Coventry routs Swansea to move nine points clear
Coventry City took a big step towards the EFL Championship title as it defeated Swansea City 3-0, thanks to a stunning first-half display.
The victory opened up a nine-point gap at the top of the table, with second-placed Middlesbrough frustrated by a draw at Blackburn Rovers while Ipswich Town and Millwall, third and fourth respectively, also managed only a point apiece from their 1-1 draw.
First-half goals from Brandon Thomas-Asante, Matt Grimes and Tatsuhiro Sakamoto secured a comfortable victory for Frank Lampard's men in Wales.
Swansea almost took the lead through Josh Tymon, who saw his first-time effort crash against the crossbar, while Ellis Simms shot straight at Lawrence Vigouroux from close range at the other end.
The visitors then made their breakthrough just after the half-hour mark when Ben Cabango fouled Ephron Mason-Clark in the box, and Thomas-Asante coolly dispatched his spot-kick.
That goal opened the floodgates for Coventry, which scored twice more in the next 11 minutes.
Grimes volleyed home superbly from distance against his former side, before Sakamoto's deflected effort beat Vigouroux at his near post.
It was a quieter second half, but there were still chances at either end. First, Simms shot at the goalkeeper again, before Zan Vipotnik sliced wide for the hosts in the closing stages.
Lampard was delighted to win against a Swansea side he had been nervous to face, having analysed them through the week.
"I watched a lot of them this week and the more you watch them, the more you don't want to play them," the Coventry boss admitted.
"They had their couple of moments, so did we. It was a typical trading game of a team that has played really well at home and us coming away and we're you know we're a good team.
"But then we took the reins - obviously goals affect the game hugely. We're very clinical in a 12-minute spell and then the second half is just how to see out a game with a counter-attack threat, so I am very happy with the players."
