PALMER: WIN LIFTS WEIGHT OFF PLAYERS

KASEY PALMER is still shedding the pounds but is ready to weigh in with a prediction that Coventry will shoot up the Championship.

Palmer, 25, was helping fill in for suspended stars Gus Hamer and Callum O’Hare.

Hamer will be out for another three games but O’Hare is almost ready to return after a hamstring tear. It means Palmer must take his chance now, beginning with tomorrow’s game at his former club Bristol City.

“Is there room in the team for me and O’Hare? Hope so. It’s a question for the gaffer,” said Palmer, who joined the Sky Blues less than four months ago.

“It’s been tough because when I came to Coventry I wasn’t that fit.

“I had to put a lot of work in to get where I am now. I still don’t feel 100 percent but I’m closer to what I’d say is my best fitness.

“I worked to bring my body fat down and it’s going well.”

Viktor Gyokeres was the Sky Blue star, scoring the 17th-minute winner (above) that brought Coventry their first win in a horrendous start to the season.

They have had home fixtures cancelled because of the dangerous state of their pitch and are playing a three–game catch-up on most of the Championship.

Now they are off and running with seven home matches in their next 11 until the middle of November.

They are back on the bus tomorrow to Bristol and Palmer predicted: “We know the home fixtures are sorted, no cancellations the day before. Mentally we can kick-on.

“It’s been frustrating but we’ve shown what we can do with this win. It’s back to Saturday-TuesdaySaturday now and we’ve missed that. We can gain some momentum to our season.”

Middlesbrough, who welcome Birmingham on Wednesday, are struggling in the bottom three and boss Chris Wilder said: “We are making silly individual errors and it’s happening too many times. It’s costing us. It’s ridiculous.”