Sky Blues take on Stoke with a chance to all but secure second tier safety

Coventry City will be looking to earn their fourth victory in five Sky Bet Championship games as they face mid-table Stoke City.

Mark Robins’ side currently sit in 18^th place, nine points ahead of Rotherham United. The Millers occupy the final relegation place but still stand a fighting chance via their six remaining fixtures.

The Sky Blues have been on electric form throughout their run in, tasting victory in their last two encounters.

This scintillating form has been imperative in their pursuit for Championship survival. At the start of April, the newly promoted side hovered just above the bottom three by a solitary point.

Subsequent triumphs against fellow strugglers Rotherham, Nigel Pearson’s Bristol City and playoff hopefuls Barnsley have vastly extended the gap.

Their unlikely success against the Tykes, who had only lost once in sixteen league fixtures beforehand, showed their intentions on Wednesday night; Dominic Hyam opened the scoring inside the opening ten minutes. Coventry’s dominant display was capped off by top scorer Matt Godden who ended the contest in injury time.

Stoke on the other hand have seen their season stagnate over recent weeks; their faulter in the race for the playoffs has resulted in a lack of desire.. This mentality shift is abundant at the culmination of a campaign as many sides are significantly clear of both ends of the table and therefore coast towards the end of the season..

This slip in standards has seen them obtain one point from the last nine on offer. Their latest outing at home to Preston North End finished goalless following an underwhelming encounter.

However, there is a shining light that accompanies mid-table obscurity – it gives managers the opportunity to experiment with their side and inject the matchday squad with youthful, ambitious players.

City boss Michael O’Neill will take full advantage of this luxury alongside his new assistant Dean Holden when they welcome the Warwickshire outfit to the Potteries.

19-year-old Christian Norton made his full debut against Preston after making a multitude of cameo appearances over the last month. The Southampton academy graduate impressed and would be unfortunate to miss out on Wednesday night.

Neither side will be looking to the reverse fixture for inspiration as a lifeless 0-0 draw unravelled at St. Andrew’s on Boxing Day. However, before this term, the Championship duo met in the FA Cup in 2018.

The cup tie was a crucial one as a then League Two Coventry City knocked Premier League Potters out of England’s leading cup competition. The embarrassing defeat also resulted in the sacking of Mark Hughes, who has since struggled to regain his reputation.

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