Leeds United are preparing for Southampton in the Championship play-off final at Wembley on Sunday and opened their doors to the media in a special raft of interviews with players.

Leeds United do not play at Wembley Stadium every year, or every five years for that matter. It remains hallowed ground for the Whites, having only been visited twice in the last 30 years. It’s a huge deal.

Preparations began on Thursday night, following Norwich City’s demolition, and only increased once it was confirmed that Southampton would be their opponents on Friday evening. After a few days of relaxation, the players resumed training over the weekend.

On Monday, there was a double session followed by a media function, which summarised the efforts being undertaken to commemorate this milestone. Press conferences are a regular, necessary crutch for the working week, and meetings with players are scheduled on occasion, although mass invitations like Monday’s are uncommon.

LUTV, Sky Sports, BBC, Talksport, ITV, regional and national journalists gathered on the indoor surface at Thorp Arch to await the players during their break between sessions. As part of their Every Minute Matters campaign, experts from the British Heart Foundation were on hand to provide CPR instruction to Sam Byram and Junior Firpo.

The club acknowledges that this is a significant week in its recent history and has taken steps to ensure that as many fans as possible may see, listen to, and read the players’ opinions during the next four days. It was refreshing to witness such access and organisation on such a large scale.

The athletes appeared to be eager to get started. Patrick Bamford finished his scheduled interview before several members of the media arrived, and captain Liam Cooper was also there early to set the tone.

While he has not played as much as he would like, Cooper has remained a popular choice among the media who come to hear from the elder voice in the dressing room. The skipper, Ilia Gruev, Archie Gray, Georginio Rutter, Junior Firpo, and Illan Meslier were relaxed as they entered the indoor pitch, exchanging pleasantries and light talk with the waiting journalists.

The players were clearly excited about the game. Wilfried Gnonto even acknowledged that he wanted training to be over so he could put his boots on the turf under the arch.

Ultimately, 14 players were made accessible to preview this historic encounter. It was an occasion that established the tone for Sunday and provided the players with an important platform ahead of what would be the largest crowd some of them have ever played in front of.