Ending the year with just one win in nine matches, Charlton Athletic start 2026 with a stiff challenge when hosting Coventry City in a Sky Bet Championship match.
Frank Lampard’s Sky Blues are flying high at the top of the league despite suffering a surprise home defeat to third placed Ipswich Town on Monday evening. That was just their third league defeat in twenty-four matches this season with the Suffolk team completing the double over them. Their other defeat was at Wrexham.
It has been a tough spell for Nathan Jones’ Addicks with a welcome victory coming in their last home match when defeating Oxford United one-nil. They were also in action on Monday night when going down two-one at Portsmouth. Having gone behind midway through the second half, it looked as if they were going to take a point when substitute Harvey Knibbs equalised in the seventh minute of stoppage time. However, within a minute, the hosts created another chance and took it and, with that, all three points.
When Charlton visited Coventry at the end of November, although going ahead, they returned home empty handed. Knibbs was also on target in the match, opening the scoring in the thirteenth minute. However, two goals in five minutes before the break, by Josh Eccles and Ellis Simms, put a different complexion on Jones’ half time team talk. Simms scored again with thirteen minutes remaining to all but end the Addicks’ hopes of getting anything out of the game.
At home, in front of their loud supporters, Charlton have won five, drawn two and lost three whilst Coventry’s record on the road reads six wins, four draws and two defeats. Their last meeting at the Valley was in October 2018 in League One with the visitors winning two-one. Lyle Taylor put the Addicks ahead in first half stoppage time but two late goals by substitute Amadou Bakayoko sealed the win for the team from the West Midlands..
Although they may be looking over their shoulders, Charlton still have leeway between them and the drop zone and would welcome three points to start the New Year in style.
Picture supplied by Keith Gillard.