The showpiece of Wembley is here. Sheffield United vs Sunderland in Wembley on Saturday with the winner who sealed a place in the Premier League of next season.
Sheffield United strives to bounce back in the first time of asking, but for Sunderland it is eight long years away from the Premier League.
The blades are the favorites, but they have never won a play-off campaign in nine previous attempts. Sunderland has a powerful victory from eight, but that came so recently in 2022.
The tension will shred your nerves. There will be an excavation for the winner of the richest match in football – worth a potential £ 220 million – and destruction for the reports. Nothing goes above in terms of pure, unbridled drama.
Who needs more promotion?
Sky Sports' Andy Hinchcliffe on the Essential EFL -Podcast:
“It is clear that the team that has collected Sheffield United is a competitive championship team, and if they are not promoted, they will be in the mix a lot next season.
“I don't see them losing too many players, and that brings them into a strong position. Maybe that was part of the plan.
“As far as Sunderland is concerned, there is much more uncertainty. Tommy Watson leaves, and there is a serious conversation about leaving Jobe Bellingham. Then Neil can be viewed, as well as some others. They may lose three or four important players of a successful team.
“So you wonder, if they don't go up now, what happens afterwards? Although they have done well to replace players in the past, it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep doing that in such a competitive competition.
“I would say that Sunderland probably needs more promotion now. If they don't, they can be confronted in a really tough championship for another five years.”
The richest match in football
Story about the tape – the key information on the way to the final
Tactical preview: Can both parties go 4-4-2 again?
Don Goodman on the Sky Sports EFL Play-Off Preview Show:
“These are two of the more versatile, flexible coaches that are comfortable to use different systems, depending on their opponents.
“Sunderland used the 4-4-2 more consistent throughout the season, while Sheffield United has used to it more recently and with more success.
“Looking at a broader seasonal comparison between the two teams, the Liga table shows that there was a 14-point difference. In essence, that Gap is really 16 points when you deduct the two Sheffield United. But if you look at the underlying statistics, not much is separated from the sides.”
Where is the game won and lost?
Sky Sports' Andy Hinchcliffe on the Essential EFL -Podcast:
“Unless one team implodes completely under pressure, I see neither teams winning this with two or three because I don't think both parties have the capacity to completely dominate the other.
“It will be tight. Sheffield United, player for player, probably has the stronger team. If we would choose a combined XI of the two, they would probably have more.
“There are important individual fights. Then Ballard vs Kieffer Moore will be a natural one-on-one competition. Then there is Harrison Burrows vs Patrick Roberts. Burrows gives United Left Left and it allows Gus Hamer to drive space in that bag.
“Sheffield United is likely to have the goal of dominating the possession and exerting persistent pressure, while Sunderland will try to stop the counterattack quickly.
“It would not surprise me if it is determined by a single goal. That does not mean that it will not be a great game – there will be enough to talk about. But it can all come down at a moment of brilliance, or unfortunately a defensive mistake.”
How Sheff Utd reached the final
Wilder: We are not weighed by the play-off history
Chris Wilder has insisted on the historic play-off record of Sheffield United means that nothing is on his way to Saturday's final. The blades still have to prevail in a play-off campaign in nine previous attempts in their history.
“If I listen to all the story, we might as well not pop up and they might as well give myself a holiday,” Wilder told Sky Sports. “I am in the majority of the [play-off defeats] And I probably said the same as what the majority of gamblers say.
“We try to write our own bit in the chapter of this famous football club. There is everything to win from this group. You know, we have not been weighed at all by negativity.
“There has been a real reset since we missed promotion. What we wanted to do after the Burnley competition was to get ourselves back in shape, to achieve a few victories, and we succeeded.
“We are physically in good condition. The players play with a real light shirt and we are really positive. The feeling about the place has been completely different. And I know you can't get away from the track record of the football club in the play-offs.
“But this club has been here for more than 135 years. And there will be a play-off campaign where we will get well in the next 135 years. I am sure that supporters don't want to wait that long.
“There has been a real stream to our game, a positivity about our game, and from the stands and the supporters, a real freshness that this could be our year and we have to go and happen.”
Sheffield United's miserable play-off record
How Sunderland reached the final
Le Bris: We needed time to recover from Coventry's victory, but we are ready for it
Regis Le Bris says that his Sunderland team needed some time to recover after their dramatic semi-final victory over Coventry, but they are now full to go for the final.
“The players needed a few days to recover after such an incredible moment,” he told Sky Sports. “The end of the game was absolutely excellent. The connection with our fans made it all the more special.
“Doubt is always something that you have to manage. We know that the opponent will be strong, and we know it will be a unique event.
“But we welcome that challenge. If you want to play at this level, you have to accept that you can win or lose. It will be difficult. You have to be prepared for the unexpected. You would like everything to be clear and predictable, but that is rarely the case. Fortunately, this team has already shown to treat the unpredictable. So we go again.
“Our focus continues to maintain the same process, remain connected with our game plan, be ready for the intensity that Sheffield United will bring and to manage the challenges they form. At the same time we believe in our own strengths.
“Every match presents a new scenario. It may not be a new opponent, but the circumstances always change. We can draw on experiences from the past to prepare for the game, but in the end we have to navigate another event with different opportunities and challenges. And in the end we will see if we are strong enough.”