How the League One play-off final was won: The key Alex Neil calls that saw Sunderland over the line

It was the decision that summed up what has made Alex Neil and his Sunderland group successful.
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Right until the end, Neil showed his willingness to surprise by picking a team based not on performances past but the challenges ahead.

After his best display in a red-and-white shirt against Sheffield Wednesday, Jack Clarke looked a cert to start in the biggest game of them all.

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But Neil reasoned that in the opening stages he wanted poise on the ball, and not to give the opposition the chance to break from dangerous areas.

Sunderland boss Alex NeilSunderland boss Alex Neil
Sunderland boss Alex Neil

So he went with Elliot Embleton, and in the opening stages Sunderland picked their opposition apart.

Wycombe Wanderers are a different side to their previous stint in League One, better and more dangerous but more open too.

The game was more open than might have been expected but Gareth Ainsworth's forward line were struggling to track back when possession turned over.

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Sunderland's front four was ultra-fluid and though David Stockdale will feel he could have done better in dealing with Embleton's shot, it swerved viciously at the crucial moment and was more than deserved for the fast start the Black Cats had made.

Wycombe settled and began to offer more threat as the half time interval approached, but they struggled to carve out clear chances.

Anthony Patterson dealt with crosses well and there was only one occasion when the Black Cats allowed Sam Vokes to peel onto Lynden Gooch and head towards goal. That was always going to be Wycombe's most likely avenue; that or set pieces. On that front, Sunderland were superb. They simply didn't cede any through the first half, with Joe Jacobson having to wait until the 45th minute to try and bring his centre halves into play.

The second half was understandably more even, and there were moments when some rare slackness in the Sunderland ranks gave Wycombe an avenue.

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You need a little bit of luck in any final, and an excellent goalkeeper.

Patterson was exactly that, making a crucial stop from Vokes after Wright misjudged a long ball.

They were fortunate, too, that substitute Brandon Hanlan lost his composure at a vital moment, shooting straight at Patterson

The game was now in its crucial phase, and Neil's initial gamble would pay off again.

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Ainsworth turned to Adebayo Akinfenwa for his final substitution, and he immediately began to cause problems in the way he was able to bring long balls down and push Sunderland back.

Crucially, though, Wycombe now had two up top and little protection against the break.

When Sunderland began to break through Clarke, Stewart and Roberts they had acres of space in which to hurt their opposition.

Stewart took his chance superbly, and though there were some big last-ditch blocks from the Sunderland ranks, they looked as likely to add a third on the break.

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It was a controlled performance and one that summed up Neil's impact.

Through Wright, Batth, Evans and O'Nien they had the solid spine they needed. On the back of that, the technical quality in their ranks shone through.

It was a richly deserved victory, another excellent game plan from Neil carried out without fuss from his team.