Sideways Sammy

Coventry City grabbed a first win in seven games with a 3-1 victory over Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road.

The Sky Blues had Ben Wilson to thank for keeping the scores level in what was a pretty turgid first-half, denying Lyndon Dykes with a brilliant reaction save from a header. That proved the platform for a clinical performance after the break to win the game.

First, a set-piece routine deflected inadvertently off Luis Binks’ shoulder to tee Ellis Simms up to finish from point-blank range. Then, a Matt Godden shot smashed off Joel Latibeaudiere’s heel into the path of Josh Eccles, whose shot deflected in off Queens Park Rangers’ Osman Kakay. Coventry City’s luck proved to have come in a three, when the referee called in Ben Wilson’s favour after a collision just outside the penalty area with Sinclair Armstrong that might have resulted in a red card on another day.

The win was wrapped up by Ellis Simms, after he turned in a Jamie Allen cross with confidence, before QPR added some belated tension via a late effort from Kenneth Paal after Sinclair Armstrong left Luis Binks for dust in the Sky Blues’ penalty area.

Clinical City Get The Rub Of The Green

The final result may have looked convincing, but there wasn’t a lot between the two sides in a game decided by key moments. From Ben Wilson’s excellent save in the first-half to deny Lyndon Dykes, to the manner in which the opening goal deflected unwittingly off Luis Binks to provide Ellis Simms with an open goal, to the referee calling for a goal-kick when Ben Wilson collided with Queens Park Rangers’ Sinclair Armstrong just outside penalty area, only one or two incidents would have had to have gone the other way to have turned a comfortable win into a different result.

That is not to say, however, that Coventry City don’t deserve credit for ensuring the key moments fell in their favour. In particular, Ellis Simms, in getting in position and finishing for his two goals, demonstrated just why the club made such an investment in his services. While the striker also had chances in the first-half and early in the second that he could have taken, being able to shake off misses is what the best forwards are able do to.

The difference between Ellis Simms scoring in the second-half and missing in the first was down to how those opportunities were created. The earlier chances came from hopeful balls into the channels that gave Simms work to do in order to get through on goal, the later chances were created for him by his team-mates. It reflected that in the first-half, the team were punting the ball forward hoping for Simms to make something happen, whereas, later on, they were able to make things happen for him. With Simms demonstrated such poacher’s instincts for his two finishes, it is surely imperative that the service he received in the second-half is maintained.

This was largely a pretty scrappy, tight game between two teams largely concerned with break each other’s rhythm than getting into one of their own. While this isn’t the manner that Mark Robins would ideally want this team to be winning games, after six without a win, the result was really all that mattered. Luck may have been a factor in the final scoreline, but the hope is that building confidence, especially into Ellis Simms as a potential difference-maker, may lay the foundations for more consistent results and better performances down the line.

Jamie Allen Demonstrates His Value

For much of his time at Coventry City, the feeling around Jamie Allen has been that he’s been keeping a place in the team warm for a potential higher-calibre of player to eventually come in. In this game – and also in his cameo on Monday night – Allen has demonstrated how important a player he is capalbe of being.

It wasn’t just the assist for Ellis Simms’ second goal that was so impressive about Jamie Allen’s performance here, but his energy off-the-ball and efficiency with it that stitched together a midfield that had looked like a stodgy mess of disparate pieces in recent games. Playing largely in the role just behind the two strikers, Allen was adaptable in his positioning on and off the ball, dropping alongside Liam Kelly and Josh Eccles when they needed him to, before pushing forward to support the strikers as part of his attacking responsibilities.

Jamie Allen’s positioning was particularly freeing for Josh Eccles, who appeared to have more freedom to get up in support of the attack than in recent games, in the knowledge that Allen would be able to cover his tracks. That might also have helped Liam Kelly to be more effective as the sole holding midfielder, rather than having to share responsibilities with Josh Eccles and occasionally get in each others’ way.

On the ball, Jamie Allen didn’t really do flashy, but he played with his head up and helped the team transition from defence to attack more efficiently than recently. While the challenge for Allen remains to show quality on the ball when under pressure to do so, there were moments of composure and skill from him that aren’t typically associated with his game.

Jamie Allen might not be the quality of player to drag this team up the table on his own, but he brought a sense of clarity and purpose to the midfield area in this game that had been lacking recently. Often billed as someone who, at their best, makes others look good, his return to the starting line-up in this game was a reminder of the quality he can offer as an individual.

Leaving Something On The Bench

In recent weeks, it has seemed essential that Coventry City start with a combination of Yasin Ayari and Tatsuhiro Sakamoto in the side in order to look an attacking threat. That was why a starting line-up without either of the creative duo raised eyebrows pre-match, however, there may have been some value in leaving potential difference makers on the bench, particularly at a time where injuries have limited potential impactful changes for Mark Robins.

That said, the first-half performance reflected just why Coventry City could do with creative players in the team. The away side had plenty of possession but were largely toothless due to an inability to move the ball with purpose into the final third. Ellis Simms and Matt Godden had to cover a lot of ground running the channels and were easy for the opposing defence to deal with in the rare moments they got on the ball in promising positions due to a lack of supporting runs around them.

Getting into a winning position may have owed plenty to a couple of crucial slices of fortune, but having the ability to inject some fresh quality from the bench, via Yasin Ayari and Haji Wright, threatened to make the final score even more comfortable than it was. Both players benefitted from the space on the break that a Queens Park Rangers side desperate to salvage a result left, with Ayari nearly assisting Matt Godden for a goal with a slightly mistimed through ball, and an excellent Wright touch nearly setting him up for a late finish.

Haji Wright, in particular, could be a useful ace for Mark Robins to leave in his hand for later on in games. Wright’s physical presence, dribbling ability and touch is the last thing that tired defences will want to deal with, particularly in situations where they’re looking to push up the pitch to try and get back in a game. This clearly isn’t an ideal role for a club-record signing, however, but the hope is that this can help Wright adapt to English football and build confidence towards providing a similar threat from the start.

While it might seem perverse to leave players that would ideally be starting on the bench, in a situation where this Coventry City side has yet to integrate many of its new signing, and also with fitness seemingly not being at optimal levels, having difference-makers to bring on could be an important part of the process of getting early results.