MX23RW : Saturday, April 17 09:34:59| >> :120:45192:45192:

Gareth Ainsworth: 'Wycombe are not dead and buried'

Gareth Ainsworth: 'Wycombe are not dead and buried'
© Reuters
Fred Onyedinma headed home early in the second half from a Joe Jacobson corner to guide the Chairboys to only their seventh victory of the season.

Gareth Ainsworth pointed to a change in formation as the key to a crucial 1-0 win over Blackburn that he believes can inspire bottom club Wycombe to an unlikely escape from the Sky Bet Championship drop.

Fred Onyedinma headed home early in the second half from a Joe Jacobson corner to guide the Chairboys to only their seventh victory of the season, that leaves them eight points behind 21st-placed Birmingham with seven games remaining.

It was the fourth goal of the season for the Wycombe forward, who was playing at left wing-back, but only his second in the league.

And following Wycombe's first game since the international break, boss Ainsworth revealed his side utilised the two-week hiatus to work on some new tactics behind the scenes.

"We changed formation today and it worked," the 47-year-old said. "That might have surprised a few people. We've worked on things for two weeks and it paid dividends.

"We soaked up so much pressure and were cramping up at the end, but we were the better side. It's a really good result for us and it gives us a chance.

"People will be wondering whether we're dead and buried – not a chance! There's never any pressure on us because we're punching so far above our weight, and they beat us 5-0 last time so this feels like a big result."

While delighted with such an important win, there was a bittersweet element attached to the result owing to midfielder Dominic Gape being taken off on a stretcher with little over quarter-of-an-hour gone.

That, coupled with the fact victory meant defeat for his hometown club Blackburn, where he came through the youth ranks as a player and used to hold a season ticket.

He added: "Dominic has a calf problem. He knows Wycombe are there for him and will be back with a vengeance.

"I don't like Blackburn losing – they are my home town and the team I support – but Wycombe will always be the main result, so I don't mind sacrificing the Rovers to get the three points."

For Rovers – who were without injured top-scorer Adam Armstrong – manager Tony Mowbray credited Wycombe's fighting spirit after seeing his team stretch their winless run to five games.

Following a lacklustre first half the former promotion hopefuls did improve after the break, and Joe Rothwell went close to notching an equaliser two minutes from time, only to be denied by home goalkeeper David Stockdale at point-blank range.

Mowbray said: "We're all disappointed to lose. They scored from a set play, which is their strength and full credit to them for fighting to stay in this league.

"It's always a difficult game against them because they don't allow you to dominate games. I'm disappointed we could not take the half-chances that came our way.

"We can play pretty good football, but you have to score. We have lost lots of games 1-0 this season when we've had plenty of the ball.

"We were without our main scorer and Adam can finish it off. It's all about sticking the ball in the net and he can shoot left, right and get it in the back of the net."

ID:441630:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect4542:

Click here for more stories about Gareth Ainsworth

Click here for more stories about Blackburn Rovers

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Did you know...?
Middlesbrough's Marcus Tavernier celebrates scoring their second goal against Preston North End in the Championship on March 16, 2021
Read Next:
Good Friday's Championship predictions including Bournemouth vs. Middlesbrough
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.

rhs 2.0
Todays Game Header Right
FA Cup
Premier League
Copa del Rey
Championship
Serie A
Bundesliga
Ligue 1
Primeira Liga
League One
League Two
National League
National League North
National League South
Scottish Cup
Scottish Championship
Scottish League One
Scottish League Two
Turkish Super Lig
Belgian Pro League
Greek Superleague
Swiss Super League
Russian Premier League
Ukrainian Premier League
Norwegian Eliteserien
Swedish Allsvenskan
NIFL Premiership
League of Ireland Premier
Welsh Premier League
Belarusian Premier League
Segunda Division
Serie B
2.Bundesliga
Ligue 2
Eerste Divisie
Major League Soccer
Copa Diego Maradona
Liga MX
AFC Champions League
Australian A-League
J1 League
Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Norwich CityNorwich41279565283790
2Watford412410759273282
3Swansea CitySwansea412291050311975
4Brentford402013771403173
5Bournemouth4120111066402671
6Barnsley412181254441071
7Reading4219101357461167
8Cardiff CityCardiff4216121458461260
9Millwall411416114140158
10Middlesbrough41169164845357
11Queens Park RangersQPR411511154850-256
12Stoke CityStoke411413144546-155
13Luton TownLuton40158173546-1153
14Blackburn RoversBlackburn421311185448650
15Bristol City41155214055-1550
16Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest411213163439-549
17Preston North EndPreston41146214155-1448
18Coventry CityCoventry411112183756-1945
19Birmingham CityBirmingham411112183150-1945
20Huddersfield TownHuddersfield411111194362-1944
21Derby CountyDerby421110213148-1743
22Rotherham UnitedRotherham39116224153-1239
23Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds41118223454-2035
24Wycombe WanderersWycombe4189243064-3433

Subscribe to our Newsletter


Transfer Talk Daily
Match previews - twice weekly
Morning Briefing (7am UTC)
Ultra close-up image of Kevin De Bruyne [NOT FOR USE IN ARTICLES]Get the latest transfer news, match previews and news direct to your inbox!