Coventry v Sunderland

Despite Coventry taking their fight for the play-offs down to the final day, and Sunderland being more interested in automatic promotion for most of the season, there is every reason to believe that Coventry are the team in better shape ahead of this tie. Can Sunderland rekindle their quality from the first two-thirds of the season?

⭐ Coventry v Sunderland Best Bet

➡️ Coventry to Win @ 2.20 on bet365 ↔️

The stats in favour of Coventry here are quite compelling. It is not simply a case of taking Sunderland’s results at face value, it is their poor performances that seem so difficult to turn around.

Ostensibly, Sunderland have been the better team across the course of the season, or, at least, they gathered the highest number of points. But they haven’t been able to create 1 xG of chances in six of their last seven matches. Against a team as good as Coventry, who have averaged just short of 2 xG in their last ten home matches, it seems a good bet that Coventry will be the team who create more.

In which case, the 2.20 available on Coventry to win this match looks a good bet.

Overall, the 2.05 that is out there on Coventry to progress from the tie into the final also looks like a good wager to make.

👕 Coventry v Sunderland Predicted XI

🔍 Coventry v Sunderland Players to Watch

🔵 Jack Rudoni

Rudoni is a complete livewire and is a target across multiple prop markets.

He took four shots on the final day, scoring twice, exactly when his team needed him. This made his seasonal average end up at 1.92 shots per 90, again, this does rise to 2.23 per 90 when only considering Coventry home matches.

Rudoni has had eight tackles in his last two matches as well, which suggests that he is working very hard to drag Coventry over the line.

➡️ Jack Rudoni to have 2+ Shots & make 2+ Tackles @ 2.39 on bet365 ↔️

🔵 Bobby Thomas

Thomas has been something of a shot machine from central defence this season. He is back in the team following injury, and his recent stats are excellent.

He has taken at least one shot in 15 of his 19 starts at home this season, and when he starts, he usually plays the full 90 minutes. His shot average is 1.58 per 90 when only looking at Coventry home matches across the season.

➡️ Bobby Thomas to have 2+ Shots @ 2.38 on bet365 ↔️

🔴 Trai Hume

Hume has an average is 0.94 shots per 90 over the last 20 matches, in the last 10 matches this rises still further to 1.11. This makes his price for this match look some value, especially when adding in his tackles, of which he is averaging 3.84 per 90 over Sunderland’s last 10 matches.

➡️ Trai Hume to have 1+ Shots & make 3+ Tackles @ 3.0 on bet365

📂 Coventry v Sunderland Cheat Sheet

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💻 Coventry v Sunderland Form and Tactics

Coventry took Frank Lampard to take on Mark Robins’ legacy, and, to Lampard’s credit, there haven’t been wholesale changes in terms of method. This transition has probably helped the players that were already in the squad to continue with what worked well under Robins, the good football through the thirds, the threat from the full-backs, the mutliple goalscoring outlets in the forward line, and then little additions from Lampard, getting more out of Jack Rudoni, sit on top of that. There is a basic 4-2-3-1 shape to the team, but there is some flexibility in the system.

Coventry’s form has been a little inconsistent. They come into the post-season with 10 points from their last six matches, and also an expected points total of 10, so at least they are getting the results that they ‘deserve’. Their home form has been good, averaging 1.99 xG for across their last ten home matches, but they have conceded some poor goals along the way that have prevented them from reaching their potential.

Sunderland have had a completely shocking end to the season. Over the last five seasons at least, no team has come into the play-offs with only one point from their last six matches. The worst thing about it is that they have looked pretty toothless in attack, they have failed to create even 1 xG in six of their last seven matches.

Regis Le Bris tends to stick to a 4-2-3-1 system, which could easily slide into a 4-3-3 given how the match is progressing. The first choice midfield three of Bellingham, Neil, and Rigg are all flexible in what they can do. Enzo Le Fee and Patrick Roberts are wide players who like to play inside, so full-backs Cirkin and Hume must be able to provide some width. Sunderland have good centre forwards in Wilson Isidor and Eliezer Mayenda, but neither are in form right now.

🏁 Coventry v Sunderland Ref Watch

• Referee: John Busby

• Stats are on a per 90 basis and are taken from 2024/25 Championship games (27 total)

Football Predictions at Andy's Bet Club

Check out the best Coventry v Sunderland Betting Stats ahead of kick-off.

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* I recommend waiting for confirmed team line-ups before placing any bets.

* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing.