After two successive defeats, Blackburn Rovers will be aiming to find their feet again when they travel to Coventry City on Saturday.
Tony Mowbray's team lost 3-1 to high-flying Watford on Wednesday, while the Sky Blues earned a 1-1 draw against Swansea City.
Match preview
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Blackburn had made a promising start to the season with a 5-0 win over Wycombe Wanders and a 4-0 win over Derby County, but now they have dropped to 14th in the Championship table, four points off the playoffs.
Those big victories do mean they are still the Championship's top scorers though, and also average the highest number of shots per game (16.8).
It was a theme that continued against Watford in midweek as they pummelled Ben Foster's goal, but the former England goalkeeper was in inspired form to keep them out – including a great penalty save to deny Adam Armstrong from 12 yards.
The one strike that he did concede was a stunning half-volley from Ben Brereton, the 21-year-old's first goal of the season.
Blackburn's recent away record could be cause for concern as they travel to the Midlands on Saturday, as they have gained only seven points from the last 30 available on the road.
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They come up against a Coventry City side who have lost just two of their last 17 home matches – an achievement made all the more remarkable when you consider that 'home' for the Sky Blues is currently Birmingham City's St Andrews.
Mark Robins's side are still getting to grips with life in the Championship, having won just once to find themselves in 19th, two points above the relegation zone. Only fellow newly-promoted outfit Wycombe Wanderers have conceded more goals so far.
However, their 1-1 draw with last season's playoff semi-finalists Swansea was undoubtedly a good result, and they could even have come away with victory.
Jordan Shipley gave them the lead in the game before Andre Ayew equalised, but Ryan Giles, Ben Sheaf and Callum O'Hare all had good opportunities late on, while Jamie Allen had an effort ruled out for offside.
This will be the first league fixture between Blackburn and Coventry since they met in the Premier League in the 1998-99 season. Both teams have spent time in League One since those heady days, with Coventry even reaching the depths of League Two three years ago.
Coventry City Championship form: LWDLLD
Coventry City form (all competitions): DWDLLD
Blackburn Rovers Championship form: LWWDLL
Blackburn Rovers form (all competitions): LWWDLL
Team News
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Gustavo Hamer is available again for Coventry after serving a three-match suspension.
Jordan Shipley suffered concussion on Tuesday night so his place in the side is in doubt, while Tyler Walker is still self-isolating after testing positive for coronavirus.
Fankaty Dabo is still sidelined, meaning Sam McCallum could continue out of position at right wing-back or Josh Pask may be recalled.
Daniel Ayala will miss out for Blackburn after being forced off with a groin injury against Watford.
The good news is that Derrick Williams could slot straight in as his replacement after completing a period of self-isolation following Covid-issues within the Republic of Ireland squad during the international break.
Tony Mowbray has compared deadline day signing Tom Trybull to Christian Eriksen and could hand the German his first start on Saturday.
Coventry City possible starting lineup:
Marosi; McFadzean, Hyam, Rose; McCallum, Sheaf, Hamer, Giles; Allen, O'Hare; Godden
Blackburn Rovers possible starting lineup:
Kaminski; Nyambe, Lenihan, Williams, Bell; Trybull, Holtby, Johnson; Elliott, Armstrong, Brereton
We say: Coventry City 1-2 Blackburn Rovers
Various injuries have made it difficult for Coventry to find a settled side in recent weeks, and that could be their undoing against a Blackburn team with plenty of attacking threat ready to punish any mistakes that the Sky Blues make.
Top betting tip
Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a double chance bet on a home win or an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home/Away:data
Olly Allen
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Coventry City win with a probability of 36.91%. A win for Blackburn Rovers had a probability of 36.22% and a draw had a probability of 26.9%.
The most likely scoreline for a Coventry City win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.18%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.1%) and 2-0 (6.46%). The likeliest Blackburn Rovers win was 0-1 (10.07%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.77%). The actual scoreline of 0-4 was predicted with a 0.8% likelihood.
