Nathan Jones drops Charlton Athletic, Premier League claim | OneFootball

The former top flight club have ambitions to return to the level following their promotion to the Championship.

Nathan Jones has reiterated Charlton Athletic's long-term desire to get back to the Premier League.

It's been just over a month since the Welshman led the Addicks back to the Championship by beating Leyton Orient 1-0 in the play-off final. It was a very Nathan Jones-style win, with defensive solidity and a moment of magic, ironically from Macaulay Gillesphey, a member of the backline, guiding the Addicks towards victory.

Charlton spent five years in League One following relegation from the second division in the 2019/20 campaign. Now that they have taken a step up the English footballing pyramid, they aren't looking to stop there and rest on their laurels.

Nathan Jones makes Charlton, Premier League claim

Jones has re-stated the club's ambitions to get back to the Premier League, where they spent seven seasons to start the new millennium.

Asked by Sky Sports whether this ambition to reach the peak of the metaphorical mountain was at the back of the minds of those connected with The Valley, the 52-year-old said: "I don't think it's at the back of the mind, it's exactly where the club want to be. And if we didn't strive for that, then why are we doing it?

"We have to be realistic, we have to be structured and we have to have processes in place that enable us to do that. Now, we have done that in the past. We've set in place those processes that enabled the club to get promoted, and this club has done it before.

"There are really good decision makers right throughout the football club. The ownership is fantastic, the board is very stable. We have a senior management team that we believe is stable and in place, and making good decisions, and is aligned.

"We have a fanbase, of course, that is Premier League [standard], but now we have to make sure that we put a team out there that is capable of moving this club forward."

Nathan Jones' Charlton, Premier League aspirations come as no surprise

Jones' top flight claim is one that he put out into the ether right after his side won promotion at Wembley in May. It's also a view that is held by Charlton's ownership, as former boss Lee Bowyer revealed.

They obviously back the Welshman to solidify the Addicks' standing in the Championship.

They have rewarded him with a five-year deal which, if all goes well, surely should see them nearer the top end of the second tier by the end of it.

It will require a lot of work, as Jones said. The squad is certainly not at the level of the other two teams that have gone up from League One - Wrexham and Birmingham. The Charlton boss doesn't want to just stay afloat, he wants more than that, but safety in any form would certainly do no harm to the club's goals to one day get back to the Premier League.