Preview: Coventry City vs. Leicester City

Sports Mole previews Saturday’s Championship clash between Coventry City and Leicester City, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Aiming to keep their playoff push on track, Coventry City will welcome league leaders Leicester City to the Coventry Building Society Arena for the M69 derby in the Championship on Saturday.

The Sky Blues are racing towards the top six with many of their summer arrivals finally hitting their stride, whilst the Foxes are set to make a swift and immediate return to the Premier League.

Match preview
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Coventry City’s unbeaten run in all competitions extended to eight matches last Saturday, with the Sky Blues hitting League One promotion chasers Oxford United for six at the CBS Arena, sealing a fourth-round tie with relegation-threatened Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup.

Mark Robins’s men were three goals ahead against the third-tier U’s after just 17 minutes of the contest – with the pick of the trio being Kasey Palmer’s sensational long-range strike – whilst substitute Matt Godden added a quickfire brace in the second period, although the 32-year-old’s celebrations were rather muted as he struggles for game time.

The Sky Blues kicked off the New Year in brilliant fashion at the Riverside Stadium on January 1, with a brace from Tatsuhiro Sakamoto and Haji Wright’s eighth of the league term securing a 3-1 win at Michael Carrick’s Middlesbrough, who recently defeated big spenders Chelsea in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final.

A record of one loss in the last 11 Championship matches has allowed Coventry to climb into eighth position in the second-tier standings, sitting just three points behind Michael Beale’s Sunderland in sixth and only five points away from West Bromwich Albion in fifth.

Coventry’s serious upturn in form has coincided with the return of playmaker Callum O’Hare from a long-term injury, with Sky Blues supporters calling for club owner Doug King to sort out the 25-year-old’s contract situation, as the former Aston Villa man could leave for nothing in the summer.

Leicester City’s march towards the Championship crown showed no signs of slowing down over the festive period, as the Foxes collected 22 points out of a possible 24 from their eight second-tier matches between December 2 and New Year’s Day, smashing strugglers Huddersfield Town 4-1 last time out in the league.

After patiently waiting for his opportunity to shine in the East Midlands, summer signing Tom Cannon bagged a brilliant brace in the victory over Darren Moore’s Terriers, with right-back sensation Ricardo Pereira and Stephy Mavididi also getting on the scoresheet at the King Power Stadium.

Enzo Maresca rotated heavily for his side’s FA Cup third-round clash at divisional rivals Millwall last weekend with young centre-back Ben Nelson playing alongside former England international Conor Coady, however the visitors were still able to book their place in the fourth round with a 3-2 success at The Den.

As Ipswich Town begin to stutter and look set to be caught by Russell Martin’s Southampton in the top-two race, Leicester are competing with themselves at the very top of the division, with the Foxes currently 13 points ahead of the third-placed Saints after winning 21 of their first 26 league contests.

Despite being on course for a record-breaking campaign in the Championship, Maresca is keen to improve his squad during the January transfer window, and after the likes of Cesare Casadei and Yunus Akgun have struggled in midfield, the Italian is reportedly looking to recruit compatriot Stefano Sensi from Inter Milan.

Coventry City Championship form:

Coventry City form (all competitions):

Leicester City Championship form:

Leicester City form (all competitions):

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After serving a three-game suspension, Liam Kitching will return to the Coventry matchday squad on Saturday, although it remains to be seen whether he will replace Luis Binks at centre-back, with the pair battling to partner Bobby Thomas.

Robins’s self-proclaimed ‘talisman’ Godden is set for another afternoon on the bench as Ellis Simms is expected to lead the line for the Sky Blues once again.

Leading marksman Wright is a doubt for the M69 derby after missing the Oxford rout due to an adductor injury, although Ben Sheaf is fit to start alongside Josh Eccles in the engine room.

Leicester are set to be without the services of Wilfred Ndidi until around April due to a knock, meaning Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Harry Winks require a new partner in midfield.

Cannon is expected to start up front for the Foxes once again due to the injury issues of Jamie Vardy and Patson Daka’s involvement for Zambia at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Harry Souttar is away with Australia at this month’s Asian Cup, however Maresca will still have his first-choice pairing of Wout Faes and Jannik Vestergaard at centre-back.

Coventry City possible starting lineup:
Collins; Van Ewijk, Thomas, Kitching, Bidwell; Eccles, Sheaf, O’Hare; Wright, Sakamoto, Simms

Leicester City possible starting lineup:
Hermansen; Justin, Vestergaard, Faes, Pereira; Winks, Dewsbury-Hall, Casadei; Mavididi, Cannon, Fatawu

We say: Coventry City 1-2 Leicester City
Coventry have managed some notable results against the division’s big hitters in recent weeks, however the visit of Leicester on Saturday will be the ultimate test.

The Foxes are flying in the second tier and although the trip to the CBS Arena should prove tricky, we expect Maresca’s men to collect maximum points.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 2.5:data

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