Sunderland’s Championship rivals handed further blow as EFL postpone another Coventry City match

For the third league game in a row, the EFL have postponed Coventry’s upcoming home fixture.

Their clash with Huddersfield Town was scheduled to take place on Saturday (3pm kick-off), however, the pitch at the CBS Arena has once again been deemed ‘unplayable’ by the EFL.

A statement released by the EFL read: ‘Coventry City’s Sky Bet Championship fixture against Huddersfield Town on Saturday 20 August 2022 has been postponed by the EFL due to ongoing issues with the playing surface at the Coventry Building Society (CBS) Arena.

‘The option of reversing the fixture to the John Smith’s Stadium was considered but it was deemed not possible given the timescales involved.

‘This follows the recent postponements for the Club’s League fixtures against Wigan Athletic and Rotherham United, and the Carabao Cup Round One tie versus Bristol City being moved to Burton Albion’s Pirelli Stadium.

‘The EFL welcomes the news that the Club and the CBS Arena have accepted the recommendations of internationally-recognised sports turf experts to undertake a re-lay of substantial parts of the pitch to try and avoid further issues for the remainder of the season.

‘The timescales presented to the EFL by the Club will allow a further inspection of the pitch before their next home game on Wednesday 31 August, against Preston North End, in order to ensure that the new surface is declared safe for the players and match officials.

‘The primary objective for the EFL is to get Coventry City playing at the CBS Arena as soon as the pitch is in a safe condition for the participants. It is only then that the League will consider the collective circumstances of each postponement before determining what course of action could be taken in accordance with the Regulations.’

Coventry have already had games with Rotherham United and Wigan Athletic postponed this season with their Carabao Cup clash against Bristol City moved to Burton Albion’s Pirelli Stadium as a last minute solution.

The postponements of these Sky Blues games mean Mark Robins’ side currently sit rock-bottom of the Championship having played just two games this season.