One final game for Gareth Ainsworth as Wycombe Wanderers manager?

Wycombe Wanderers manager Gareth Ainsworth is the current second longest-serving manager in the EFL behind only Simon Weaver at Harrogate Town, but the Chairboys boss has been heavily linked with a return to former side Preston North End.

Ainsworth has said on many occasions recently about how he loves Wycombe, that he thinks the club is special, and that he’s excited for the future, all of which would suggest he’ll be staying on in Buckinghamshire, but the rumours of a return to Deepdale are refusing to go away.

The former midfielder had three spells at North End as a player, in which he made over 90 appearances combined, so the club is likely to be close to his heart, but that figure is dwarfed by his over 100 appearances for the Chairboys coupled with over 450 in the dugout.

In his time as manager of Wycombe, Ainsworth has kept the club in League Two against the odds, been promoted to League One against the odds, and then last season took the club to the Championship against the odds.

Staying in the division this season was always going to be difficult given the financial gulf between the Championship and League One, and the fact the club had less time to prepare than usual due to the pandemic, and that the pandemic meant almost all clubs had less money to spend.

Despite the odds being stacked against the Bucks side, they have taken the fight to the final day, and although they will be relegated on Saturday barring a freak set of results, the fact they have clung on to their status for so long is testament to the work done by Ainsworth who has transformed the fortunes of the side.

Wycombe going into the final day with relegation not yet confirmed is typical of the sides Ainsworth has put together in his nine years as manager at the club, where so many late goals have helped them on their way. They have often refused to give up and found the goal that they needed deep into stoppage time.

Wycombe’s form over the last 10 games has been excellent, they sit eighth in the 10 game form table, and had they not started the season so badly, with seven consecutive defeats in the league, then they may even have been clear of the relegation zone by now.

As it is, they find themselves needing to win, needing Sheffield Wednesday to beat Derby and needing Rotherham to drop points at Cardiff City, but that alone will not be enough. Wednesday’s goal difference is -21, Wycombe’s is -33, as Ainsworth’s side would need Wednesday to win, they would need to beat Middlesbrough 13-0 to stand a chance of extending their stay in the second tier.

Despite this, Wycombe can still fight and try to finish as high as they can. Many people had them as finishing bottom of the league without a chance, so to finish in 22nd, or even 23rd, would still have proven some people wrong.

Middlesbrough meanwhile come into the game with nothing to play for, while Wycombe were widely tipped for relegation, Boro were widely fancied to do well with Neil Warnock in the dugout.

The Teesside club fell short of troubling the play-offs this season, but the turnaround from last season has still been significant, and with Neil Warnock having signed a contract extension for next season the club is well positioned to challenge for promotion next campaign, with the right additions in the summer.

Warnock’s side are guaranteed a top half finish, although can still finish anywhere from 12th to 8th. The 72-year-old has given youth a chance from the bench in recent weeks, and may opt to give starts to a couple of those players in the final game.

Wanderers have never beaten Middlesbrough. The last meeting between the sides back in January saw them take the lead through an early Uche Ikpeazu goal, but Boro hit back through Marcus Browne, Marcus Tavernier, and Chuba Akpom goals to win the game comfortably.

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