Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the Championship match.
Coventry City tried so hard to get to the play-offs and it seems they’re about to fail to advance to the final. It’s going to be very hard to beat Sunderland or at least to manage to last to extra time. Sunderland won the first leg 2:1.
Sunderland
The Black Cats were hiding to attack in a necessary moment. Their opponents were relaxed in spring. Sunderland would lose a lot of games, including the one versus Coventry City (0:3). Last Friday saw Coventry City having the best possession (74% versus 55%). Yet Sunderland almost killed all the hopes with two goals. Sunderland fans should only worry about a possible injury of Wilson Isidor. However, he’s expected to be on the field.
Coventry City
The disaster was unexpected. Milan van Ewijk made an assist, helping Mayenda to score a decisive goal. How did it happen? The attacking actions left much to be desired too. Coventry City had 1.70 xG but only managed to score once. This play-off series is a heavy burden for both sides. Coventry City should feel better as they weren’t in the play-off zone almost the whole season.
Sunderland vs Coventry City Prediction
It’s hard to expect that Coventry City will win after what happened in the first leg. A draw may be a good result. And it fits Sunderland perfectly well too. Besides, in 6 out of the 7 games played in the last three years, we never saw over 3.5 goals scored.
