Man United evidence is the only reason why Coventry might now win promotion to Premier League
Coventry are sitting top of the Championship and primed for promotion to the Premier League come the end of the season.
The Sky Blues have dominated the second tier, scoring a league high 50 goals and winning 13 matches out of 18, losing just once.
Their good form has seen Coventry firmly block any Premier League advances for Frank Lampard, as they plan to keep their inspired manager for their expected ascendancy to the English top-flight.
The ex-Chelsea boss has relied on several key players to maintain their solid momentum, including Leeds target Haij Wright, who sits third for goals scored in the Championship.
History is in Coventry’s favour
Coventry’s form has seen Lampard‘s side open up a 10-point lead over Middlesbrough in second place with 43 points.
To add to the growing confidence in Coventry, only once in history has a team had upwards of 43 points after 18 matches and not gone on to finish within the top two in the second division.
This came 120 years ago when Man United had the equivalent of 47 points and ended up placing third in the old-style Division Two.
With that in mind, the Bantams look well on course to gain promotion to the English top-flight, provided they don’t break this unwanted record.
Who else looks on course to join Coventry in the Premier League?
Undoubtedly, the free-scoring, tenacious and effective football of the Sky Blues has caught the eye of neutrals watching the Championship, yet there are a host of teams in the fight for promotion.
Despite the unsavoury scenes between Stoke and Hull on 29 November, both sides are present in an incredible chasing pack of around 10 clubs still in with a chance of finishing in the play-off spots.
| Position | Team | Wins | Draws | Losses | Goal difference | Points |
| 1st | Coventry | 13 | 4 | 1 | +32 | 43 |
| 2nd | Middlesbrough | 9 | 6 | 3 | +5 | 33 |
| 3rd | Millwall | 9 | 4 | 5 | -3 | 31 |
| 4th | Stoke | 9 | 3 | 6 | +12 | 30 |
| 5th | Preston | 8 | 6 | 4 | +6 | 30 |
| 6th | Bristol City | 8 | 5 | 5 | +6 | 29 |
| 7th | Ipswich | 7 | 7 | 4 | +11 | 28 |
| 8th | Birmingham | 8 | 4 | 6 | +7 | 28 |
| 9th | Hull | 8 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 28 |
| 10th | Wrexham | 6 | 8 | 4 | +3 | 26 |
| 11th | Derby | 7 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 26 |
From Middlesbrough in second to Derby in 11th, there’s only a seven-point difference, highlighting the high competitiveness on display in the second division.
It is extremely hard to choose a clear favourite to secure promotion but, learning from their mistakes from last season, Millwall look like they could take the extra step to ascend to the Premier League.
Alex Neil’s side missed out by two points on the play-off spots last year and will not be wanting to make the same errors again this time out with 31 points already to their name.