EFL Championship Play-Offs 2022-23: Coventry City vs Middlesbrough: Predicted lineup, injury news, head-to-head, telecast

The first leg of Coventry City vs Middlesbrough is scheduled to take place at their Coventry Building Society Arena in the EFL Championship playoffs semis. The Sky Blues finished the regular season in 5th place in the standings and they are undefeated in the previous seven league fixtures, whereas Middlesbrough finished just above City in the 4th place.

Teams will play two-legged semi-final matches to get into the finals and will want to get a Promotion to the Premier League. Both teams shared spoils with each other in the last game of the regular season and yet another close encounter is on the cards. Both teams will be missing some key players in this match.

Kick-Off:

Sunday, 14-05-2023, 11:00 AM(GMT)

Sunday, 14-05-2023, 4:30 PM (IST)

• Coventry City Form (All Competitions): D-W-D-W-W-D

• Middlesbrough Form (All Competitions): D-W-W-L-L-D

Players to Watch Out

Coventry City: Viktor Gyökeres

He does not always score the most aesthetically pleasing goals, sometimes toe-poking or tapping shots in from close range and frequently finishing from seemingly impossible wide angles or situations where there are numerous defenders between the ball and the goal. 

But it is clear that he repeatedly gets into quality scoring locations. He operates as their most advanced player both in and out of possession, typically the only Sky Blue to remain high when they are defending deep. When dropping deep, he has the spatial awareness to protect the ball from a defender, as well as the physical presence to maintain balance when contact is initiated; he is not just a powerful forward, he can go either way and looks pretty adept at using both feet to turn with his first touch or off multiple touches in a variety of ways.

Middlesbrough: Chuba Akpom

Akpom is a hybrid player in Carrick’s system. Not a nine, not a ten, but both. He is the one who has improved a lot under Carrick this season and his form has been brilliant. His attacking contributions are incredibly high compared to other players who play in the same position in the league.

Recently some Premier League clubs have also inquired about him and will like to have him in the team. He will be very crucial in this match.

Match Facts:

Coventry has won four of their last five home games against Middlesbrough (L1), all in the Championship, with the Sky Blues winning 1-0 this season with a goal from Viktor Gyökeres.

The away team has won just one of the last 16 meetings between Coventry and Middlesbrough in all competitions, a 2-1 win for Middlesbrough in March 2021 when they were managed by Neil Warnock.

This is Middlesbrough’s fifth Football League play-off campaign, with all of their previous four coming at this level. After winning promotion in their first in 1987-88, they haven’t won promotion via this method on any of the other three occasions, in 1990-91, 2014-15 and 2017-18.

Coventry City have only featured in the Football League play-offs on one previous occasion, winning the 2017-18 League Two play-offs via eliminating Notts County in the semi-final and Exeter City in the final at Wembley.

Injury and Team News

Kasey Palmer, Fabio Tavares, and Callum O'Hare remain on the sidelines with injuries for Coventry, but there are no suspended players in the home team.

Aaron Ramsey, Dael Fry, and Matt Clarke should miss out with injuries for the visiting side.

Head-to-Head Stats

Matches: 53

Coventry City: 18

Middlesbrough: 19

Draws: 16

Predicted Lineups

Coventry City Predicted Lineup(3-5-2):

Wilson; McNally, McFadzean, Doyle; Norton-Cuffy, Eccles, Kelly, Hamer, Bidwell; Gyokeres, Godden

Middlesbrough Predicted Lienup(4-2-3-1):

Steffen; Smith, McNair, Lenihan, Bola; Barlaser, Hackney; Jones, Akpom, McGree; Archer

Match Prediction for Coventry vs Middlesbrough

Coventry City have rattled the net multiple times in three of the previous five league outings. On the other hand, Middlesbrough has scored once per game in two of the last three matches. The Boro have also conceded at least twice goals in three of the previous four road fixtures.

Meanwhile, the Sky Blues conceded only one goal in three games in the last four home and away league matches. This will be a mouthwatering match for the fans and both teams will look to take advantage in the first leg. Coventry will definitely take home advantage and they can get a good result in their favour.

Prediction: Coventry 2-1 Middlesbrough

Telecast

India: Fancode

UK: BT Sport

USA: ESPN+

Nigeria: Supersport