All 20 sides in the Premier League will discover their 2022/23 schedules at 9am BST on Thursday and, following relegations for Burnley, Watford and Norwich City, there will be three teams back in the top league next term – Fulham, AFC Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest.
Ahead of confirmation of City's fixture list, LCFC.com takes a look at the three promoted sides.
Fulham – Championship champions
Under the guidance of former Sporting Lisbon, Olympiacos, Hull City, Watford and Everton manager Marco Silva, Fulham secured an instant return to the Premier League by winning the Championship title last season.
A stunning 43 goals from striker Aleksandar Mitrović – all in the league – was a big factor in the Cottagers' top-flight return, while Fábio Carvalho and Harry Wilson also hit double figures for the west London outfit. USA centre-back Tim Ream, on the other hand, made the most appearances with 47 outings.
There were five Fulham players in the PFA Championship Team of the Year. Ream and Tosin Adarabioyo were named in the backline, with Wilson and Carvalho in midfield, and Mitrović was one of three forwards to be selected.
Ten wins from 12 matches between early January and mid-March helped supercharge Fulham's bid for promotion, starting with a 7-0 away victory over Reading. That form allowed Silva's men to ride out a tense finale to the 2021/22 campaign, which included four losses in seven games.
On the two occasions they came up against Premier League opposition in cup competitions – Manchester City and Leeds United – they lost 4-1 and on penalties respectively. Excitement is building, though, for the new season with over 15,000 season tickets sold at Craven Cottage.
Bournemouth – Back at the second attempt
Former Fulham manager Scott Parker is the man who masterminded Bournemouth's return to the Premier League last term after the Cherries fell short in the Championship play-offs a year earlier. The south coast club finished the 2021/22 season in second place, two points behind champions Fulham.
Top goalscorer Dominic Solanke hit 30 goals for Parker's side in all competitions, while Danish midfielder Philip Billing also struck on 11 occasions. After going unbeaten in their opening 15 matches, Bournemouth won just once in eight games over Christmas, prompting a winter transfer window refresh.
In came James Hill (Fleetwood Town), Siriki Dembélé (Peterborough United) and Kieffer Moore (Cardiff City), while loan deals were struck for Nathaniel Phillips (Liverpool), Freddie Woodman (Newcastle United) and Todd Cantwell (Norwich City). That depth would ultimately allow their league form to settle.
It didn't, though, prevent a shock 1-0 Emirates FA Cup defeat to non-league Boreham Wood at Vitality Stadium in February. Their Carabao Cup campaign, on the other hand, came to a close in August in the form of a 6-0 second round loss at then-Premier League outfit Norwich City.
Nevertheless, Solanke, Billing and Lloyd Kelly were all named in the PFA Team of the Year ahead of the club's sixth Premier League season.
Nottingham Forest – A first top-flight season since 1999
For former English and European champions Nottingham Forest, it's been a long wait for Premier League football. Since Ron Atkinson's Forest were relegated 23 years ago, the East Midlands side have been searching for a return ever since, even spending three seasons in the third tier of English football.
Six defeats in seven matches under Chris Hughton at the start of 2021/22 led to fears of a disappointing campaign at the outset of the season, but the appointment of former Swansea City manager Steve Cooper in September changed all of that at the City Ground.
Forest's form immediately picked up, with a six-game unbeaten run including five victories following Hughton's departure. Brennan Johnson ended the campaign on 19 goals in all competitions, while Lewis Grabban found the net on 13 occasions. Brice Samba also impressed in goal for Forest.
The loan signing of Djed Spence, from Middlesbrough, proved particularly successful too, while Philip Zinckernagel (on loan from Watford) and Sam Surridge (signed permanently from Stoke City) also added quality to the squad. Spence was Forest's one representative in the PFA Team of the Year.
Forest finished fourth in the Championship, overcoming Sheffield United over two legs in the play-offs semi-finals, before beating Huddersfield Town 1-0 at Wembley Stadium in the showpiece. Their cup form also caught the eye, beating Arsenal, Leicester City and Huddersfield in the Emirates FA Cup.