Sam Stubbs eyeing Bantams trip to Wembley in EFL Trophy

Wycombe stand in the way of the club’s first appearance at the national stadium for seven years.

Stubbs is as geed up for Wednesday’s televised Bristol Street Motors Trophy semi-final as anyone.

And he would love to get through for the Valley Parade faithful.

He said: “We back ourselves at home but it’s important that we take good momentum into it.

“The fans can get behind us with a bit more belief than they probably had a few weeks ago.

“As much as it’s for the club and the players, we’d like to reward the fans because they stick with you through thick and thin.

“This club has got an affiliation with Wembley, so we’d like to take them back there.”

The Bantams have never got this far in the competition as they prepare to host the League One Chairboys for the second time this season.

Wycombe edged the FA Cup first-round clash 2-1 in November just before Graham Alexander took charge.

But Stubbs knows the prize at stake could not be bigger when the sides meet again.

“It’s obviously lovely if it was the FA Cup or League Cup but Wembley is Wembley,” he added.

“If you don’t get motivated by that, there’s something a bit wrong with you!

“You’re 90 minutes from playing at Wembley. It’s as simple or as complicated as you want to make it.

“Saturday took a lot out of the boys who haven’t played a lot lately, so it’s important we recover.

“But we’ll approach it as another game at home, concentrate on what we do and it’s all to play for.”

City head into it in their best form after three consecutive wins including back-to-back home victories over MK Dons and Sutton. Stubbs feels they are in a good place.

“Three wins in a week is massive in any league but especially this one. It can change quickly.

“It’s the best momentum we could take into Wednesday.

“It’s a crazy league. If you can string four or five together you can shoot right up there, especially if you’re playing people around you.

“It was important to back up the last two. With all due respect to Sutton, you should be beating them, especially at home.

City were last at Wembley for the 2017 League One play-off final (Image: Pro Sports Images)

“It was never going to be free-flowing with the pitch and the way they play. You have to dig in.

“The fans love that type of gritty performance when you come out the right side of it.

“It’s big for any team if you can get it right at home but especially for us. Valley Parade is such an asset and recently we have done that and we’ll take that into Wednesday.”

Stubbs made his first start in five games at the weekend as Graham Alexander tried him in a midfield role to cover Richie Smallwood’s absence.

It was a new one on the 25-year-old, who only found out he was playing there on the day.

“The manager obviously thought that he didn’t want me sitting on it and overcomplicating things,” he added.

“But I enjoyed it. You’re probably 10 yards in front of where you usually play but you can go anywhere.

“You’re very structured and disciplined at centre half but in midfield you get in all sorts of positions.

“I put in a cross at one point in the first half and I thought, ‘wow’. But the gaffer told me to play my game and be comfortable and I think I did all right.

“It probably won’t be a long-term thing but I saw it as an opportunity to show what I can do.”