Key events
10 mins: Ephron Mason-Clark, who replaces Thomas-Asante in the only Coventry change, gets into space on the left side of the area, but can’t find a colleague in cyan and the ball is cleared.
8 mins: Coventry haven’t been able to make a dent in Sunderland’s well-drilled back line yet. But it’s early.
“Is it just me or does Regis Le Bris look like he could be former Sunderland manager Chris Coleman’s stressed-out cousin?” asks Peter Oh. I can see the resemblance; Coleman managed both these clubs, and was pretty stressed for most of those tenures.
6 mins: Van Ewijk slips in the box, allowing Enzo Le Fee to chest down and shoot – but his effort flies over the bar.
5 mins: Marginal gains dept: it seems Sunderland have moved their advertising boards to stymie Coventry’s long throw weaponry – and the visitors also found the heating turned up in their dressing room earlier.
3 mins: Ben Sheaf tries to pick his way through the Sunderland midfield but is dispossessed. Every interception is being greeted with huge cheers.
2 mins: Coventry, in their traditional sky blue, are caught offside on their first foray upfield. It’ll be interesting to see if the hosts stick to their first-leg game plan and sit back early on here.
Kick off
The home fans have unfurled a massive, black cat tifo emblazoned with the words “Till The End”. I’m sure they’d rather get it done in 90 minutes.
Photograph: Owen Humphreys/PA
In playoff history, 10 teams of 64 who lost the first leg at home were able to turn it around … including Frank Lampard’s Derby County in 2019.
Regis Le Bris: “We expect a tough game, we are halfway there … the crowd will be behind us, they can help through difficult moments.”
Frank Lampard: “We’ll play the game in front of us … we know how the first leg went, it’s fresh in our mind. We want to play how we’ve been playing in the second half of the season.”
Here’s how Sheffield United booked their place at Wembley:
Team news
Sunderland (4-4-2): Patterson; Hume, Ballard, O’Nien, Cirkin; Roberts, Neil, Bellingham, Le Fee; Mayenda, Isidor.
Subs: Moore, Browne, Rigg, Mundle, Abdul Samed, Mepham, Hjelde, Watson, Jones.
Coventry (4-2-3-1): Wilson; van Ewijk, Thomas, Kitching, Dasilva; Grimes, Sheaf; Sakamoto, Rudoni, Wright; Mason-Clark.
Subs: Collins, Binks, Allen, Simms, Paterson, Bidwell, Thomas-Asante,
Latibeaudiere, Eccles.
Referee: Andrew Madley (West Yorkshire)
Preamble
Coventry City haven’t played in the Premier League since 2001; Sunderland fell out of the top flight in 2017 and are yet to return. Both clubs have, to different degrees, been through troubled times since, but now the golden ticket is in reach again.
Chris Wilder and his Sheffield United side are the final-level boss waiting at Wembley’s gates, but only one team will get to take them on. Sunderland have a clear edge after winning 2-1 at the CBS Arena last week, but the playoffs are rarely so straightforward.
Will Frank Lampard continue his impressive run, taking Coventry from relegation fears to the playoff final? Or will Régis Le Bris back up his claims that Sunderland’s beach-worthy late league form would improve when it counted?
There’s only one way to find out. Join me for kick-off at 8pm BST, with team news to come.
