Coventry City Frustrated By 0-0 Oxford United As Playoff Hopes In Championship Narrow

The Championship promotion and relegation picture stayed tight as Coventry City were held by Oxford United, while Ipswich Town, Bristol City, Millwall and Norwich City all earned important wins. Coventry stayed top but could not stretch the gap, Ipswich moved closer to automatic promotion, and Norwich gained breathing space at the bottom with a controlled home victory.

Frank Lampard’s Coventry side missed a clear chance to move further ahead of second-placed Middlesbrough, who play on Monday, after drawing 0-0 against Oxford. Elsewhere, Ipswich climbed above Hull City, Bristol City responded to a heavy defeat, Millwall strengthened top-six hopes, and Norwich continued a steady recovery away from the relegation zone.

Match	Competition	Score
Coventry City vs Oxford United	Championship	0-0
Derby County vs Ipswich Town	Championship	1-2
Hull City vs Bristol City	Championship	2-3
Wrexham vs Millwall	Championship	0-2
Norwich City vs Blackburn Rovers	Championship	2-0

Coventry applied pressure from

the start at home to Oxford, creating several clear openings but finding no way through. Haji Wright forced an early save from Jamie Cumming, then the Oxford goalkeeper reacted sharply again to tip away Tatsuhiro Sakamoto’s powerful shot from outside the box. Coventry recorded nine first-half attempts yet faced disciplined defending from a side battling relegation.

The pattern changed little after the interval as Oxford United continued to frustrate the league leaders. Romain Esse drove a shot on target, then substitute Will Lankshear received two bookings in 16 minutes, the second for a late challenge on Sakamoto in midfield. Coventry, with a player advantage from the 77th minute, still could not break through and are now three league matches without a win.

It ends all square.pic.twitter.com/bf5akhcCmwCoventry City (@Coventry_City) February 7, 2026

Ipswich’s 2-1 comeback win at Derby County strengthened their automatic promotion push and added to Derby’s play-off concerns. The visitors went ahead when Lewis Travis diverted Anis Mehmeti’s eighth-minute corner into Derby’s net at Pride Park. Derby responded after the break as Rhian Brewster converted a penalty following Azor Matusiwa’s foul on Bobby Clark.

The match swung again late on when Kasey McAteer’s cross reached the far post, where Leif Davis headed past Josh Vickers for Ipswich’s winner. Travis’ difficult afternoon worsened in stoppage time with a second yellow card. The result allowed Ipswich to overtake Hull City in the standings and keep pressure on the current top two.

Championship drama as Hull City fall to Bristol City

Hull’s slip came in a 3-2 home defeat to Bristol City, where Scott Twine had a major creative impact. Oliver McBurnie struck first for Hull, but the visitors replied just before half-time. Rob Atkinson drew them level, then Ross McCrorie quickly added another, turning a one-goal deficit into a 2-1 lead within five minutes at MKM Stadium.

Twine, who assisted McCrorie’s goal, produced another key pass five minutes into the second half, threading in Emil Riis to beat Ivor Pandur. Kieran Dowell’s late effort reduced the deficit for Hull but came too late to alter the result. Bristol City therefore reacted positively after losing 5-0 to Derby County in the previous round of Championship fixtures.

MASSIVE WIN!!!!!!! | @fever_uk pic.twitter.com/hnyOC9viSTBristol City FC (@BristolCity) February 7, 2026

Championship top-six race features Millwall and Wrexham

In Wales, Millwall strengthened their position in the top-six chase with a 2-0 victory over Wrexham at SToK Cae Ras. The deadlock ended in the 59th minute when Max Cleworth turned the ball into Wrexham’s own net. Substitute Josh Coburn then came off the bench to drive home a second, giving Alex Neil’s side a six-point cushion over their opponents.

Championship relegation fight sees Norwich City progress

Norwich City’s improvement under Philippe Clement continued with a controlled 2-0 success against Blackburn Rovers at Carrow Road. The relegation clash looked likely to finish scoreless until the 73rd minute, when Anis Ben Slimane finished from close range after Oscar Schwartau’s shot came back off the post. Blackburn’s defence had held firm before that decisive moment.

Norwich quickly doubled their advantage five minutes later. Substitute Mohamed Toure, making a Norwich debut, reacted inside the box to finish from close range after more effective work by Schwartau down the left wing. The victory further reduced Norwich’s relegation concerns and extended Blackburn’s struggles near the bottom of the Championship table.

Championship data debrief on Coventry City

Statistically, Coventry’s blank against Oxford was unusual given their attacking record this season. They are the Championship’s only side with three players already on at least 10 league goals, yet their finishing faltered here. Despite creating numerous openings, they could not turn dominance into the single strike needed for victory.

Coventry generated an expected goals figure of 2.09 from 24 attempts, with only five efforts on target. Oxford created far less, recording an xG of 0.12 from four shots at Carl Rushworth’s goal. This was only the fifth league match where Coventry failed to score, and the first since a 2-0 loss to Ipswich on December 29.

The day’s results left the Championship picture finely balanced, with Coventry still leading but under pressure from Ipswich and others, Hull regrouping after defeat, and Millwall solidifying play-off credentials. At the lower end, Norwich’s steady progress contrasted with Blackburn and Oxford’s ongoing relegation concerns, adding further interest to the coming rounds of fixtures.