Coventry City host Swansea City at The Coventry Building Society Arena on Saturday with both teams looking to bounce back from defeats last weekend as the Championship resumed following the month-long World Cup break.
The Sky Blues were defeated at Reading, with that result ending an exceptional run of form, whereas Swansea could not recover from an early setback against Norwich City to earn any points last time out.
Match preview
© Reuters
An unprecedented international break this season halted Coventry's brilliant four-match winning run during November, a spell which saw them keep a quartet of clean sheets in the process and propel themselves up the league standings.
However, last weekend that record came to an abrupt end with Amadou Mbengue's second-half strike sentencing the Sky Blues to defeat at the Select Car Leasing Stadium, with Mark Robins's men failing to score for the first time in 11 second-tier matches.
Despite this, the Coventry supporters will be fairly satisfied with their 15th-placed position heading into this weekend, even more so when considering the Midlands club have spent a large part of this season in the relegation zone - albeit they had played less games than those around them at the time due to issues with their home ground.
Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres has netted nine times this season in a continuation of the form that saw the former Swansea man have a breakout term for Coventry last campaign, with the 24-year-old also becoming a more important part of his national team as Euro 2024 qualifying approaches in March.
The Sky Blues have been defensively sound in front of their home faithful this season, allowing just six goals past them in nine fixtures, a record that will serve them well as they look to join a host of teams chasing a coveted top-six position this campaign.
© Reuters
It took just 58 seconds for Swansea to find themselves 1-0 down against Norwich at the Liberty Stadium last weekend, with that early Teemu Pukki strike enough to condemn the Welsh side to an unhappy start to Championship business after the World Cup break.
Although form should be taken with a pinch of salt due to the recent month-long hiatus of second-tier football, Russell Martin's men are now a concerning six games without a win in the Championship, a run which has seen them slip to 10th in the standings, three points behind a potent Preston North End side who occupy sixth place.
A run of seven wins in nine that began in September hinted at what the Swans were capable of in this division, yet the failure to convert draws into wins has cost Martin's side a more attractive position in the upper reaches of the second tier as the midway point of the season approaches.
Despite this, the tight nature of the Championship this campaign has assured that Swansea still have a realistic chance of battling for a playoff place, although it looks set to be a congested fight with even a 17th-placed West Bromwich Albion fancying their chances of a top-six finish.
Team News
Coventry will be without Tyler Walker who has not returned to training yet since suffering a knee injury before the international break, with Robins admitting the player will not be available for a while.
The Sky Blues have a game of head tennis during their mid-season Spain trip to blame for the calf strain picked up by defender Kyle McFadzean, with the 35-year-old set to miss a number of games after a scan revealed the seriousness of the issue.
Matty Godden remains out until late January after rupturing his ankle ligaments during the clash with Sheffield United in October, with the striker having undergone surgery as a result.
Olivier Ntcham played 30 minutes for Swansea on his return from business in Qatar with Cameroon last Saturday, and the attacker should be handed a starting berth here alongside Joel Piroe in the forward line.
Michael Obafemi could feature for the Swans this weekend after returning to training earlier in the week, although the decision of whether to include him in the travelling party will be a late one.
Coventry City possible starting lineup:
Wilson; Doyle, Rose, Panzo; Eccles, Hamer, Sheaf, Bidwell; O'Hare, Allen, Gyokeres
Swansea City possible starting lineup:
Benda; Naughton, Cabango, Wood, Latibeaudiere; Fulton, Grimes, Ntcham, Cooper, Manning; Piroe
We say: Coventry City 0-1 Swansea City
Coventry need to put aside issues off the field and get back to winning ways against Swansea this weekend, although injuries to key players will not help those ambitions.
Swansea started slowly against Norwich last time out and need to avoid such an opening again, but with Ntcham back in the starting XI Martin's men could travel back to South Wales on Saturday evening with maximum points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Carter White
