Depleted City shown no mercy after early setback

COVENTRY City slipped to their fifth Championship game without a win to leave them a point and two places above the relegation zone. Here are some of the things

learned from the comprehensive thrashing:...

Humble in victory

Key moments change games and, sadly for the Sky Blues, the width of the post denied Matty Godden giving his side an early lead before Michael Rose pressed the self destruct button just a few minutes later when he conceded a silly penalty and got himself sent off in the process.

The challenge this season is hard enough as it is without unwanted and unnecessary red cards – Rose’s coming as the second costly dismissal in the side’s first seven games at the level.

City had been in the game to that point, but down to ten men and trailing 1-0 after Adam Armstrong made no mistake with his dead ball gift from 12 yards, it was an uphill battle for Mark Robins’ men who were lucky to only be a goal down at the break.

But Rovers showed their ruthless streak in the second half when they carved City open all too easily for a good hiding at St Andrew’s.

Typical of the man, former Coventry boss Tony Mowbray was humble in victory, insisting that had his side played against 11 men it would have been a very different outcome.

Blackburn blueprint

The fact that Mowbray’s side picked the Sky Blues off with a whopping 24 attempts on goal, nine of which hit the target and four the back of the net will have come as no surprise to City fans.

It’s how he sets his teams up to play, with a fluid forward line packed with power, pace and goals - his footballing philosophy not a million miles away from Robins’.

The similarity between the two clubs doesn’t stop there. Blackburn provide the blueprint for success that the Sky Blues will almost certainly be attempting to follow.

Mogga went in at Ewood Park in February 2017, steadied the ship and led them to automatic promotion from League One in his first full campaign in charge in 2017/18. In his first season back in the Championship he guided them to consolidation with a 15th place finish, which he upgraded to 11th last term.

Now, in his third full campaign, he’s built a side that looks every bit good enough to be competing at the sharp end as the club looks to return to the Premier League.

Arma strikes

Armstrong joined a long list of former Sky Blues players who have come back to haunt their old club. The 23-year-old, who scored 20 goals in 40 League One games for City in the memorable 2015/16 campaign under Mowbray, has continued to develop and grow as a player, looking every bit a Championship hotshot that’s destined for the top.

His St Andrew’s brace was his seventh and eighth of the season and pushed him to joint top of the Championship scoring charts with Brentford’s Ivan Toney.

When it rains, it pours

City extended their difficult run of fixtures to five games without a win. There are mitigating circumstances that highlight the gulf between teams stepping up to the second tier and those already established and able to make likefor-like changes in personnel and not weaken the team.

Mowbray had the luxury of swapping both of his full-backs to freshen things up against the Sky Blues while his opposite number continued without key men Fankaty Dabo and Gus Hamer, potentially prolific striker Tyler Walker and the concussed Jordan Shipley, not to mention summer signings Julien Dacosta and Marcel Hilssner who are yet to be seen due to suffering pre-season setbacks.

The Sky Blues could clearly do with a break; a bit of luck to help bring about a turn of fortunes.

Opportunity knocks

The shortage of fit and available bodies opened the door for Max Biamou and Gervane Kastaneer to make their Championship debuts with late cameos.

Not many would have envisaged seeing the pair in the first team just a few short weeks ago when the club were actively trying to get off the wage bill ahead of the summer transfer deadline.

Sadly, the result was too far gone for either to pull off any Roy of the Rovers heroics and it would be nice for them to get an opportunity when the odds of making a real impact weren’t stacked so much against them.

That said, Kastaneer did pull off one particularly impressive bit of skill and movement to give his marker the slip and attempt to set up a teammate, albeit his pass intercepted by a Rovers defender.

Whether that’s enough to earn him another chance at a time when players are due back from injury and absence remains to be seen, but at least it will have given both a bit of a boost to know that it is possible for them to play a part this season.