New Town manager Roy Keane says he is "quietly confident†that the Blues will have a good 2009/10. Expectations will again be high with some bookies naming Town as fourth favourites for the Championship title behind the three clubs relegated from the Premier League.
Keane told the club site: "We will have to deal with the expectations levels but expectation should come from within anyway, not so much from outside sources.
"There were levels of expectation here last season when money was spent on the squad, but throwing money around doesn't guarantee success anyway.
"It's about having the right environment, the right mentality - and having a little bit of luck along the way as well, which the club didn't have at the end of last season with all the injuries.
"We have to look at improving on last year, that's why I have been brought in. I'm quietly confident we can have a good season, but it's going to be tough.
"It's a very competitive league, the Championship, and with clubs the size of Newcastle and Middlesbrough in there next year, and West Brom, who know how to win promotion, it's going to be a big challenge, but maybe we can surprise a few people."