Coventry City match analysis from CoventryLive as Sky Blues reporter Andy Turner looks at some of the big talking points from the 1-0 defeat to Fulham

Coventry City suffered their sixth defeat of their eight Premier League games so far this season to return the pressure on the newly promoted side just weeks after registering back-to-back wins to give them a bit of confidence and much-needed breathing space.

Consecutive wins over Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United lifted the Sky Blues up to 14th at one point but defeats to Tottenham and Fulham have seen them slip back down to 19th, two points and a place above bottom side Sunderland who travel to the CBS Arena next weekend.

Here we take a look at some of the big talking points from a hugely frustrating afternoon.

‘Must wins’ fail to deliver

One of the biggest disappointments of City’s performance was the fact that they lost to a side that were arguably there for the taking. It was yet another game, just like against Hull, where expectation was high, this time because the visitors had made such a slow start to their campaign.

It’s hard to know whether that puts added pressure on the players and whether they feel that to such an extent as to affect the quality of their performance. It wasn’t a bad display and although City had less of the ball – 36 percent of possession to Fulham’s 64 percent – they were competitive and very much in the game, which was end to end at times but lacking any really big chances for either side.

The longer the game went on the more it looked like a point was on the cards which, most would probably agree, would have been a fair result on the day. Sadly for the Sky Blues, however, a bit of box trickery from Oscar Bobb got the better of Jack Rudoni and the forward managed to squeeze his shot past Milan van Ewijk and into the far side netting to snatch the all-important three points, ten minutes from time.

The pressure ramps up a notch now with next week’s bottom of the table clash already seen as a ‘must-win’ by most.

Concern up top

Coventry ’s biggest downfall at the minute is lacking a cutting edge up front. Sidiki Cherif got off the mark against Newcastle a couple of weeks ago but has barely had a sniff of goal in the two games since. And one of the club’s other big summer signings in that department, Taiwo Awoniyi, just hasn’t looked the same since returning from his three match ban, failing to make an impact from the bench against both Tottenham and Fulham.

His return, coupled with the need for Lampard to have midfield and defensive options amongst his subs, meant that Ellis Simms missed out of the squad completely at the weekend – just the sort of player the game was arguably crying out for as City were pushing for a goal to break the deadlock. He’s big, quick and powerful and, going on current form, looks a more threatening option than his rivals. Yann Gboho is another – the Ivory Coast international back in the squad but unused on this occasion.

One thing is for sure, Haji Wright can’t come back quickly enough as the team’s need for goals grows greater with the more so-called winnable matches passing us by.

Midfield dynamism needed

As well as looking fairly toothless in attack, City are just not very dynamic in midfield at the minute. Matt Grimes and Caleb Yirenkyi toil away in the holding roles, help screen the goal and get forward when they can but neither are a goal threat. Frank Onyeka did well when he went on for Yirenkyi and knows where the back of the net is.

It was good to see Gustavo Hamer get on in the game, albeit not until the 86th minute when he replaced the lively Tatsuhiro Sakamoto. The Brazilian-born player used to be the team’s talisman in his previous deep lying playmaker role from his first spell at the club – a player who would do a bit of everything and conjure up chances and goals from out of nowhere.

Frank Lampard spoke about him in the week, insisting his time would come and saying that Jack Rudoni is keeping him out of the team at the moment, suggesting he sees Hamer as a number ten. But we all know the versatile and hugely talented player can operate anywhere in midfield and he seems to be the obvious answer to City’s problems, perhaps alongside Onyeka, with Rudoni further forward.

He can do the defensive side of the game all day long but he can also pose a very real threat in the final third where the team are desperately short of goals and creativity. Victor Torp is another – a player who is brilliant at free-kicks and has an eye for the odd goal but who isn’t getting a look in right now.

Reading between the injury lines

Frank Lampard insisted that he wasn’t “dodging” the question when asked about the nature and extent of the injury that forced Bobby Thomas off the field just before the hour against Fulham. But the fact that he claimed he didn’t know felt like he was holding something back.

We can only hope that it’s on the less serious side and that the centre-half is back in training later next week in time to feature against Sunderland. Any length of time on the sidelines would be a real blow to the team given how the 25-year-old has stepped up to the Premier League, looking more and more comfortable and confident at the level with every game that goes by.

Again, on Saturday, he headed and blocked virtually every ball that came his way with another accomplished performance, helping to limit Fulham’s threat for the time he was on the pitch. With Aurele Amenda out with a calf tear until Christmas – another central defender who was taken out by injury just as he was getting going – it leaves Lampard short on back-up and cover.

Mfuni positive from Thomas blow

The one hugely encouraging knock-on effect of the injury was that it allowed Stephen Mfuni to get back on the pitch and continue to show what he’s capable of in a City shirt. It’s easy to forget how young the Manchester City loan player is given the ability he displays. Slotting in alongside Ethan Pinnock – who is shaping up as City’s best summer signing so far – at the heart of the back four when Thomas went off, the 18-year-old made his presence felt in both boxes, getting in an attacking header and shot at the Fulham goal before making a timely intervention to cut out a threatening cross at the other end. His body language was also significant, driving and urging his team-mates to get forward with urgency.

It’ll be a big test for the lad if he does get a run in the side but there is nothing to suggest from his appearances so far that he won’t do anything other than rise to the challenge.