Middlesbrough vs Coventry City Prediction:Both want playoff spots

Middlesbrough will welcome Coventry City at Riverside Stadium in Game Week 26 of the English Championship. Last year's playoffs semi finalists are nowhere near the playoff places in this season. Who will come out on top after 90 minutes?

Middlesbrough concluded 2023 with a hard-fought win against Huddersfield at the John Smith's Stadium. Goals from Josh Coburn and Jonny Howson, along with a Michal Helik equalizer, secured a positive end to the year for Michael Carrick's team. The victory brings Boro closer to the top-six positions in the Championship, with just three points separating them from sixth-placed Sunderland.

Although most clubs in the second tier will have a less crowded fixture schedule, Middlesbrough faces a busy and important January. They have four league matches scheduled, as well as an FA Cup game against Aston Villa and a second-leg match against Chelsea in the EFL Cup semi-finals.

Since Chuba Akpom's departure to Ajax in the summer transfer window, Middlesbrough has distributed the goal-scoring responsibility among the team. Emmanuel Latte Lath and Sam Greenwood, who joined the club in the summer, lead the team with five goals each.

Middlesbrough's fans will remember the last encounter against Coventry, where Gustavo Hamer, now playing for Sheffield United, scored the winning goal. This victory allowed Coventry to secure a place in the playoff final against Luton Town in June.

Glover; Van den Berg, Clarke, Fry, Bangura; Howson, Barlaser, Jones, Rogers, Greenwood, Coburn

Coventry City's hopes of securing a third consecutive win in the Championship were dashed on Friday night as they could only manage a 2-2 draw against Swansea. The match saw Swansea being managed by Alan Sheehan on an interim basis. Despite the disappointment of not securing all three points, Coventry's unbeaten streak now stands at an impressive six matches.

Coventry found themselves trailing early in the game when Liam Walsh scored for Swansea after just seven minutes. However, goals from Haji Wright and Ellis Simms, one on each side of half time, seemed to put Coventry in a winning position. But in the dying minutes of the game, substitute Josh Cullen scored an equalizer for Swansea, resulting in a draw.

With Hull City's thrilling 3-2 victory over Blackburn Rovers on the same night, Coventry now find themselves five points behind the top six as the new year begins. The team has accumulated a respectable 34 points from the 25 matches played so far this season.

Despite being benched for the Swansea game, Callum O'Hare has been a key player for Coventry since returning from a lengthy injury in October. The former Aston Villa youngster scored two goals in the win against Birmingham City and also found the net in the 3-0 victory over Sunderland in December 2023.

Coventry has shown impressive form in away matches, scoring three goals against Sunderland and holding Leeds United to a draw at Elland Road. However, their only defeat in the last 10 Championship matches came in an away game against surprise package Ipswich Town, where they lost 2-1.

Collins; Van Ewijk, Binks, Thomas, Bidwell; Sheaf, Latibeaudiere, O'Hare; Sakamoto, Wright; Simms

Middlesbrough managed to secure a victory at Huddersfield, although it could be argued that they were fortunate to do so. Despite this, Boro possesses the capability to assert dominance over other teams when playing at the Riverside. Coventry opted to rest certain key players right from the beginning during their match on Friday night. As a result, they have the potential to perform well enough to secure a draw on Teesside.