Town facing physical Chairboys challenge
CARLOS CORBERAN has warned his players to be ready for a big, physical test at Adams Park tonight.
The Town head coach knows his players have a gruelling run of fixtures ahead of them – and he knows there will be no easy games among them.
Tonight’s game is the second of a run of 12 between Saturday and January 2.
“I always trust my players and team; I try and prepare them for every situation,” Corberan said. “We know that Wycombe are strong from a physical point of view.
“We know that they play very direct and using the strength that they have. We know they are a team who are going to press us a lot in our half.”
The Chairboys made a wretched start to life in the second-tier, losing seven on the spin to prop up the table.
Yet their performances and results have improved of late, with Gareth Ainsworth’s men accruing eight points from their last five outings.
“Wycombe are a team that have needed some matches to adapt to the level of the Championship since being promoted,” said Corberan.
“I think it’s easy for people to look at a team coming from League One and say they will be a weak team but I never believe this.
“Our job is to analyse the teams that we face, and we can see that they may have lost a few early games but now they have lost only one of their last five.
“After their first results they have changed their shape, started to play more 4-3-1-2 and since then they have become more competitive in the Championship.
“Their improvement is very clear. It will be a demanding game.”
It remains to be seen whether Joel Pereira will keep his place in goal following an error-strewn performance in Saturday’s 4-3 reversal at Stoke City. The 24-year-old, on loan from Manchester United, was given the nod because first-choice Ben Hamer had to isolate after contact with a Covid-19 sufferer.
Hamer remains unavailable for selection but Ryan Scholfield could come into Corberan’s thoughts.
“It’s very important for us as a club that we have three goalkeepers who can help us to solve any situation,” said Corberan. “Of course, when you play your first game and you concede four goals as a keeper, the first one that is not happy is the keeper.
“Joel is a very demanding goalkeeper and he has the skills to play better than he did the other day, that’s why he’s here with us.
“If we played the game against Stoke City again, I would (still) pick Joel Pereira.
“Keeper is a special position because if they make a mistake there is no one to (get them out of trouble), that’s why they need to have special characters.”