Coventry v West Brom: Keep Sky Blues onside

“The Sky Blues have only twice been turned over by top-half teams and have only lost once on home soil all season”

Coventry pinch late point

Coventry scored twice in a thrilling finale to prevent high-flying Bournemouth from moving back to the top of the Championship last Saturday. The hosts had opened a 2-0 advantage going into the final five minutes, but Matty Godden pulled a goal back, before Todd Kane equalised with a lofted cross-shot in the fifth minute of added time for the Sky Blues.

Mark Robins‘ men were second-best in the opening 45 minutes as Bournemouth dominated possession and territory. The Cherries fortuitously grabbed the opening goal and appeared to be well on-course for victory until Jefferson Lerma’s red card changed the course of the contest. And City’s never-say-die attitude was rewarded with a memorable late show.

Speaking post-match, Robins was understandably delighted with the outcome. He said, “In the end it was a brilliant point – the goals we conceded weren’t great but we were playing against a top team. The sending-off has aided us in terms of being able to get on the front foot but we were calm. We were still playing our way. We showed great bravery and nous.”

West Brom fire third successive blank

Championship promotion hopefuls West Brom had to settle for a point as they were held to a goalless draw by Nottingham Forest at The Hawthorns last Friday night. The Baggies were booed off by disgruntled supporters having failed to score for the third successive game, with substitute Jordan Hugill blazing a great opportunity over the bar in stoppage time.

Valerien Ismael‘s side had their backs to the wall for the final 20 minutes after losing Jayson Molumby to a red card for two bookable offences but the overriding feeling from Albion fans was frustration. WBA have now picked up just three points from four matches, netting just two goals across their last six encounters to lose ground on the division’s pacesetters.

Post-match, Ismael acknowledged Albion need to improve in the final-third. He said, “Until the red card we were more on the front foot. But that was a game changer. Then it was about staying in the game and we did that. We are very strong defensively. But we had four big chances to score. We are struggling for goals and we do need to work on it.”

Coventry and West Brom are crossing paths for the first time in over a decade with the Baggies having enjoyed the duos most recent meetings. Albion have tabled W7-D1-L2 from the 10 head-to-head league match-ups this decade, with the Sky Blues failing to even score in eight of those encounters. City have fired blanks in four of five fixtures here with WBA.

Coventry 3.2011/5 have exceeded all expectations to occupy a position inside the top-six of the Championship with underlying performance metrics suggesting Mark Robins’ men are good value for their strong position. The Sky Blues boast an excellent W7-D2-L1 return from fixtures at their CBS Arena base, racking up an eye-catching 19 goals in the process.

West Brom 2.447/5 dropped only two points across their first five fixtures under Valerien Ismael. However, pressure is now being cranked up around The Hawthorns with Albion tabling just five Championship triumphs in their following 15 games (W5-D6-L4) to move closer to seventh than automatic promotion. Away, WBA have W3-D3-L4 this term.

Coventry’s home contests have tended to be entertaining affairs with only five grounds averaging more than the Sky Blues’ 2.70 goals per-game. Five of the nine outings here have produced Over 2.5 Goals 2.001/1 profit with Mark Robins’ men scoring multiple goals themselves on six occasions. Both Teams To Score has banked in six CBS Arena clashes.

However, West Brom’s outings have proven much tighter, delivering only 2.15 goals per-game. Twelve of the Baggies’ most recent 16 games have produced a maximum of one goal – Under 2.5 Goals 1.738/11 was also the right selection in 11 of those contests, with Albion’s recent struggle for goals playing a prominent role in their low-scoring encounters.

With contrasting goal trends at-hand, it may instead pay to keep the hosts onside by backing Coventry Double Chance and Under 3.5 Goals at 1.9010/11. The Sky Blues have only twice been turned over by top-half teams and have only lost once on home soil all season. West Brom have won just five times in 15, and posted three triumphs in 10 when away.