When Coventry City could be confirmed as EFL Championship title winners | OneFootball

Coventry City can almost taste Premier League football as we reach the end of the season

Coventry City are in a comfortable position at the top of the Championship table despite their defeat to Southampton last weekend.

Goals from Flynn Downes and Kuryu Matsuki secured all three points for the Saints at the CBS Arena.

A stoppage time penalty from Victor Torp pulled one back for Frank Lampard’s side, but they remained on 77 points regardless.

The gap to third place Ipswich Town is now nine points, but the Tractor Boys also have a game in hand that will take them to second if they can win, as things stand.

That means Coventry will have to take that into account when wondering how many more points they need to secure a place back in the Premier League this season.

Here we calculate the earliest possible date the Sky Blues could seal the Championship title in their bid to return to the top flight for the first time since 2001.

Coventry City’s route to the Championship title

Coventry will need to take account of third place Ipswich’s results when calculating when they could secure the title because of their game in hand.

The Suffolk outfit can still reach a tally of 95 points if they win their remaining nine fixtures.

That means Lampard’s side still will need to get from 77 to 96 to secure the title without relying on results elsewhere.

With eight games remaining, Coventry need a total of 19 points from a possible 24 to secure victory.

Winning their next six and then a draw against Wrexham at the CBS Arena on the weekend of 25 April (kick-off times yet to be scheduled that far out) will be enough to seal the second division title, no matter what Ipswich go on and do in the coming weeks.

Coventry have narrowly missed out on promotion through the play-offs in two of their last three campaigns, losing in the semi-finals last season to Sunderland and to Luton Town in the final in 2023.

Gaining promotion automatically while also clinching the title in the progress would be a statement achievement for the team.

Coventry City’s route to Premier League promotion

Coventry’s quickest route to confirming a top two spot is a lot less straightforward because Ipswich will play both Middlesbrough and Millwall in the final weeks of the campaign.

Meanwhile, Lampard’s side will have no opportunity to take points from their closest promotion rivals.

If we follow the same trajectory that Ipswich will win all of their games, then Middlesbrough’s highest possible points tally will become 91, meaning the Sky Blues will need to secure just 15 points from their final 24 available.

That means the trip to face Blackburn Rovers on the weekend of 18 April could be the deciding day for confirming Coventry’s place in the top two, which is also the same weekend when Boro will face Kieran McKenna’s side.

Of course, the two promotion contenders could also draw, or Boro could win, which changes things.

If the two draw, then the Teesside outfit could reach 92 points, leaving Coventry needing a draw from their home clash against Portsmouth to clinch a top two place, and if Kim Hellberg’s side win, then Ipswich will max out at 92 points, keeping the equation the same for securing a top two finish.