Sunderland v Sheffield Wednesday is a Premier League game in all but name claims Sky Sports pundit

Sky Sports and EFL pundit Don Goodman feels that Sheffield Wednesday's League One play-off tie with Sunderland is one of the biggest the competition has seen.

Both sides have played in the Premier League but find themselves battling to get out of the third tier after a number of disappointing seasons for the pair of clubs.

Read More
Sheffield Wednesday boss Darren Moore provides contracts update with talks opene...

The Black Cats suffered back-to-back relegations in 2016-17 and 2017-18 and have been in League One since. The Owls dropped out of the second tier last season and are hoping to seal an immediate return to the Championship.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A huge crowd is expected at both legs of the play-off semi-final tie and Goodman feels the fixture would not be out of place in the top flight.

The first leg will be held at the Stadium of Light on Friday before the return fixture at Hillsborough is staged on Monday night.

"These are going to be huge, aren't they? It's got the feel of what would have been a Premier League game in all but name," said Goodman as he looked ahead to the fixtures.

"It's two teams that are way off where they should be with the chance to take that small step back towards where they believe they should be.

KEY CLASH: Sheffield Wednesday face Sunderland for a place at Wembley later this month. Picture: Getty Images.KEY CLASH: Sheffield Wednesday face Sunderland for a place at Wembley later this month. Picture: Getty Images.
KEY CLASH: Sheffield Wednesday face Sunderland for a place at Wembley later this month. Picture: Getty Images.
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"The fact you've got a League One play-off semi-final, which collectively could be played over the two legs in front of 80,000 people is just staggering really."

Automatic promotion would have been the aim for both sides ahead of the start of the campaign and Goodman feels that teams will have raised their performances for games against Wednesday and Sunderland.

"As we heard from Barry Bannan a few weeks ago, every team coming to Hillsborough and lifting their performance, the same will be said of Sunderland of course, with teams going to the Stadium of Light," he added.

One of the clubs will reach Wembley with either MK Dons or Wycombe Wanderers then standing between them or promotion.

KEEP UP-TO-DATE - Sunderland v Sheffield Wednesday match dates, kick-off times and TV channel for League One play-off semi-final as rivals eye Wembley trip.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.