, Tyrone Mings, Benik Afobe and Lewis Grabban.

Initially, they struggled to adapt to life in the Premier League, winning twice in their first 14 games.

But the team would improve going into the new year, winning five games from their next nine.

New signing King would be the top scorer with seven goals in all competitions, with the team's spine left relatively untouched from the Championship, something newly promoted Luton could take notes from.

Bournemouth would remain a Premier League club for another four seasons, being relegated in the season the coronavirus pandemic hit.