EYE ON THE OPPOSITION | Wycombe Wanderers (A)

It’s a return to the road for Vale on Tuesday night with a trip down to Buckinghamshire to face Wycombe Wanderers.

Just one point and one position separate the two sides coming into the game, with the hosts currently in 13th place with 21 points, whilst we sit in 12th with 22 points on the board.

The Chairboys played out a 1-1 draw last weekend at home to Morecambe after a late equaliser from the Lancashire side ensured the points were shared.

Vale have been in fine form recently, and they come into this fixture off the back of a 1-0 victory at Vale Park against Lincoln City, thanks to Danny Butterworth’s first goal for the club.

With both sides so closely matched up, it is sure to be a close game, before the two sides clash here is what you need to know about Wycombe.

ONE TO WATCH: Anis Mehmeti

Anis Mehmeti has had an impressive start to the season for Wycombe, scoring six goals in the league so far this campaign.

The Albanian attacking midfielder signed for the Blues in 2020 from non-league side Woodford Town, after making his name at the academy level at Fulham, Tottenham Hotspur, and Norwich City.

Joining whilst Wycombe were in the Championship, he scored his first goal for the club in December 2020 in a 1-1 draw against Queens Park Rangers.

After scoring three goals in his first campaign for the club, he impressed even more in 2021/22 scoring seven while assisting four times, a career-high.

The improvements have just kept coming for the 21-year-old, and his brilliant start to the season has shown his progression, but Vale will be hoping they can stop him in his tracks at Adams Park.

THE MAN AT THE HELM: Gareth Ainsworth

Mr. Wycombe himself, Gareth Ainsworth is the man in the dugout for the Chairboys, and he has been for over a decade now.

Before his successful stint as a manager, Ainsworth had a long career as a midfielder in the professional game, playing for teams such as Preston North End, Lincoln City, Cardiff City, Wycombe, and even the mighty Valiants.

The 49-year-old played for Vale between 1997 and 1998, making 59 appearances and netting 11 times.

The Blackburn-born boss took his first steps into senior coaching whilst still playing for Queens Park Rangers, taking the reigns as a caretaker manager twice in 2008 and 2009.

Then came his playing days at Adams Park, before taking over as player-manager in 2012 until his retirement from playing in 2013.

Although, Ainsworth did play for the Chairboys in the Papa John’s Trophy in 2016, and also later balanced managerial duties with playing for Woodley United.

As manager of Wycombe, Ainsworth has worked wonders, overseeing promotions from Sky Bet League Two, and League One, leading the Blues to the Championship in 2020.

Unfortunately for the former midfielder, Wycombe slipped back down into the third tier in 2021 and failed to return the following season, losing to Sunderland 2-0 in the Sky Bet League One Play-Off final in May.

Despite the unsuccessful promotion attempt, Ainsworth was recognised for his achievements at the club and signed a contract extension with the Chairboys in June.

STADIUM: Adams Park

The Valiants haven’t travelled to Adams Park since 2018, so for the Vale faithful, they will be hoping to return to the 32-year-old stadium to see a victory.

Built in 1990, Adams Park replaced Loakes Park, which was Wycombe’s home for 95 years and has hosted many different levels of football, and even some London Wasps games between 2002 and 2014.

The stadium has a capacity of 10,137, with the Panache stand, which holds the travelling supporters, being able to hold around 2,000 people.

HEAD-TO-HEAD LAST FIVE:

Vale wins: 1

Draws: 3

Wycombe wins: 1

Most of the time these two teams meet, it’s a tight fixture, with both sides winning one a piece out of their last five meetings.

However, Vale’s last win against the Chairboys was a big one, beating the Buckinghamshire side 4-1 at Vale Park, just under a decade ago.