Three defeats in their opening four league games have set alarm bells ringing at Wycombe and although it is far too soon to call it a crisis, the return to fitness of key players like Ryan Tafazolli and Sam Vokes cannot come soon enough.

Losses to Shrewsbury and Exeter in the space of four days have left Wanderers short on points and low on confidence, and it is not about to get any easier. 

On Saturday they face the long trip to Barnsley, who were playing in the Championship last season.

A worrying vulnerability to set pieces has been a major factor in Wycombe’s disappointing start to the new campaign, but the main reason is surely the loss through injury of at least seven senior players. 

Ask yourself, would you back Liverpool to win their next game if they were missing Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, van Dijk, Henderson, and Salah? 

Probably not, so spare a thought for the situation Gareth Ainsworth finds himself in. 
In addition to Tafazolli and Vokes, he is without Jason McCarthy, Curtis Thompson,

Brandon Hanlan, Sullay Kaikai and Tjay De Barr, all currently on the casualty list.
Despite being under-strength against Shrewsbury, Wycombe dominated the game. 

They had twice as much possession as their opponents, made twice as many passes and had eighteen goal attempts compared to Shrewsbury’s six. 

However, the only statistic that mattered was the final score line and defensive errors contributed to Wanderers losing 2-1.

At Exeter, a woeful first half performance was followed by a much improved second half, but more mistakes cost them dearly when it looked as though they might snatch a point.

Wanderers desperately need a win, but it does not get much tougher than a trip Barnsley, who have spent eight of the last ten years in the Championship. 

The clubs have met on eight previous occasions and Wycombe’s only victory came in December 2018, Randell Williams scoring the only goal of the game.

Defensive errors; a hangover from losing the play off final; a failure to recruit enough players in the transfer window; or simply a crippling injury list?

Whatever the reason, Wanderers need to find their form and find it quickly.