Coventry City extended their unbeaten Championship start to seven matches with a commanding 3-0 West Midlands derby victory over 10-man Birmingham City at the Coventry Building Society Arena. Brandon Thomas-Asante's instinctive first-half finish set Frank Lampard's side on their way before a Bright Osayi-Samuel own goal and Victor Torp's late strike sealed a result that lifted the Sky Blues back up to second place ahead of the rest of the afternoon's fixtures.
Jack Robinson's dismissal for two yellow cards five minutes before half-time left Chris Davies' visitors with an uphill struggle from which they never recovered, failing to register a shot on target on an afternoon that underlined their ongoing attacking problems. Coventry, who had drawn their previous three league games despite starting the weekend as the Championship's top scorers, capitalised ruthlessly to maintain Birmingham's 19-year wait for a derby win away to the Sky Blues.
Long throw and sharp reactions break deadlock in fierce derby
The opening exchanges were as fierce as expected in a West Midlands derby, with challenges flying in and little time for composure in midfield. Coventry came into the contest on the back of their best start to a season in the top two divisions for 32 years, yet four draws in their first six matches had left them outside the play-off places, while Birmingham were chasing a first away victory over the Sky Blues since 2006.