Sideways Sammy

The unbeaten run finally came to end on Friday night at Wrexham, with the Sky Blues spurning a winning position to come off the wrong side of a 3-2 reverse. While there were extenuating circumstances for that defeat – chiefly, the absence of three of the first-choice back four – the concern is that the loss has come after a string of unconvincing displays. If Frank Lampard cannot address that trend in performance levels, Coventry City’s convincing early position may quickly erode.

A midweek home game against a team in the bottom three offers the chance to quickly get back in the winning habit. However, the opposition being a Sheffield United side that made last year’s play-off final means this is far from a straightforward contest, even if the Blades enter this game off the back of two straight defeats.

Expected Line-Up

Milan van Ewijk, Bobby Thomas and Jay Dasilva were all unavailable to start against Wrexham on Friday night, with that cumulative impact clearly having an unsettling impact on Coventry City’s backline. With Milan van Ewijk returning after the end of a one-game suspension, Frank Lampard appears hopeful that the latter two will also be available, with Thomas missing last time out due to an issue with his calf and Dasilva not fully fit due to illness.

It is certainly hard to make an argument for any of those who came into the team for keeping their place, with Luke Woolfenden, in particular, looking exposed due to their lack of familiarity with the set up. Whether that’s enough to turn around the recent trend of sloppy performances remains to be seen.

Frank Lampard came under fire for his team selection against Wrexham, but with Jack Rudoni injured and both Victor Torp and Josh Eccles only recently back from knocks of their own, it’s hard to see what other team he could have picked. Here, Torp and Eccles may just be fit enough to start, which could see at least one of Jamie Allen dropped and Brandon Thomas-Asante moved from the attacking midfield berth that has left the team short in middle. However, there is still a game on Saturday to consider as part of the team selection equation.

If it’s a choice of one of Victor Torp or Josh Eccles, the former is likelier to get the nod, with Jamie Allen dropping out. If both are thrown in, it leaves a big decision to make what to do with Brandon Thomas-Asante after strong displays out wide from Tatsuhiro Sakamoto and Ephron Mason-Clark would make it harsh to drop either of them to shoehorn the top-scorer into the starting line-up. Instead, Haji Wright could be under pressure for his place in the XI after some sub-standard recent performances.

Last Time We Met

It was the Cruyff turn that possibly prevented Coventry City from winning promotion last season when, already two goals down, Oliver Dovin attempted to bamboozle an enthusiastic Tyrese Campbell from closing him down and instead got a whack that ruptured his cruciate ligaments. The game was already over as a contest thanks to Sheffield United scoring from their first two shots on target at Bramall Lane – the first a superlative Gustavo Hamer free-kick, the second an expert Campbell finish after Femi Seriki waltzed through the Sky Blues’ backline.

What had been an even contest became a procession of Sheffield United chances that kept substitute goalkeeper, Brad Collins, busy. Shortly into the second-half, the home pressure told when Rhian Brewster found space to power a shot from just outside the penalty area. Jack Rudoni pulled a goal back in stoppage time after Michael Cooper flapped at a corner-kick but it was too little, too late.

A game that wasn’t just about the defeat but the cost it came at, with Collins and latterly Ben Wilson struggling to replicate Dovin’s goalkeeping heroics as Coventry City just about held onto a play-off spot but were defeated in the semi-final.

The Opposition

The Manager – Chris Wilder

Having left the club in the summer with Sheffield United’s new owners looking to implement an ‘AI-led’ transfer policy – which seemed to amount to signing players from Bulgaria before giving up and going on a late trolley dash in the final weeks of the transfer window – Chris Wilder has quickly returned to Bramall Lane to pick up the pieces. Confidence is clearly on the floor, with the team unsettled by losing ten first-teamers over the summer and bringing in 15 to replace them.

Whereas last season under Wilder, Sheffield United had a habit of picking up wins in a variety of manners, the Blades winning mentality and fortune has deserted them. The joint-lowest scorers in the division and the second-worst defence, the Blades are a bad combination of profligate in front of goal and a soft touch at the back. However, it would be a danger to underestimate them, as they have been creating good chances recently and are probably due for their luck to change soon.

Who To Look Out For?

With Gustavo Hamer out injured, Callum O’Hare has stepped up for Sheffield United recently as their chief creative and scoring threat. The former Sky Blues man has scored in three of the Blades’ last four games, having always been good at getting into scoring positions, if he has found what has been a missing level of composure in front of goal, he’ll be very hard to stop.

Tyrese Campbell is another key danger-man, with his movement and pace up top something that could really exploit Coventry City’s high defensive line. Like O’Hare, he is someone who is great at getting in scoring positions, with only a dodgy injury record preventing him from being one of the division’s deadliest strikers.

Further depth in attacking areas comes from the pacey and enthusiastic Andre Brooks, while Chidozie Ogbene is a very direct runner from right wing-back with speed in his heels. A little surprisingly, Harrison Burrows hasn’t been starting on the left despite his reliable quality in delivery, instead being a key impact player off the bench.

At the back, Sheffield United may be reeling from the departures of some key performers over the summer but still retain some strong individual quality. Michael Cooper in goal is a tall, commanding presence who was one of the top three goalkeepers in the division last year with his regular heroics between the sticks. Japhet Tanganga’s pace and composure at centre-back should allow the Blades to press up and look to squeeze Coventry at times in this game. Meanwhile, Ben Mee is an experienced pro whose nous could be handy for the situation the Blades are currently in.

Where The Game Will Be Won Or Lost

Sheffield United are a stronger team than their league position suggests, with recent defeats largely the result of individual errors rather than poor performances. While they aren’t the most solid defensively, they are creating plenty of chances and will feel they’ll have a chance to get themselves in a winning position in this game that would ask Coventry City questions they’ve yet to really answer this season – in being able to break down a team looking to sit in.

The big danger area for Coventry City is Sheffield United’s pace and movement in the final third. Even if the Wrexham game is something of a write-off, the last home game saw the Sky Blues repeatedly caught out with balls over the top while playing the first-choice back-line. Tyrese Campbell, Callum O’Hare, Andre Brooks and Chiedozie Ogbene will look to take advantage of that. The best chance of countering it will be through playing an energetic press to cut off those long balls, whether Coventry have the legs for that currently is a key question mark.

Encouragingly, Sheffield United have struggled recently against opponents that have pressed them and looked to play directly. Their lack of a proper holding midfielder has compounded the issue of the defence still getting used to playing with each other. Carl Rushworth’s big kicks into the opposing half should be an asset here, provided whoever plays at centre-forward is able to impose themselves on the game.