Stoke City’s visit to the Coventry Building Society Arena on April 1st was always going to be a difficult test for Mark Robins’ Coventry City. The Potters were unbeaten in four games ahead of their short journey across the Midlands and had beaten two more playoff hopefuls in Blackburn Rovers and Sunderland in recent weeks. Those results had done the hosts a favour and as such, online bookmakers whose football odds and offers are compared by oddschecker, now made City one of the contenders for the end-of-season annual playoff lottery. But little did they know that they would simply be the next team on Stoke City’s hit list.
First-half strikes from the impressive Jacob Brown and striker Tyrese Campbell gave the visitors an imposing 2-0 lead at the interval. And they would press home their advantage throughout the second period. Further goals from Will Smallbone and Ki-Jana Hoever gave the visitors an insurmountable four-goal lead and they were good value for it. Coventry couldn’t manage to muster up a consolation goal, never mind a comeback. And they are now four points adrift of the playoffs and to make matters worse, sixth-placed Blackburn have a game in hand on Robins’ side.
Further Difficult Tests on the Horizon
Coventry City have surprised everyone this season. At the start of the campaign, the Sky Blues were rock bottom of the Championship and were suffering terribly from a number of postponements courtesy of the Birmingham-hosted Commonwealth Games. But since their schedule had some kind of normality, they have gone from strength to strength and reeled off win after win. Some may say that a first Premier League season in over two decades is on the horizon, but further difficult tests are just around the corner. And they’re tests that City must pass if they are to secure their spot in the postseason showdown.
Coventry will square off against Blackburn Rovers in a true six-pointer on April 19th. They will also host automatic promotion-chasing Middlesbrough in the penultimate game of the campaign. But City will also have a number of banana skins to navigate between now and May. They will face off against Reading — who have recently had six points deducted for financial irregularities — and Queen’s Park Rangers, two teams who are currently embroiled in a relegation dogfight. City will be expected to secure the victories in both of those games, but don’t rule out further slip-ups.
