Coventry City

Image source, Rex Features

Coventry City head coach Frank Lampard feels they deserved their late 1-0 win over QPR on Tuesday night purely because of the tough schedule of games they have had.

Bobby Thomas' injury-time header means the Sky Blues are now just one point outside the Championship's play-off places.

Coventry had lost to the leaders Leeds last Wednesday before going out of the FA Cup at home to Ipswich on Saturday.

"It was a great feeling for everybody in the stadium - it was a tough night and looked like it was going to be 0-0," Lampard told BBC CWR.

"It's been a challenging week with the tough games we've had but we kept going and we got a win I think we deserved, not necessarily on the play because it was a close enough game.

"But in terms of the week we've been through it would have been easy to lose momentum tonight but we've been able to keep hold of it to a degree with the late winner."

Coventry visit Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship on Saturday 15 February.

Coventry City welcome QPR on Tuesday evening (19:45 GMT) with both sides four points off the Championship play-off spots and looking to keep within touching distance.

The Sky Blues were knocked out of the FA Cup by Ipswich at the weekend and had suffered only their second league loss in nine games (W5 D2) at home to Leeds last week.

QPR bounced back from two straight defeats to beat Blackburn in their most recent game, meaning they have won six of their previous eight.

• Coventry City have won three of their past five league games against QPR (D1 L1), scoring 2+ goals in each of those victories.

• QPR are looking to win consecutive league visits to Coventry for the first time since winning three in a row between 1992 and 1995.

• Coventry's four consecutive league wins were halted by a 2-0 loss to Leeds United last time out. The Sky Blues haven't lost back-to-back Championship games since October under Mark Robins.

• Since the start of December, only Leeds United (9) have won more Championship games than Queens Park Rangers (8), with the Hoops picking up 63% of their points for the season across those 13 games (26/41 – W8 D2 L3).

• Ilias Chair has five assists in his past 10 Championship appearances for QPR, only one fewer than in his previous 46 combined (6). He also scored in a 2-1 away victory over Coventry on the final day of last season.

Ged Scott at the CBS Arena
BBC Sport England

Image source, Rex Features

Coventry City boss Frank Lampard is looking to the return of certain key players to give his side much-needed impetus after the jolt of successive home defeats.

After being beaten 2-0 by Championship leaders Leeds United on Wednesday night, City found a largely second-string Ipswich Town side too strong for them, winning 4-1 to end any interest in the FA Cup for last season's beaten semi-finalists.

Lampard felt the final scoreline was harsh on Coventry, who had more shots at goal. But he knows his side will benefit from the return of cup-tied new signing Matt Grimes at home to QPR this Tuesday night.

He will also have Milan van Ewijk back and possibly fellow full-back Jack Bidwell, but believes it is too soon for Haji Wright, Ephron Mason-Clark and Ben Sheaf.

"The squad is a bit stretched," he told BBC CWR. "Haji, Ephron and Ben are coming back soon but not yet.

"Jake was still feeling his adductor, a problem he felt in the Leeds game. And Milan plays every game and pretty much every minute. He just felt a bit of fatigue and we need him fresh for QPR.

"We've been on a good run but this was always going to be a tough couple of games against Leeds, who are top of the Championship, and a Premier League side in Ipswich. And it was great to have 30,000 here watching it. The crowd were great.

"Ipswich have strengthened since they went up. They were fantastic last year. Then they recruit to compete in the Premier League, which is a gap.

"They have the squad to make those changes. And they didn't have midweek games either side of this game like we have.

"But we showed character to come back from that early penalty to level. They just took their chances. Sometimes things happen to influence games. They took advantage and we didn't. And we have to eradicate our errors.

"It was a competitive game. The scoreline doesn't really reflect the game. What I saw was not a team that wilted to a Premier League team."

Ipswich are on a terrible run in the Premier League, with their worst result coming with their home defeat by Southampton on Saturday.

Coventry have been doing much better under Frank Lampard in the Championship, winning four games in a row before they lost to leaders Leeds on Wednesday.

On the face of it, this looks like a possible upset, especially if Ipswich rest players, but I actually think they will go strong.

The Tractor Boys are a team who need a result to kick on after losing their past four matches.

Kieran McKenna's side are have got games coming up against Aston Villa, Tottenham and Manchester United and they need to win a game first to give themselves some confidence and try to find some rhythm again.

Sutton's prediction: 0-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Rob Gurney
Sports editor, BBC CWR

Image source, Getty Images

I for one would like Frank Lampard to go as strong as he can in the FA Cup, but we can all understand if he does not.

In truth, City were given a chasing by Leeds on Wednesday, even though Illan Meslier made two outstanding saves to potentially deny them a point. His opposite number Oliver Dovin pulled off a string of stops that could have seen their opponents score seven in successive matches!

In the context of the season, and with QPR to come at the CBS Arena on Tuesday, Lampard can be forgiven for rotating his squad for the Ipswich cup tie, particularly with the backdrop of last season's run to the semi-finals costing them a place in the play-offs, because it undoubtedly did.

But the FA Cup brings with it lifetime memories - just ask the Sky Blues' fans who were at Molineux for the come-from-behind 3-2 win in the quarter-finals against Wolves last March and with the often irksome obstacle of replays being removed now, there is less reason to rest players.

1987 may be 38 years ago now but those of us lucky enough to be there are no doubt frequently transported back to Wembley on that sunny day in May, when the hottest of hot favourites Tottenham were beaten, and the world's greatest cup was destined for Coventry.

Unthinkable at the time, even more so in this day and age, but what is football about if not to dream, at least occasionally, before reality often brings you crashing back to earth, as happened against Leeds on Wednesday.