The Championship has a habit of delivering some tantalising story lines and that has certainly been the case in recent days. Indeed, on the same day Birmingham City and Wolverhampton Wanderers played out a dramatic Midlands derby, Jamie Vardy was signing for Burnley.

Yes, Vardy is back in the Football League, it's all come full circle.

Now a Premier League winner, the holder of 26 England caps and boasting experience of Serie A in Italy, he's well travelled and he's ready and waiting to make an impact in the second tier now.

He's wiser, he's certainly older and he's not as quick as he once was but you'd be a fool to write off one of English football's great goalscorers of the modern era.

Why Vardy can still make an impact in the Championship

Now 39, Vardy is back in England for one last dance.

He's won the top-flight, he's won the FA Cup and he's scored at a major tournament for the Three Lions. He's found the back of the net on 145 occasions for Leicester. He bagged 200 times all told for the Foxes across a whopping 500 matches.

He's a Foxes legend and in another world, could have returned to the King Power. Alas, Leicester are in League One now and despite links to his belowed Sheffield Wednesday earlier this year, the veteran centre-forward thinks he can still do a job in the second tier.

Is he right? Well, he enjoyed a productive one year spell with Cremonese in Italy, scoring seven times and supplying three assists in 29 matches throughout 2025/26. He could still do it at the top level on the continent so there is no reason he cannot do it in the Championship.

He's one of the trickiest, one of the most intelligent fox in the box type strikers we have seen in modern history, you bet he'll have a good season with the Clarets.

Back in 2023/24, when Vardy last played in the EFL, he enjoyed an 18-goal campaign for Leicester as they bounced straight back to the Premier League. That wasn't all that long ago.

Burnley would be lucky to get a similar season from him but if we're being realistic about things, that is unlikely. Still, there is very strong chance he scores double figures. That could be the difference between promotion and a consecutive year at this level for Nicky Hayen's men.

A more exciting player than Vardy could be on his way to the EFL

The transfer window may well have closed just over a week ago but it's not stopped clubs across the Championship from exploring the free agent market.

Vardy's move to Burnley remains the most eye-catching piece of business so far but we've also seen Jordan Ayew head to Sheffield United and Bertrand Traore join Wolves. They were previously free agents.

Well, clubs across the EFL could one up all of those moves by sealing a move for former Crystal Palace and Manchester United man Wilfried Zaha.

Yes, the 36-cap Ivory Coast international is a free agent after leaving Galatasaray behind and is on the lookout for a new club. Reports suggest a host of Championship sides are interested and while the names of those clubs have not yet been revealed, realistically, there are only a select group of sides who can likely afford his wages; Burnley, Wolves, Birmingham and Wrexham.

While the Clarets and the Old Gold have already been active in the free agent market, they could seal an even more exciting signing than Vardy and Traore by sealing a move for the effervescent Zaha.

He's not quite as old as the former England striker. He's now 33 and enjoyed a fabulous year and a half on loan with Charlotte FC in MLS, where the tricky winger scored 13 goals and supplied eight assists in 48 appearances.

Sure, the attacker may well be approaching the latter stages of his career now but this is someone who still has so much to give. He trained with Palace over the summer and while they did not hand him a permanent contract, it shows that he's trying his best to retain fitness and play at a high level.

This is a player who regularly registered double figures for goals in the Premier League. Back in 2018/19, he scored ten times. In 2020/21 Zaha found the net on 11 occasions and a season later he registered a career best haul at that level of 15.

His departure from Palace did not go according to plan. It was long felt that Zaha would go on to play for a much bigger club in England. Still, his time in Turkiye was not a complete disaster, scoring ten times in 43 matches.

Compared to the aforementioned Traore, he's streets ahead. Wolves' new arrival only scored once in 12 Premier League outings for Sunderland last term. He's more spritely than an ageing Vardy so could offer plenty to Burnley and as far as Birmingham are concerned, well, he's certainly got more pedigree than 30-year-old Demarai Gray.

Whether they can afford his wages is the big sticking point. Yet, if Zaha is willing to return to English shores, clubs in the Championship should be all over this one.