Playing their second pre-season friendly of the summer, Premier League Coventry City travel to Sixfields Stadium to face Northampton Town on Saturday afternoon.
The Sky Blues commenced their top-flight preparations with a defeat in Marbella last time, however, the Midlanders will not be hung up on that result.
Match preview
After a three-year stay in the third tier of English football, Northampton Town are preparing for life in League Two during the 2026-27 campaign, with Saturday's hosts enduring a difficult past 12 months.
Eventually, the Cobblers finished 17 points from safety at the very bottom of the League One standings, winning just nine of their 46 matches, giving themselves virtually no chance of avoiding the drop.
Only FA Cup quarter-finalists Port Vale (21) collected fewer than Northampton's 22 home points last term in the third tier, with the Cobblers last victorious at Sixfields Stadium over Stevenage in early February.
In fact, Northampton endured an 11-game losing sequence from early March to May in League One to sentence themselves to the drop, picking up just three competitive wins in 2026 so far.
The Cobblers will be hoping to compete in the upper echelons of League Two this time around, boosted by the fact that leading attackers Tom Eaves, Cameron McGeehan and club legend Sam Hoskins remain at Sixfields.
© Imago / Pro Sports Images
Following a barnstorming Championship-winning campaign in 2025-26, Coventry City are a Premier League club for the first time in over two decades, however, the Midlanders tasted defeat to EFL opposition during their opening pre-season fixture.
Near the conclusion of a training camp in Marbella, the Sky Blues suffered a 3-2 loss on July 12 to AFC Wimbledon, who will take massive confidence from defeating a top-flight occupant on foreign soil.
In the build-up to this match, Coventry have confirmed the signing of French attacker Loum Tchaouna from recently-relegated Burnley, with the 22-year-old reportedly costing around £20m.
The vast majority of Frank Lampard's troops will be taking to Premier League pitches for the first time in August, with a daunting opening trip to current holders Arsenal scheduled for August 21.
After managing just two minutes for the United States at a home World Cup over the summer, Coventry marksman Haji Wright will be desperate to make a mark on the top flight after 17 Championship goals last term.
Northampton Town friendly form:
Coventry City Club Friendlies 3 form:
L
Team News
© Imago / Pro Sports Images
Northampton remain without the services of Liam Shaw, who is returning from a serious knee injury picked up during the 2024-25 campaign.
Joining the midfielder in the Cobblers' medical room, right-back Jack Burroughs is dealing with a few fitness issues in pre-season and did not feature in the defeat to Leicester City last time out.
After finding the net against Wimbledon in Marbella, Coventry duo Norman Bassette and Milan van Ewijk will be targeting more positive contributions this weekend.
Seemingly still on the mend from recent shoulder surgery, Jack Rudoni is unlikely to feature at Sixfields on Saturday.
Last season's leading goalscorer Wright and Brandon Thomas-Asante are enjoying well-deserved breaks following their World Cup adventures with the United States and Ghana respectively.
Northampton Town possible starting lineup:
Jeacock; Donacien, Moore, McCarthy, Opiela; Perkins, Maxwell, Hoskins, Fornah, Dobson; Saunders.
Coventry City possible starting lineup:
Wilson; Kesler-Hayden, Woolfenden, Kitching, Batanwi, Dasilva; Perry, Onyeka, Eccles, Andrews; Simms.
We say: Northampton Town 1-2 Coventry City
With both teams looking to build up their fitness levels ahead of the new season, Saturday's result is not of importance.
However, you would expect Coventry's top-flight quality to shine through and lead to victory for the visitors.
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