Championship | Gameweek 34

Feb 22, 2025 at 3pm UK

The Coventry Building Society Arena

Coventry vs Preston

Match preview

In early November, Coventry sacked long-serving head coach Mark Robins after seven excellent years in the East Midlands, with former Chelsea and Manchester City midfielder Frank Lampard taking charge at the CBS Arena just before the festive period.

The 46-year-old Englishman has taken the Sky Blues from mid-table mediocrity to the brink of the play-off places in just over two months, with Saturday's hosts winning six of their last seven games in the second tier to establish themselves as genuine promotion contenders.

Hardly a free-scoring outfit - especially without a number of their top attacking players - Coventry took another maximum from a real battle at Hillsborough last Saturday, where a brilliant brace from ex-Sunderland loanee Ellis Simms secured all three points at the expense of Sheffield Wednesday.

Back-to-back victories in the second tier since being knocked out of the FA Cup by Premier League side Ipswich Town have seen Lampard's side move up to seventh in the Championship table, just one point and one place behind West Bromwich Albion in the play-offs.

Simms, who took his Yorkshire tally from four to six last time out with a brace, revealed that he had hoped to have scored more goals by this stage of the season, with the 24-year-old having netted 19 times for Coventry in 2023-24.

After nine mind-numbing years of mid-table finishes in the Championship, Preston will be looking to make a real push for the play-offs in the closing months of the season under a manager who knows what it is like to win promotion to the Premier League, with Paul Heckingbottom at the helm of Sheffield United in 2022-23.

However, the 47-year-old has struggled to replicate the Bramall Lane trick at Deepdale so far, with the Lilywhites playing out their 15th draw of the second tier season on Tuesday night when a gutsy Millwall side travelled to Lancashire and forced a share of the spoils.

Having won just one of their last four games in the second tier, Preston currently sit 15th in the Championship ahead of this weekend's trip to the East Midlands, six points adrift of Tony Mowbray's Baggies, who remain in the top six.

Having taken maximum points from just three of their 16 league games away from home in 2024-25, Heckingbottom's men are hardly intimidating on the road, but their most recent trip ended in an outstanding triumph at Carrow Road, where a Milutin Osmajic strike was enough to see off Norwich City.

The Montenegro international trails only Emil Riis Jakobsen in the race for Preston's Golden Boot, with the towering Dane netting nine Championship goals this season as his time in Lancashire appears to be drawing to a close.

Recent Performance

Coventry City Championship form:WWWLWW

Coventry City form (all competitions):WWLLWW

Preston North End Championship form:WWLWDD

Preston North End form (all competitions):WLWWDD

Team News

Coventry will be without the services of influential midfielder Ben Sheaf, who suffered a muscle injury at the start of the calendar year and has not featured since.

The Sky Blues will also be without the services of their leading marksman, with American striker Wright in the final stages of his comeback from a leg problem.

Ben Whiteman, Preston's key midfielder, has been sidelined for over a month with a niggling ankle problem.

Adapting to a defensive midfield role for the Lilywhites, Stefan Thordarson has provided plenty of quality in the engine room alongside Alistair McCann.

At the back, the visitors are short of options with both Jack Whatmough (calf) and Jordan Storey (leg) on the sidelines.

Possible starting lineup

Coventry City possible starting lineup:

Dovin; Latibeaudiere, Thomas, Kitching; Van Ewijk, Eccles, Grimes, Dasilva, Rudoni; Thomas-Asante, Simms

Preston North End possible starting lineup:

Woodman; Porteous, Lindsay, Gibson, Brady; McCann, Thordarson, Kesler-Hayden, Greenwood, Potts; Jakobsen