Hail the Admiral
GARETH AINSWORTH saluted his Admiral after Wycombe sunk Preston’s boats to sail into the fourth round of the FA Cup for only the third time.
The Wanderers manager gave a debut to Admiral Muskwe and the 22-year-old Zimbabwean striker, on loan from Leicester City, fired a cannonball onto Preston’s decks from the word go.
Muskwe skillfully set up Fred Onyedinma for the opening goal after just three minutes, p aving the way for Ainsworth’s biggest win of the season.
Preston had not lost a match at Wycombe in eight visits, but by the 25th minute they were 3-0 down.
Joe Jacobson and Josh Knight got on the scoresheet for the Chairboys and although Riis Jakobsen pulled a goal back just before the break, Wycombe substitute Alex Samuel sealed it late on.
It made for a chastening day for Preston boss Alex Neil as his side looked thoroughly lost in the gloom of freezing fog against their Championship rivals.
Braving the arctic conditions in his trademark thin leather jacket Ainsworth said: “It’s a brilliant achievement for the club and I’m proud of the performance of the players.
“Admiral Muskwe is an unknown. We can’t go out and get Premier League strikers that everyone wants, so we have to find unpolished gems.”
Preston boss Alex Neil said: “People ask why certain players are not playing and I gave those players opportunities today. They didn’t take their chances and maybe people can now see why they’re not playing.” WYCOMBE: Allsop 7; Mccarthy 6, Knight 6, Tafazolli 8, Jacobson 7; Bloomfield 6 ( Horgan 57, 8), Adeniran 6 (Gape 68, 6), Wheeler 8; Muskwe 8 (Samuel 75, 7), Onyedinma 8; Ikpeazu 7 (Akinfenwa 76). Unused subs: Stockdale, Grimmer, Kashket, Charles, Mehmeti. PRESTON: Ripley 7; Rafferty 5 (Fisher 74, 5), Storey 4, Hughes 4, Earl 4 (Huntington 46, 6); Ledson 5, Potts 7, Bayliss 6 (Browne 46, 6); Mulumby 6 (Maguire 75), Stockley 5; Riis 7. Unused subs: Hudson, Holland-wilkinson, O’reilly, Walker. MAN OF THE MATCH: David Wheeler. Provided tempo and energy which Preston were never able to match. REFEREE: Stephen Martin 7. 6 ........ Shots on Target .........4 8 ........Shots off Target .........5 6 ................Corners .................6 17 .................Fouls ..................12 3 ............... Offsides ..................1 61.1....Passing Success % ..68.4 216 ....... Total Passes ....... 329 40.5 ....Possession % ..... 59.5 49.5 .Territorial Adv % ..50.5