The Sky Bet Championship Play-Off Final is up first this weekend as Coventry City and Luton Town go head-to-head. Here are all the key stats and facts...
- This is Luton’s first ever appearance in a Football League Play-Off Final, with their 2-0 win over Sunderland in the second leg of the Semi-Final their first ever victory in an EFL Play-Off Game. They featured in two Play-Off Finals in the non-league, failing to get promoted in either, losing on penalties to AFC Wimbledon in 2011 after a 0-0 draw and losing 2-1 to York City in 2012.
- Coventry have never lost an EFL Play-Off match before (W3 D2), winning their only previous final 3-1 against Exeter in 2017/18 (League Two).
- Luton are unbeaten in their last nine meetings with Coventry in all competitions (W4 D5) since a 3-0 home loss in October 2017 in League Two. Both Championship meetings between the sides this term ended in a draw.
- Luton Town are looking to reach the Premier League for the first time, with their most recent top-flight season coming in 1991/92 when they finished 20th. The side finishing third has failed to win promotion in five of the last eight Championship play-off finals they’ve competed in; the others are Norwich City in 2014/15, Fulham in 2017/18 and Brentford in 2020/21.
- Coventry are looking to return to the Premier League for the first time since 2000/01, when they were relegated under Gordon Strachan. They had played in 34 consecutive top-flight campaigns before that.
- Luton have lost five of their seven games at Wembley, with this their most recent game at the national stadium since the 2012 Conference Play-Off Final against York, losing 2-1 despite taking the lead in the second minute via Andre Gray. Their two wins at Wembley have been in the 1988 League Cup final against Arsenal and 2009 Football League Trophy final against Scunthorpe, both 3-2 wins.
- Coventry have won three of their four matches at Wembley Stadium in all competitions, winning the 1987 FA Cup final (3-2 v Spurs), 2017 EFL Trophy final (2-1 v Oxford) and 2018 League Two Play-Off final (3-1 v Exeter). Their only defeat at the ground came in the 1987 Charity Shield against Everton (0-1).
- Luton have lost 12 of their last 15 games in London in all competitions (W2 D1) – they’ve kept a clean sheet in the three games they’ve avoided defeat but conceded 40 goals in those 12 defeats.
- Coventry have lost just one of their last 19 matches coming into this game (W9 D9), a run which started with a 1-1 draw against Luton. Their only defeat in that time was a 4-0 home loss to Stoke, while they haven’t lost outside of the Midlands since January (0-1 v Burnley).
- Luton were promoted from the National League in 2014, and could reach the Premier League just nine years later. It would be the joint-fastest a team has gone from the fifth tier to the top tier, along with Wimbledon between 1977 and 1986.
- Including Play-Offs, Viktor Gyökeres has been involved in more Championship goals than any other player this season (32 – 21 goals, 11 assists), with the Swede setting up Gustavo Hamer's winner for Coventry in the Semi-Final against Middlesbrough.
- Carlton Morris has scored 20 goals in all competitions this season, the most by a Luton player while in the second tier or higher since Phil Gray in 1992/93 (also 20).
- Should Coventry get promoted, Mark Robins would join only seven other managers in winning promotion from the fourth, third and second tier with the same club. The others are David Bowen (Northampton Town), Alan Ashman (Carlisle United), Jimmy Sirrel (Notts County), Graham Taylor (Watford), John Toshack (Swansea City), Dave Bassett (Wimbledon) and Eddie Howe (Bournemouth).
