Sports Mole previews Saturday’s Championship clash between Coventry City and West Bromwich Albion, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Looking to continue their impressive charge towards the Premier League, Coventry City host West Bromwich Albion at the Coventry Building Society Arena on Saturday afternoon in the Championship.
The Sky Blues bounced back from a rare defeat prior to the international break, whereas the Baggies collected a much-needed maximum at The Hawthorns last time out.
Match preview
After starting the 2025-26 Championship campaign with an attention-grabbing 12-game unbeaten run, Coventry City suffered their maiden defeat of the schedule at Wrexham last month but have since returned to their sensational best, recording consecutive wins at the expense of Sheffield United and Stoke City.
The Sky Blues have now won eight of their last nine matches after a successful trip to the Potteries on November 8, when a second-half bicycle kick from 2024 arrival Mason Ephron-Clark secured maximum points at the home of Mark Robins’s promotion chasers.
After recently collecting the division’s Manager of the Month award, Frank Lampard has his troops positioned comfortably at the very summit of the Championship rankings at the 15-game mark, five points ahead of second-placed Middlesbrough and seven points better off than Stoke in third.
Alongside promotion rivals Boro, Coventry are one of only two sides who are yet to be defeated on home soil in the second tier this season, with the East Midlanders currently on a four-game winning run at the CBS Arena, scoring 11 goals across those contests.
Given his Championship break by this weekend’s visitors West Brom, Brandon Thomas-Asante has gone from strength to strength at the Sky Blues since his August 2024 transfer, with the striker receiving his first-ever start for Ghana during the international pause.
Whether you believe it was a genuine turning point or simply papering over the cracks, West Brom were mightily grateful to see the end of their four-game winless streak before the two-week break, with the former top-flight regulars collecting three points at home to Oxford.
Boos rang around The Hawthorns early in the second period when former loanee Will Lankshear fired the U’s ahead in the contest, but further Black Country uproar was avoided thanks to an own goal from Gregory Leigh and a second of term for Aune Heggebo.
Arriving off the bench to power home the match-winning header, Heggebo showcased his attacking quality at the end of a week in which he failed to earn a call-up to Norway’s senior squad for World Cup qualifiers against Estonia and European powerhouses Italy.
Winning just two of their last seven second-tier battles, West Brom are currently occupying 14th spot in the Championship standings, with the West Midlands side last finishing outside the top half of this division under Gary Megson during the 1999-00 season.
Each of the last three matches between the two sides have fallen in the favour of the hosts, but West Brom are the most recent away winners in this fixture back in October 2023, when Grady Diangana and a certain Thomas-Asante scored against the Sky Blues.
Coventry City Championship form: W W W L W W
West Bromwich Albion Championship form: W L L D L W
Team News
After missing the defeat to Wrexham because of injury, Coventry’s Milan van Ewijk has returned to the XI and remains a key man for the hosts.
The Sky Blues have fared well despite the September loss of Jack Rudoni to a calf problem, with the 24-year-old expected back at the end of the month.
Struggling to adapt to Championship life in an unnatural right-back position this term, American George Campbell (groin) is currently sidelined for West Brom.
Providing an experienced option on the flanks for the Baggies, Jed Wallace is continuing his recovery from a troublesome calf injury.
Starting for Jordan during the international break, Tammer Bany is targeting a starting spot in the Albion side as the festive period approaches.
Coventry City possible starting lineup:
Rushworth; Van Ewijk, Thomas, Kitching, Dasilva; Sakamoto, Torp, Grimes, Simms; Wright, Thomas-Asante
West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:
Griffiths; Gilchrist, Phillips, Taylor, Styles; Diakite, Mowatt; Grant, Price, Johnston; Heggebo
We say: Coventry City 2-1 West Bromwich Albion
Coventry responded excellently to their Wrexham setback last month and will be targeting an 11th victory of the Championship term this weekend.
The win over Oxford was especially crucial considering the difficulty of the challenge that awaits West Brom in the East Midlands, with the Baggies likely to fall to a fifth straight away loss.
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