West Brom defeated Coventry 2-0, with goals from Grady Diangana and Brandon Thomas-Asante, returning to the Championship playoff zone.
The team known as the Sky Blues had only been defeated once at the CBS Arena since mid-January. However, they were recently handed a third loss in a row, keeping them in 20th place on the table.
West Brom’s fifth place position was secured after their second away victory of the season, which also marked their sixth clean sheet in seven matches.
At the start of the game, Carlos Corberán’s team did not have a designated forward player as Thomas-Asante was not included in the starting lineup. However, when Ben Wilson made a mistake and let Nathaniel Chalobah’s shot slip through his hands, Diangana was quick to react and calmly scored into the open goal in the 17th minute.
The away team began the match with a strong offensive presence, dominating in Coventry’s half and earning several corner kicks. However, their momentum was halted when an offside call was made as Kyle Bartley’s header hit the post.
Coventry’s top acquisition, Haji Wright, had a tough night as he missed two crucial chances to equalize when the score was 1-0. Initially, he failed to redirect Liam Kitching’s precise cross into Alex Palmer’s goal from a short distance, after his previous attempt was thwarted by Cédric Kipré.
In addition, Palmer was present to prevent Wright’s shot from a difficult position when Dasilva set him up. Furthermore, Jamie Allen was unsuccessful in connecting with his attempt.
Mark Robins’ team had a disappointing first half, despite making 11 attempts on goal. Tatsuhiro Sakamoto’s shot was blocked by Palmer, and Ben Sheaf missed two long-range shots.
In the early moments of the second half, Josh Eccles made a precise pass that split the defense and allowed Wright to have a one-on-one opportunity with Palmer. However, Wright failed to capitalize on the chance and missed wide with an open goal.
In the 69th minute, Thomas-Asante was set up by Matt Phillips on the left side and he skillfully drove into the box, opening his body and scoring with impressive accuracy, causing He and the Sky Blues to face consequences for their actions.
The substitute had the opportunity to increase the lead even more after he took possession from Kyle McFadzean and maneuvered through several defenders before shooting over the goal.
In the past four games, Coventry had only managed to score two goals. In an attempt to turn things around, Matt Godden and Ellis Simms were substituted into the game for the Sky Blues. Additionally, Callum O’Hare, who had been out since December due to a knee injury, made his return to the home field but his plea for a penalty was disregarded.
One year ago, the Baggies were in last place in the league with 14 points after 17 games. However, they managed to secure a 2-0 win and have only lost one game in their last nine matches.
Corberán stated, “The outcome was fantastic.” He acknowledged that Coventry has not been defeated at home yet and during the match, they experienced the challenge of securing a victory tonight.
The initial objective was a team effort, with Grady demonstrating his strong connection to the game by going after the second ball. The second goal was an impressive display, thanks to a great pass from Matt Phillips, a strong run from Asante, and an excellent finish. I am extremely satisfied to have earned three points for the amount of hard work the players put in during tonight’s game.
Source: theguardian.com
