Sunderland v Wycombe betting tips: Black Cats out to end play-off hoodoo
Sunderland v Wycombe betting tips: Black Cats out to end play-off hoodoo
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Sunderland v Wycombe betting tips, odds and preview
A place in the Championship is up for grabs in the League One play-off final as we pick out some Sunderland v Wycombe betting tips.
The two teams finished fifth and sixth respectively but league positions counted for nothing as they edged past Sheffield Wednesday and MK Dons in the semi-finals.
Saturday’s showdown at Wembley kicks off at 3pm and is live on Sky Sports.
History not on Sunderland’s side
This is Sunderland’s seventh time in the EFL play-offs and they are yet to win promotion this way, so fans could be forgiven for making the long trip to the capital with some trepidation.
The Black Cats have been stuck in League One for four years but are now on the brink of returning to the Championship and are the 3/5 favourites to do so.
Sunderland finished one point clear of their opponents and took four points off Wycombe during the regular season so have plenty of reason for confidence.
They also got past Sheffield Wednesday with a well-deserved 2-1 aggregate win in the semi-final, despite the Owls starting the play-offs as promotion favourites.
Sunderland ended the regular season with a 13-match unbeaten run and manager Alex Neil, who arrived at the club in February, said: “I’m just over the moon for the players because they deserve it.
“We’ve done the business with an unbelievable run of fixtures in terms of the results we’ve put together and all these players deserve a huge amount of credit.”
Only four times during that unbeaten run did Sunderland win by more than one goal though and there were five draws in that time, including three goalless stalemates.
This could be another match decided by fine margins and 2/1 for the match to go to extra time is worth considering for Sunderland v Wycombe betting tips, while the Black Cats are 27/10 to win by exactly one goal.
Chairboys back on familiar ground
Wycombe are appearing in the League One play-off final for the second time in three seasons but this time they will have their fans at Wembley to cheer them on.
The covid pandemic meant the match was played behind closed door two years ago as Gareth Ainsworth’s men beat Oxford 2-1 to reach the second tier for the first time in their history.
That was followed by an immediate relegation so the Chairboys are keen to have another stab at the Championship but must overcome the League One play-off final odds which have them as the 6/5 underdogs for promotion.
Wycombe have certainly shown they can dig in and withstand pressure, which may be necessary here.
— Sky Bet League One (@SkyBetLeagueOne) May 17, 2022
Having won the first leg 2-0 against MK Dons, they were second best in the away leg but the Dons could only manage a Troy Parrott header in the first half as they fell agonisingly short.
Ainsworth said: “I’m not going to stand here and say we were the better team tonight. MK Dons dominated possession, dominated shots, but we’ve dominated blocks, we’ve dominated saves, dominated absolute resilience around the box and the experience in my boys told.”
Wycombe also ended the regular season in fine form with a 12-match unbeaten run but their form on the road was a concern, having failed to beat any of the top six on their travels.
They lost 3-1 at the Stadium of Light in August when Ross Stewart was the Sunderland hero with two goals, while the striker also netted twice in the return match at Adams Park in January which ended 3-3.
Stewart is undoubtedly the main attacking threat for Sunderland with 25 goals in all competitions and is 16/5 to open the scoring or 15/2 to net at least twice again.
Sam Vokes is Wycombe’s shortest price in the first goalscorer odds at 5/1 or how about Adebayo Akinfenwa to score the last goal at 15/2 in his final match before retirement?
Expect early fireworks
Play-off finals are often cagey affairs, especially early on before nerves start to settle, but both of these teams like to start quickly.
Only one team in League One scored more goals inside the first 15 minutes than Sunderland while Wycombe were ranked joint-third.
Both teams have scored more goals in the first half than in the second so the first half to have the most goals at 12/5 is added to our Sunderland v Wycombe betting tips, while both teams to score in the first half is an option at 4/1.
