"The ones to beat" - Sky Sports pundit tips Notts County to land League Two play-offs glory | OneFootball

The Sky Sports pundit feels this team will make that jump up into League One

The final day of the League Two season provided twists and turns like no other.

Bradford City snagged third place from Walsall thanks to a 96th-minute Antoni Sarcevic winner, despite the Saddlers coming out on top in a game for the first time since February.

Then, in the race for seventh place, Chesterfield capitalised on dropped points from Salford City, Grimsby Town and Colchester United to secure a play-off finish in their first season back in the EFL since 2017/18.

Notts County fans saw the League Two trophy being lifted at Meadow Lane for the second straight season after they were felled by Doncaster Rovers, and subsequently dropped to sixth, where they'll take on AFC Wimbledon in the upcoming semi-finals.

So, with the most exciting time of the EFL season just around the corner, former Aston Villa midfielder and current Sky Sports pundit, Lee Hendrie, has given his verdict on who will secure the fourth and final promotion spot in the fourth tier this season.

Lee Hendrie issues League Two play-off predictions - Notts County are sided with

In an exclusive interview with Football League World, Sky Sports pundit Lee Hendrie has predicted that Notts County will prevail in the play-offs.

"I look at the firepower that Notts County have as well as some experienced heads and I think, looking at the teams in there, they could potentially be the team to go and win the play-offs," Hendrie told FLW.

"David McGoldrick's been fantastic - and I know it's not just him - but the squad of players that they have, and they play some really good, attractive football, and I think they will be the ones to beat. I really do.

"So I'll go with Notts County because I think they've been there or thereabouts all season, have played attractive football and have the experienced heads to go do so."

Walsall's collapse will prove too much for play-off success, according to Hendrie

Despite going into the play-offs on the back of their first win since February 22, Lee Hendrie still feels that Walsall's crumble in the second half of the season will prove mentally insurmountable.

Mat Sadler's side came into the season with little to no expectations to secure automatic promotion, but after being 14 points clear of fourth with a game in hand in mid-January, finishing outside the top three has to go down as one of the biggest collapses in English football.

"You think that they should have been automatically promoted, but fell off the face of the earth at the back end of the season," Hendrie said of the Midlands outfit.

"When you're 1-0 up on the last day after falling out of the automatic spot and then Bradford score a ridiculously late goal to go up, I think it's going to be a tough one for Walsall and Sadler to regalvanize that squad. They look totally downbeat.

"Ironically enough, you get that first win in 14 games, which you hope will give them a bit of a boost, but you look at the likes of Chesterfield, who got in there, and then Wimbledon and Notts County...I'm impressed with all these sides."

The League Two play-offs get underway on Saturday night, as Hendrie's favourites Notts County host Wimbledon, before Walsall take on Chesterfield on Saturday.