Burton's unlikely promotion to the Championship completed a remarkable turnaround for the club - from non-league obscurity to lucrative fixtures such as Newcastle United and Aston Villa.

The meteoric rise only becomes more amazing when you put things into context: in 2009 Burton won promotion to the Football League for the first ever time.

Never in their wildest dreams would they foresee the continued upsurge which would see them flirt with the top of League Two for a while, before back-to-back promotions suddenly landed them a place in England’s second tier. 

Albion's aim next season will be to avoid relegation and therefore this summer must be one of thorough preparation.

England's second tier is unknown territory for many of the Burton squad and for the fans so recruitment in pre-season is necessary for survival.

Their budget, however, will be significantly smaller than the bigger clubs in the league.

Here are FOUR things that Burton need to do this summer to avoid the drop........

 

Keep Nigel Clough

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Clough is one of the few members of the current Burton set-up who has experienced football at this level.

The 50-year-old had a spell at Derby County a few years ago and has since returned for his second spell at Albion.

Clough seems to be the best fit for the job, having worked predominantly on a tight budget throughout his managerial career. Burton are likely to have the smallest budget in the league due to only getting gates of between 5000 and 6000 for home games.

Continuity is often the key to success and Burton will be hoping this works in the case of Nigel Clough.

 

Re-sign loan stars

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Mark Duffy was one of the standout performers as Burton clinched promotion from League One and he has since been released by his parent club Birmingham.

Albion will be therefore devastated to learn that the 30-year-old winger has joined Sheffield United instead. Other loan stars Mason Bennett and Hamza Choudhury, however, would be welcomed back.

The former is a pacy winger-come-striker at Derby County whilst the latter is a young but combative midfielder from Leicester City who could both be ready to step up another division and help Albion.

 

Sign a 20-goal-per-season striker

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This task could prove to be Clough's trickiest considering the small budget Burton expect to be operating with.

Lucas Akins and Stuart Beavon both chipped in with a handful of goals last season but they will need a proven goalscorer to compete at this higher level.

Securing the services of a 20-goal-per-season striker could prove to be the difference between survival and relegation for Albion.

 

Retain the core

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The key to Burton's success last year was not necessarily having the best squad in the league, but working hard as a team unit and maintaining a small group of core players.

Goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin, defenders John Mousinho and Phil Edwards and midfielder Tom Naylor are perfect examples of hardworking team players.

This small group of players are instrumental to Burton's chances of staying in the Championship