Coventry City's dismal start to life back in the Premier League continued with a 5-0 home thrashing at the hands of Brighton on Sunday.
However, they get the chance to forget about their top-flight woes when they meet local rivals Aston Villa in the EFL Cup third round on Wednesday.
Villa are struggling early on, too, but they should have the quality in their squad, even with some changes, to overcome the Sky Blues, who must be severely lacking in confidence.
Coventry City v Aston Villa Tips Summary
Best Bet - Aston Villa to win @ 23/20
Alternative Bet - Alysson to score anytime @ 3/1
Bet Builder - Aston Villa to win, Tammy Abraham 2+ shots on target and Total goals range 1-3 @ 10/1
Coventry City v Aston Villa Prediction
Best Bet - Aston Villa to win @ 5/4
Villa have had a poor start to the season as, aside from a 3-2 win at Club Brugge in the UEFA Champions League, they are yet to secure a victory.
Indeed, they only bagged their first league goal at the weekend when losing 2-1 at home to Nottingham Forest, and Unai Emery, despite last season's Europa League triumph, is beginning to come under some pressure.
However, he can ease some of it by securing a win at neighbours Coventry in the EFL Cup.
The Villa boss may opt to make wholesale changes for this competition but the visitors can take advantage of the low mood at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
Coventry have competed well at times in their games so far, with just a 1-0 defeat at Manchester City evidence of the talent in Frank Lampard's squad, but missed chances and inspired goalkeeping has denied them having more to show for their efforts.
With Lampard also mulling over making changes, a weakened City may struggle to impose themselves on the game and an away win, at an attractive price, is favoured.
Alternative Bet - Alysson to score anytime @ 3/1
One of Villa's summer signings, Alysson, caught the eye at the weekend when he came off the bench to score the equaliser against Forest and the Brazilian may well be rewarded with his first start for the club in the cup.
When he has been involved, the highly-rated 20-year-old has impressed, managing two attempts in the win over Club Brugge to go with his goal at the weekend.
The youngster will be among several Villa players keen to show what he can do in this competition and looks a lively goalscorer option for the CBS Arena tie.
Coventry City v Aston Villa Bet Builder Tip
Aston Villa to win
Tammy Abraham 2+ shots on target
Total goals range 1-3
Pays @ 10/1
Villa are favourites to win and Emery's side should seal their place in the next round with victory at neighbours Coventry in normal time.
Another of the visitors' fringe players who will be desperate to shine in the tie is Tammy Abraham, and even though it has been a frustrating start to the season for the striker, he might just enjoy himself against a Sky Blues defence that has been shipping goals for fun.
Abraham should get some time and space in the final third and is backed to have at least two shots on target in midweek as he looks to open his goal account for the campaign.
The final leg of the Bet Builder is for the goals range to fall between 1-3, which seems likely considering both teams' struggles in front of goal this season.
Despite not scoring in the league yet, Coventry did manage to hit four in the previous round against Plymouth Argyle and even though Villa have only registered one Premier League goal, they did put three away against supposed inferior opposition in Europe in the success at Bruges.
Therefore it seems likely we will see at least a couple of goals in this midlands derby on Wednesday.
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Key Match Stats
Coventry have lost all four league games this season without scoring
The Sky Blues did beat Plymouth 4-2 in the previous round of the EFL Cup, though
Coventry have never won the League Cup
Villa have lifted this trophy five times
This is the first meeting between the clubs since a Premier League clash in 2001, which Villa won 3-2
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
