Coventry City and Sunderland went into this game with mixed emotions as they faced off in the first leg of their Champions League play-off semi-final at the Coventry Building Society Arena on Friday evening. The Blues were victorious over play-off chasing Middlesbrough last time out, while the Black Cats continued their struggles against Queens Park Rangers in the North East.

Coventry had almost been eliminated from the play-offs with recent away defeats to relegation-threatened Plymouth and Luton Town, but on the final day the CBS Arena produced another memorable afternoon as the hosts beat Michael Carrick’s Middlesbrough 2-0. Jack Rudoni scored in both the first and second half past Mark Travers to continue his outstanding contribution for the Blues as they aim for a long-awaited return to the Premier League, with the summer signing from Huddersfield Town having scored nine goals and provided 12 assists in the Championship this season. While Rudoni wowed the world, Coventry's top scorer Haji Wright has been in poor form recently, scoring just one goal in his last six league games, so he plans to perform well in Friday night's game.

Sunderland is undoubtedly the fourth-best team in the league, and the visitors on Friday were 14 points behind third-placed Sheffield United in the regular season and seven points ahead of fifth-placed Coventry. Before Friday's trip to the East Midlands, the Black Cats had suffered three consecutive away defeats in the second division, first drawing at Norwich City (0-0) and then losing at Bristol City's Ashton Gate (2-1) and Oxford United's Kassam Stadium (2-0). Compared to Coventry's American captain Wright, Sunderland's top scorer Wilson Isidore is experiencing a serious slump. The former Zenit St. Petersburg player has failed to score in the past 13 Champions League games, with the last goal coming on February 17.

Coventry City predicted starting lineup:

Wilson; Van Ewijk, Thomas, Kitchen, Bidwell; Grimes, Sheff; Sakamoto, Rudoni, Wright; Sims

Sunderland predicted starting lineup:

Patterson; Hume, Ballard, O'Nien, Serkin; Neil, Bellingham, Roberts, Rigg, Lefebvre; Mayenda