The 2021 EFL Trophy Final (known for sponsorship reasons as the 2021 Papa John's Trophy Final) was a football match that was played at Wembley Stadium. It decided the winners of the 2020–21 EFL Trophy, the 37th edition of the competition, a knock-out tournament for the 48 teams in League One and League Two and 16 category one academy sides. The match was played on 14 March 2021, one day after the final for the previous tournament, which was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[1] Although no fans were present, supporters raised money for local initiatives through virtual ticket sales.
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| Event | 2020–21 EFL Trophy | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Date | 14 March 2021 | ||||||
| Venue | Wembley Stadium, London | ||||||
| Referee | Charles Breakspear | ||||||
| Attendance | 0 | ||||||
Sunderland won 1–0 for their first win at Wembley in 48 years.[2]
Route to the final edit
Sunderland edit
| Pos | Div | Team | Pld | W | PW | PL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | L1 | Fleetwood Town | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | +6 | 9 | Advance to Round 2 |
| 2 | L1 | Sunderland | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 6 | +8 | 6 | |
| 3 | L2 | Carlisle United | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 9 | −2 | 3 | |
| 4 | ACA | Aston Villa U21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 14 | −12 | 0 |
Source: EFL.com
| 8 September 2020 Group Stage | Sunderland | 8–1 | Aston Villa U21 | Stadium of Light |
| 19:00 BST | Wyke  15', 50'Feeney 21'Scowen 75'Power 77'Graham 82'Dobson 84'O'Brien 90' |
Report | Vassilev 47' (pen.) |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Carl Boyeson |
| 6 October 2020 Group Stage | Sunderland | 5–3 | Carlisle United | Stadium of Light |
| 19:45 BST | Maguire 26', 54' Hume 37'Wyke 69'Diamond 90+1' |
Alessandra 6' (pen.) Mellish 72', 82' |
Attendance: 0 |
| 10 November 2020 Group Stage | Fleetwood Town | 2–1 | Sunderland | Highbury Stadium |
| 19:45 GMT | McKay 51' Duffy 59' |
McFadzean 15' |
Attendance: 0 |
| 8 December 2020 Round 2 | Oldham Athletic | 1–2 | Sunderland | Oldham |
| 19:00 GMT | Grant 13' |
Report | Maguire 30' Scowen 64' |
Stadium: Boundary Park Attendance: 0 |
| 12 January 2021 Round 3 | Sunderland | 2–0 | Port Vale | Sunderland |
| 18:00 GMT | O'Brien 21' McGeady 90+7' (pen.) |
Stadium: Stadium of Light Referee: Declan Bourne |
| 2 February 2021 Quarter-Final | Milton Keynes Dons | 0–3 | Sunderland | Milton Keynes |
| 18:30 GMT | Harvie  56'Gladwin 69' |
Report | Lewington 12' (o.g.) McGeady 76'Wyke 82' |
Stadium: Stadium MK Attendance: 0 Referee: Thomas Bramall |
| 17 February 2021 Semi-Final | Sunderland | 1–1 (5–3 p) | Lincoln City | Sunderland |
| 18:00 GMT |
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Report |
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Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 0 Referee: Ben Toner |
| Penalties | ||||
Tranmere Rovers edit
| Pos | Div | Team | Pld | W | PW | PL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | L2 | Port Vale | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 8 | Advance to Round 2 |
| 2 | L2 | Tranmere Rovers | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 6 | |
| 3 | L1 | Wigan Athletic | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 6 | +3 | 4 | |
| 4 | ACA | Liverpool U21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 13 | −8 | 0 |
Source: EFL.com
| 8 September 2020 Group Stage | Port Vale | 0–0 (4–3 p) | Tranmere Rovers | Vale Park |
| 19:00 BST | Report | Attendance: 0 Referee: Declan Bourne | ||
| Penalties | ||||
Whitehead  Cullen Conlon  Trickett-Smith Rodney Fitzpatrick |
Banks Khan Morris O'Connor Payne Walker-Rice |
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| 29 September 2020 Group Stage | Tranmere Rovers | 3–2 | Liverpool U21 | Prenton Park |
| 19:00 BST | Vaughan 74', 75' Payne 90' |
Report | Cain 50' Longstaff 83' |
Attendance: 0 Referee: Scott Oldham |
| 11 November 2020 Group Stage | Tranmere Rovers | 2–2 (3–1 p) | Wigan Athletic | Birkenhead |
| 18:30 GMT | Woolery 45+1' Morris 72' |
Report | Keane 19' McHugh 45+3' |
Stadium: Prenton Park Attendance: 0 Referee: Ben Speedie |
| Penalties | ||||
| Ferrier Lloyd Smith Banks Morris |
James Joseph Perry Crankshaw |
|||
| 8 December 2020 Round 2 | Tranmere Rovers | 2–1 | Manchester City U21 | Birkenhead |
| 19:00 GMT | Lloyd 27' Banks 88' (pen.) |
Report | Delap 17' |
Stadium: Prenton Park |
| 13 January 2021 Round 3 | Tranmere Rovers | 4–2 | Leicester City U21 | Birkenhead |
| 19:30 GMT | Ferrier 4' Lloyd 37', 45+1'Blackett-Taylor 53' |
Wakeling 36' Suengchitthawon 56' |
Stadium: Prenton Park Referee: Marc Edwards |
| 2 February 2021 Quarter-Final | Tranmere Rovers | 2–1 | Peterborough United | Birkenhead |
| 19:00 GMT | Lloyd 38' Lewis 82' |
Clarke-Harris 90+1' (pen.) |
Stadium: Prenton Park |
| 16 February 2021 Semi-Final | Oxford United | 0–2 | Tranmere Rovers | Oxford |
| 18:00 GMT |
|
Report |
|
Stadium: Kassam Stadium Attendance: 0 Referee: Craig Hicks |
Match edit
| Sunderland | 1–0 | Tranmere Rovers |
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Report |
          Sunderland
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     Tranmere Rovers
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References edit
- ^ "'Wembley Weekender' for Papa John's Trophy Finals". EFL. 4 February 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2021.
- ^ Pilnick, Brent (14 March 2021). "Sunderland beat Tranmere in EFL Trophy". BBC Sport.