Meet the opposition | Wycombe Wanderers
As Swansea City prepare to head to Adams Park to take on Wycombe Wanderers, we take a closer look at the Chairboys.
What’s their story?
Wycombe are embarking on their first-ever Championship campaign after Gareth Ainsworth led them to League One play-off glory with victory over Oxford at Wembley in July.
Formed in 1887, Wycombe have spent the vast majority of their history outside of the football league, spending 64-consecutive years in the Isthmian League before accepting invitation to the Conference – after rejecting numerous previous invites – in 1987.
Martin O’Neill guided them to the Football League in 1993, and secured immediate promotion to the third tier a year later.
They were FA Cup semi-finalists in 2001 and League Cup semi-finalists in 2007, but survived relegation out of the Football League in 2014 before reviving their fortunes under Ainsworth.
How’s their form?
Wanderers have lost their first two league fixtures, suffering a 5-0 defeat at Blackburn last time out.
The Chairboys have been involved in just two draws in 2020, with one of those coming on New Year’s Day and the other in the play-offs.
They have won seven and lost five of their other 12 games during a year in which the regular League One season was curtailed early.
Who’s the boss?
Gareth Ainsworth. The 47-year-old is the longest-serving manager in the EFL having taken the reins at Adams Park back in 2012.
A winger in his playing days, Ainsworth played in the Premier League for Wimbledon in a long career that also included spells with Northwich Victoria, Preston, Cambridge, Lincoln, Port Vale, Walsall, Cardiff, QPR and Wycombe.
A keen musician, Ainsworth saved the club from going out of the Football League in 2014 and helped them rebuild to win promotion to League One in 2018, before reaching the second tier this year.
Who’s the captain?
Matt Bloomfield. The veteran midfielder is in his 17th full season with Wycombe, having joined from Ipswich in 2003.
The 36-year-old has since enjoyed three promotions, two play-off finals and a run to the semi-finals of the League Cup in that time.
Bloomfield has made over 530 appearances and scored 41 goals for the Buckinghamshire club, and has been dubbed ‘Mr Wycombe’.
Who are the key men?
In the shortened 2019-20 campaign former Swansea striker Adebayo Akinfenwa was the top scorer for Wanderers as he scored 10 goals in League One, however he will be missing this weekend as he recovers from knee surgery.
Wycombe also have another ex-Swan on the books in Alex Samuel, who did not make a first-team appearance for the club but did feature for the under-21s in the Football League Trophy.
Ainsworth bolstered his forward options with the signing of Uche Ikpeazu from Hearts but he still has the core of his promotion side.
Keeper Ryan Allsop has been a stand-out performer since joining in 2018, and was outstanding during their play-off success, while set-piece specialist and left-back Joe Jacobson was voted League One fans’ player of the year for 2019-20.
David Wheeler has impressed in midfield, while former Millwall winger Fred Onyedinma showed the spark he can provide in that unforgettable play-off run.
