Summary

  • Wycombe beat Oxford to reach the Championship for first time in their history

  • Late Jacobson penalty put Wanderers into second tier

  • Sykes cross sailed in to level for Oxford after Stewart headed Wycombe into early lead

  • Wycombe finished third in League One table and Oxford fourth on average points-per-game

  • Get involved via #bbcefl

  1. Team newspublished at 19:27 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Just the one change for Oxford from last week's semi-final second leg against Portsmouth as Matty Taylor starts in favour of Jamie Mackie.

    Oxford: Eastwood, Ruffels, Moore, Dickie, Long, Rodriguez, Brannagan, Sykes, Henry, Browne, Taylor.

    Subs: Stevens, Woodburn, Forde, Mousinho, Mackie, Hanson, Agyei, Atkinson, Kelly.

  2. Postpublished at 19:26 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Kick-off is just a few minutes away so let's take a look at how the two teams line up this evening..

  3. Postpublished at 19:25 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    The players are beginning to make their way out at an empty Wembley.

    Oxford come out first to Don't Stop by The Red Hot Chili Peppers.

    Thumbs up this post if you think that song choice is a good one. Thumbs down if you think the Wembley overlords have got it wrong and should have picked something else.

  4. Eerie pre-match feel around stadiumpublished at 19:23 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Adam Williams
    BBC Sport at Wembley

    My drive here earlier tonight took me along the M40 - a motorway that bypasses both Oxford and Wycombe on its way to north west London and this famous stadium.

    It was strange not to have coach after minibus after full-packed car alongside, draped in either scarves or flags from both sides out of the windows.

    Under normal circumstances - both clubs would have had no problem selling all their ticket allocations such is the proximity of Wembley by road and rail.

    Outside WembleyImage source, Adam Williams - BBC Sport

    In fact, when I arrived, the scene outside looked like any normal Monday evening really apart from a few members of the Oxford United board meeting up outside one of the turnstiles.

    More bargain hunters going in and out of the designer stores than there were nervous and excited supporters.

  5. Oxford backed by celebrity 'fans'published at 19:21 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Clubs being backed by hordes of cardboard cut-out 'fans' has become quite the vogue while football continues to be played behind closed doors.

    But Oxford are being 'backed' by some big-hitters tonight.

    Donald Trump, president of the United States, is decked out in yellow and is joined by Prince Harry and now-Oxfordshire resident David Beckham!

    David Beckham in the Oxford 'fans'Image source, Getty Images
    Donald Trump in the Oxford 'fans'Image source, Getty Images
    Prince Harry in the Oxford 'fans'Image source, Getty Images
  6. Live commentary on BBC local radiopublished at 19:20 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Unfortunately we cannot bring you live radio commentary of tonight's game on this page.

    However, if you're in the nearby area, you can listen to FM radio coverage of the match on BBC Radio Oxford or BBC Three Counties Radio.

  7. 'I'd love to be there'published at 19:19 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Wycombe Wanderers chairman Rob Couhig told BBC Three Counties Radio:

    "Everyone has done a fantastic job, it's a great honour for the community and we are honoured to be part of it.

    "I'd love to be there, I'd give my right arm to go but rules are rules and we'll follow them and do our best to wish the boys well from here (USA).

    "We have the right leadership and talent and hopefully we will prevail.

    "Regardless of which direction we go, next year will be a bigger and better year for the club."

  8. A heart-stopping moment gaining entrypublished at 19:17 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Adam Williams
    BBC Sport at Wembley

    Now this is my first experience post-coronavirus lockdown of attending a football fixture as a member of the media, so all the things such as wearing a face mask and undergoing medical screening pre-entry were expected but unfamiliar.

    I turned up at the designated area outside Wembley earlier and followed the instructions for who would take my temperature and pulse rate and answered some simple questions.

    Medical screening areaImage source, Adam Williams - BBC Sport

    But, I am someone in his late-30s who was born with a slow resting heartbeat and when the device gave a reading of just 42 BPM, my admittance to the stadium needed second approval from the on-site paramedic.

    "Do you run marathons, Adam?" was his first question when he said when he saw the rate.

    "Not recently!" was my reply.

    "Well, if we get you to do one lap around the stadium and then come back and take another reading, you should be OK to get in..."

    Thankfully he was joking and I am now safely ensconced in my designated seat in the press box.

    View from the Wembley press boxImage source, Adam Williams - BBC Sport
  9. Head-to-headpublished at 19:15 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Right then, these two teams have faced each other just once this season due to the season coming to an early end becaue of the coronavirus pandemic.

    Oxford came out on top in a 1-0 win at the Kassam Stadium in December last year through James Henry's goal but it was a fiery game on that winter's afternoon. Wanderers had Adebayo Akinfenwa sent off and eight players were booked in total throughout the match.

    Both sides have faced each other 25 times in the league and it's all square - they both have nine wins over each other and have shared the points seven times.

    They have met twice in cup games - the Us came out 3-0 winners in their 2018 Checkatrade Trophy game and they've met in the FA Cup just on the one occasion in 2006 with Chairboys coming out on top in a 2-1 win.

    So, overall it's 10 games a piece, whoever wins tonight will take over in the head-to-heads too.

  10. get involved

    Get Involvedpublished at 19:12 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Come on then let's have your predictions, who makes it into the Championship next season?.

    Karl Robinson gets his first shot at a Wembley occasion, will he guide his Oxford team to glory or will Wycombe reach the English second tier for the first time in their history?

    There's a lot a stake here folks.

    Let us know using #bbcefl on social media.

