Coventry City have already cleared hurdle Leeds United & Burnley could not - promotion looks on | OneFootball

After winning at Portsmouth on Tuesday night, Coventry City have succeeded where last season's promoted duo Leeds United and Burnley failed.

As their outstanding start to the Championship season continues, belief is growing among Coventry City supporters that this could be the year they achieve promotion to the Premier League.

Coventry have suffered play-off heartbreak in two of the last three years, including being knocked out at the semi-final stage by Sunderland last season, but Frank Lampard's men have bounced back impressively from that disappointment.

Despite only bringing in four new players this summer, the Sky Blues have emerged as one of the promotion front-runners in the early stages of the season, and their remarkable start is showing no sign of slowing down.

Coventry recorded their fifth consecutive win with a 2-1 victory over Portsmouth at Fratton Park on Tuesday night, with Brandon Thomas-Asante's double sealing all three points and taking his personal tally to eight goals for the campaign as his fine run of form continues.

There was one slight negative for the Sky Blues as Makenzie Kirk's stoppage-time goal for Pompey denied them a sixth straight clean sheet, but that will do little to take the shine off another positive night for Lampard as his side cemented their place at the top of the table.

Coventry City succeeded where Leeds United and Burnley failed against Portsmouth

As Coventry aim for automatic promotion, they will be looking to emulate the achievements of Leeds United and Burnley from last season, with the pair both accumulating an incredible 100-point haul on their way to the Premier League.

As things stand, the Sky Blues have 25 points from their first 11 games, while they have scored 31 goals and conceded just eight to give them a goal difference of +23, which is significantly higher than anyone else in the division, so they are on course to be at least as dominant as the Whites and the Clarets, if not more so.

However, after winning at Portsmouth on Tuesday night, Coventry have already succeeded where Leeds and Burnley failed last season, with both dropping points on their trips to the South Coast earlier this year.

The Clarets were the first to visit Fratton Park in early February, but they were held to a 0-0 draw by a Pompey side who were fighting for their Championship lives at the time, and that was one of 12 goalless stalemates Scott Parker's side were involved in last season.

While Burnley did at least pick up a point at Portsmouth, Leeds came away empty-handed when they made the long journey to face John Mousinho's men in March, with Colby Bishop's second-half strike securing all three points for the hosts.

Of course, bettering one result against one team does not guarantee Coventry an automatic promotion place, but the fact they were able to cruise to what was a relatively comfortable victory on a ground where they were beaten 4-1 last season shows the improvement they have made over the past 12 months.

It is also worth noting that the other side who occupy a top two place, Middlesbrough, fell to a 1-0 defeat at Fratton Park before the recent international break, which proves just how tough it is to beat Pompey on their own patch, even for the top teams in the division.

Ipswich Town, Southampton factor should give Coventry City promotion confidence

While Coventry's own form should give them plenty of confidence that they can achieve promotion, particularly after their statement victory at Portsmouth in midweek, the underperformance of other teams should also add to the growing belief at the CBS Arena.

Ipswich were widely tipped to win the Championship title this season, but it has been an inconsistent start to the season for the Tractor Boys, and after suffering their second consecutive defeat as they were beaten 3-0 by Charlton Athletic at Portman Road on Tuesday night, they are sat in 13th place with just 13 points to their name, albeit they do have a game in hand.

Another of the sides relegated from the Premier League last season, Southampton, were also expected to challenge at the top, but they have won just two of their first 11 games, and pressure is growing on manager Will Still after the 3-1 defeat at Bristol City left his side in 17th place.

Sheffield United narrowly missed out on automatic promotion before being beaten in the play-off final last season, and while they have improved since the return of manager Chris Wilder last month, they are languishing just outside the relegation zone having picked up only nine points during what has been a nightmare campaign so far.

The fact that so many of the promotion favourites are underachieving certainly gives Coventry a big boost in their pursuit of Premier League football, but even if the likes of Ipswich, Southampton and Sheffield United were to improve, it will be near impossible for them to catch the Sky Blues if they maintain their current form.