Coventry City star relishes 'amazing' Championship play-off semi-final clash with former club Sunderland

Coventry City goalkeeper Ben Wilson has admitted that it will be “amazing” to return to boyhood club Sunderland for Tuesday night’s Championship play-off semi-final second leg.

The 32-year-old started his career on Wearside, but left the Stadium of Light before making a senior appearance for the Black Cats. This season, Wilson has registered four league outings for Coventry, with the stopper having not played since October due to a knee injury prior to being recalled to the starting XI for last Saturday’s vital 2-0 victory over Middlesbrough.

An impressive showing in that match has presumably assured Wilson of the number one jersey at the CBS Arena heading into the play-offs, and the ex-Sunderland talent is relishing the prospect of a trip to the North East.

What has Ben Wilson said about Coventry City’s play-off semi-final with Sunderland?

Addressing the opportunity to line up against the club he supported as a boy in such a pivotal clash, Wilson said: “I’ll take that! Chance to get some northern air into my lungs, so that will be nice. I’m looking forward to it. It’s another game of football.

“We have got enough to go and produce something special. We can’t afford to worry about anything or be negative. We have had a lot of positivity throughout the season and we have achieved enough by going from 17th to fifth, still got players who have been injured and are now due back and that’s going to make a massive difference, but the lads who are currently on the pitch are more than capable of getting results.”

Asked if Sunderland are a dream semi-final draw for him, Wilson continued: “Yeah, I think I’d rather play them in the semis than the final. It’s amazing to be going back to Sunderland. They have obviously got to come here first and it’s going to be a fantastic game. Look, I’m a Coventry City fan now so I’ll definitely be supporting the Sky Blues on those two days.”

The Echo has launched a new WhatsApp SAFC Channel to bring the latest news, analysis and team & injury updates direct to your phone. Simply click this link to join our SAFC WhatsApp channel.

The goalkeeper also revealed that his phone has been bombarded with messages from family and friends ever since it was revealed that Coventry would be facing Sunderland for a spot at Wembley.

“They’ll be in the away end [at the CBS Arena],” he said. “I have just looked on me phone and I have had a bit of stick from mates of mine who are Sunderland fans, so there will be plenty of friendly banter between now and then. But we have to get over the line, make the final and push on. And then you never know what will happen.”

As for the prospect of playing at the Stadium of Light for the first time in his career as a senior player, he added: “I played as a Sunderland Under-23 player there so that will be an amazing experience. I was put in against Boro under massive pressure so what’s coming is going to be bigger than that game, but I think I have done enough in the game to give me the confidence to go into the next two games.”

Your next Sunderland read: Régis Le Bris discusses his big Sunderland striker selection call and drops interesting hint