  11. 'This could be the biggest surprise in history'published at 19:09 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Gareth AinsworthImage source, PA Media

    It seems strange to think of this now, given how ingrained they are in the EFL, but Wycombe only won promotion from non-league in 1993-94.

    Now the Chairboys, who jumped from eighth to third in the table after the season was decided on a points-per-game basis, are just one match away from reaching the second tier for the first time ever.

    "The season we have had has been astonishing," boss Gareth Ainsworth told BBC Three Counties Radio. "Nobody dreamed that we could be where we were all season.

    "This Wycombe team keeps on surprising and this could be the biggest surprise in history.

    "It would be a huge achievement if we can get this team to the Championship."

  12. A familiar face in the press boxpublished at 19:06 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Adam Williams
    BBC Sport at Wembley

    There's a face many would have been used to seeing on their television screens first thing in the morning in the ground tonight, making no attempt to disguise his allegiances as well...

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    Former BBC Breakfast presenter and Wycombe fan Bill Turnbull has just come to say hello to the commentary team from BBC Three Counties who are sat behind me.

    Former Chairboys midfielder Marcus Bean is the pundit on air this evening and he asked Bill for a prediction.

    Bill's only confident reply was that come full-time, there would still be more security staff than spectators inside the ground!

  13. Home-made fare for the hard-working presspublished at 19:06 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Adam Williams
    BBC Sport at Wembley

    No three-course slap-up press lounge meals in the behind-closed-doors football era sadly...

    Adam Williams' dinnerImage source, Adam Williams - BBC Sport

    Probably a good thing to be fair for the waistlines and cholesterol levels of many a journalist.

    This above is my own home-made version to keep me sustained through the game. All the vital vitamins and nutrients you might need right there, plus a couple of biscuits!

  14. Road to the play-off final - Wycombepublished at 19:04 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Wycombe celebrateImage source, Rex Features

    "Entertaining", I think is the word for Wycombe's play-off semi-final first leg against Fleetwood at Highbury.

    Three goals in the first six minutes, two sendings off for Joey Barton's Fleetwood, and Wycombe comfortably sealing a 4-1 victory to take into the second leg. Phew.

    But anyone who thought Fleetwood would sit back in the return fixture was sorely mistaken.

    Despite a valiant fightback from Fleetwood, Wycombe held on to draw 2-2 and win 6-3 on aggregate to seal their place at Wembley.

  15. Season recap - Wycombe's jump from eighth to thirdpublished at 19:00 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Wycombe celebrate a goalImage source, Rex Features

    After storming out of the gate in the first half of the season, Wycombe surpassed everyone's wildest expectations.

    By Christmas they were top of the League One table with a seven-point gap on second-placed Peterborough.

    However, a run of five defeats in seven games over the festive period saw them slip down the table.

    By the time the season was curtailed by the coronavirus crisis, Wycombe were in eighth position in the table, but by virtue of points-per-game, they rose a remarkable five places to enter the play-offs when the campaign resumed this month.

  16. 'The underdogs have overachieved'published at 18:57 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Karl RobinsonImage source, PA Media

    Prior to the season's suspension in March due to the coronavirus pandemic, Karl Robinson's Oxford won five games on the bounce to climb into promotion contention.

    Robinson made clear what an achievement that is considering the financial situation the two respective sides have.

    "You've got two teams with budgets in the bottom half of the table playing in the final, which is quite remarkable," Robinson told BBC Radio Oxford.

    "If you look at what (champions) Coventry City have done, it seems to be a year that all the underdogs have overachieved."

  17. Road to the play-off final - Oxfordpublished at 18:54 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Oxford celebrateImage source, Getty Images

    Whereas Wycombe's play-off journey so far has resulted in two stellar semi-finals for the neutral, Oxford ground out their place at Wembley.

    In their first leg against Portsmouth, they were held to a draw at Fratton Park and, on the return leg, they did it the hard way.

    After another 1-1 stalemate, it went to penalties and Cameron Brannagan's decisive spot-kick sent them to the final after a tense 90 minutes plus extra time.

    Karl Robinson's side will be hoping for a final that's less edgy than the matches that led up to it.

  18. Season recap - Robinson leads Oxford's charge for promotionpublished at 18:50 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Oxford celebrate at IpswichImage source, Rex Features

    Oxford have enjoyed a season to remember under Karl Robinson, and were in the periphery of the chase for promotion prior to the suspension of football.

    Robinson's side won five in a row before the season was halted, which began with a 5-0 thrashing of AFC Wimbledon in February.

    After points-per-game was used to decide the final standings in the League One table, Oxford finished fourth and were well in the mix for a shot at promotion.

    Can they end a spell of over two decades without second tier football this evening?

  19. Behind closed doorspublished at 18:46 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    A reminder, just in case it slipped your mind, that tonight's League One play-off final will take place behind closed doors at Wembley.

    Last season, as Charlton reigned victorious over a deflated Sunderland, 76,155 were in attendance at the national stadium.

    The only roars tonight will be from both sets of managers on the touchline but there will be some cutouts in attendance.

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  20. Two clubs on the verge of a very unlikely promotionpublished at 18:40 British Summer Time 13 July 2020

    Oxford v Wycombe (19:30 BST)

    Ahead of this evening's fixture, Football Focus' Mark Clemmit talked both managers to get their thoughts ahead of what could be a significant night in the history of two clubs I'm sure few thought would be in this position at the start of the season.

    Just 23 miles apart, but both Oxford boss Karl Robinson and Wycombe manager Gareth Ainsworth know how big a deal this final is.

    You can get yourself ready for kick off, by watching Clem's trip on the M40 below.

    Media caption,

    League One play-offs: Oxford United & Wycombe Wanderers on brink of unlikely promotion