Sideways Sammy

It served as scant consolation for Coventry City that they produced a performance against Oxford United last week that would have won the game nine times out of ten as a goalless draw followed by a Middlesbrough win on Monday saw the Sky Blues drop from top spot for the first time since October. This clash with the Teessiders already had the makings of a season-defining game but its importance has only increased after last weekend’s results.

A win could well be a big step towards Coventry City rediscovering the confidence that saw them establish such a big lead at the top. A defeat and Frank Lampard will do well to prevent it furthering a spiral that is threatening the Sky Blues’ end of season position. With Middlesbrough in peak form and confidence, it is clear that Coventry are going to have to dig deep to match them and get the result they need to return to the top.

Expected Line-Up

The big shock with last week’s team selection was the dropping of both Liam Kitching and Bobby Thomas in central defence. While it wasn’t without merit, it now leaves Frank Lampard in an awkward stick or twist situation when deciding between a centre-back pairing that kept a clean sheet against an Oxford United side that offered next to nothing or restore what is clearly a preferred duo that are struggling for form. The worry with keeping Luke Woolfenden and Joel Latibeaudiere in the team is that their respective lack of pace and tendency to lose concentration could be ruthlessly punished by a sharp Middlesbrough side, however, restoring Kitching and Thomas sends the message that the team isn’t necessarily picked on merit.

Elsewhere, Frank Onyeka will surely be in contention to start, with his status prior to the Oxford game having been touch and go due to the birth of his child. While there may be a concern as to whether he has a good enough understanding of the team to come for such a big game, Coventry pushed the boat out to bring him in and if he isn’t going to be in contention now then it weakens the rationale behind signing him.

Additionally, Ephron Mason-Clark would be a welcome returnee, having failed a fitness test last week. He may not be quite fit enough to start but as the team’s strongest wide option, there will be a strong temptation to involve him at some point in proceedings.

Finally, the debate surrounding Haji Wright rages on as the American continues to get good chances but is failing to take them. As much as there is a desire to punish him for last week’s profligacy against Oxford United, whether Ellis Simms is going to be able to get in the good positions that Wright is able to should be the greater consideration. Frank Lampard may also want to consider whether the chopping and changing at centre-forward is helping either Wright or Simms get into form.

Last Time We Met

It was probably the last time that it felt like everything was going Coventry City’s way when they took the trip up to the Riverside Stadium on a midweek night in November. A managerless Middlesbrough side looked to be falling out of automatic promotion contention, and were behind after ten minutes when Ellis Simms produced a glorious finish after an excellent assist from Victor Torp. A second followed soon after, with Liam Kitching heading in a Matt Grimes cross following a set-piece, before Middlesbrough began to get on top of proceedings.

Morgan Whittaker pulled a goal back before half-time, reacting first to a loose ball in the box. It was then level not long after the break, with Bobby Thomas getting his feet all wrong to poke in a corner-kick past Carl Rushworth under no pressure. Middlesbrough’s tails were up and they looked set to inflict a rare defeat on Coventry, with Tommy Conway clean through on goal late on, only to completely fluff his lines.

The luck that was in Coventry’s favour was summed up by not only that big miss but then immediately seizing on a distraught Middlesbrough side to secure all three points. First, a loose ball in the box fell to the feet of Liam Kitching to put the Sky Blues back ahead. A minute later, it was game over, when Ellis Simms nodded in a Jay Dasilva cross to put Coventry City ten points clear at the top of the Championship.

The Manager – Kim Hellberg

The best thing that happened to Middlesbrough this season looks to have been Rob Edwards deciding to up sticks for Wolverhampton Wanderers a few short months into his reign on Teesside. Boro had started the season well under the former Luton Town manager but there were signs that the wheels were in danger of coming off shortly before Edwards decided to jump ship. Middlesbrough moved quickly to gazump Swansea City to the appointment of Kim Hellberg and the Teessiders have gone from wobbling to looking like the best team in the division pretty much ever since.

Hellberg has employed an attacking and slick passing style at Middlesbrough since his appointment. It speaks volumes of his quality as a coach that with little change in personnel, the team has taken to a change in approach almost seamlessly. Hellberg has built the team around getting their best players into areas of the pitch they are most threatening in, with a number of individuals really responding to the trust he’s placed in them. Furthermore, the team has started to show an ability to dig in for results, showing they’re not just purely focused on style.

Who To Look Out For?

The key area of this Middlesbrough side is the dominance that the midfield duo of Aidan Morris and Hayden Hackney provide in central midfield. Both are supremely comfortable on the ball, which allows the team to move possession around in a slick manner to keep opponents at arm’s length. Morris offers more of a physical presence to act as the more defensive-minded of the duo, while Hackney is a wonderful ball-player who can really dictate games.

Additionally, the front duo of Morgan Whittaker and Tommy Conway is proving a lethal combination. Both of them have had their struggles at the Riverside Stadium since joining last season, but have been trusted by Kim Hellberg to find their form. Whittaker is someone who can float in and out of games and able to produce something out of nothing. Conway is a very hard-working striker who leads their press and is starting to find some scoring form after some notable struggles in a Middlesbrough shirt.

The one key addition of Kim Hellberg’s reign has been Adilson Malanda in central defence. Signed last summer but kept on loan in MLS, Malanda has been an instant hit with his dominant style of defending and confidence on the ball. In a team that has lacked a dominant centre-back in recent years for various reasons, Malanda’s arrival has been hugely welcomed.

Elsewhere, there are a number of players who have proved valuable cogs in the new manager’s system, making those star players look especially effective. Most notably, Alan Browne’s work-rate on the right of their midfield has been integral on both sides of the ball, while Riley McGree does a similar job in the left. Luke Ayling has been successfully converted to a centre-back this season to add a wise head in defence. Full-backs, Matt Targett and Callum Brittain, do an excellent job defensively while supplying quality with their final ball when they get forward.

Where The Game Will Be Won Or Lost

This is a clash between one team that has become hugely certain in their style of play against one that may have lost its confidence in what it’s trying to do. More than anything tactical, the challenge for Coventry City in this game is to find belief in what they’re doing. They don’t need to play a perfect game but they will need to be resilient during periods when Middlesbrough get on top, while finding the ability and clinical edge to take advantage when the Sky Blues get on top.

A key concern for Coventry City here is how they deal with an opponent that may well dominate possession against them. The recent defeat to Ipswich Town at the CBS Arena showed how much this team can struggle with an opponent able to keep them at arm’s length. The combination of the crowd getting on the team’s back for not chasing the ball down constantly and the lack of directness to the Sky Blues’ counter-attacking play can make them easy to contain against teams who want to keep the ball. Being able to stick to a shape off-the-ball is one thing, another is Coventry’s forwards making penetrating runs on the counter, fed by quick passes into them when there is opportunity to.

Middlesbrough’s movement across their front four is excellent and will take advantage if Coventry City continue to leave gaps around their defence. Just how much difference Frank Onyeka might make if he starts is debatable, given that every midfielder apart from Matt Grimes appears to be under instruction to flood forward when the team has the ball, leaving gaps in transition when it’s given away. On top of that, this Sky Blues team has rarely showed a resilience when defending long periods without possession, with players far too prone to ball-watching, which will leave gaps against teams who make good runs off-the-ball.