Coventry City make another stride towards promotion to the Premier League

Frank Lampard's Coventry City faced Preston North End last night in the Championship, with the Sky Blues looking to strengthen their grip on first place further.

The side had won all of their previous five games in the league and were looking to win their sixth in a row. A win for the hosts would see them move nine points clear of third-place Millwall, and potentially eight clear of Middlesbrough, depending on their result against Charlton Athletic.

17 minutes into Coventry's game against Preston, the deadlock was broken. Tatsuhiro Sakamoto scored for the second game in a row and put Coventry City in front. 17 minutes later, after the opening goal, former West Brom forward Brandon Thomas-Asante scored for the first time since the beginning of November, and Lampard's side were in dreamland. They were looking strong at home and were on course to secure a big win.

In the second-half, Coventry were not looking to settle on their two-goal advantage. They were awarded a penalty and Matt Grimes stepped up to the spot and scored his first league goal of the season.

It was three goals for the hosts, which brought three points for them. They remained top of the league by a comfortable distance, but things were made even better.

Middlesbrough lost at home to Charlton Athletic, which sees the Sky Blues sit top of the league by eight points. They are also nine points clear of third-place Millwall.

Since the beginning of February, Coventry have been unbeaten, winning six and drawing one.

Up next for Frank Lampard's team is a home game against Southampton, who are looking to close the gap on the play-offs. They currently sit one spot outside of the play-off positions, and are three points behind Wrexham.

Across the last 10 games in the Championship, Coventry City are the third most in-form team, while Southampton are the fourth.

The exciting tie this weekend will see two in-form sides battle it out to pick up three points, which will be crucial for both teams in their pushes for promotion.