Preston North End player ratings vs Coventry City with 5/10s as gulf to league leaders evident

Preston North End suffered a 3-0 defeat away to Championship leaders Coventry City on Wednesday night.

Tatsuhiro Sakamoto’s low effort was deflected off captain Ben Whiteman before Brandon Thomas Asante bundled an effort home to double the advantage.

Matt Grimes made it three after the break, from the penalty spot. Referee Lewis Smith awarded a spot-kick for Pol Valentin’s challenge on Ephron Mason-Clark.

Here are our ratings from Coventry...

Starting XI:

Daniel Iversen: Good to have him back. Made an impressive early save from Frank Onyeka and the initial save from the second goal was sharp. 6

Odel Offiah: Composed when passing out. Played it long on occasion but often came to nothing. Lost Thomas-Asante for the second goal. 6

Jordan Storey: 13 clearances from the centre of defence. However, should’ve dealt better with Coventry’s first two goals. 5.5

Andrew Hughes: Should be tighter to his man for Thomas-Asante’s goal. Got the ball away from dangerous areas. 5

Pol Valentin: Conceded the penalty that led to the third goal. Although the decision looked harsh on replay, he gave the referee a decision to make. Didn’t carry the same attacking threat as he can. 5

Ali McCann: Tidy in possession but some poor decision-making off the ball. Couldn’t thwart Thomas-Asante for his goal. Forced off after a heavy challenge on his calf. 5

Ben Whiteman: Promising header caused Rushworth issues at nil-nil. Unfortunate to have the Sakamoto strike come off him. Mopped up at times but limited impact. 5.5

Thierry Small: Tried to show intent in wide areas and delivered some crosses, but most were dealt with. 5.5

Alfie Devine: Sent in the free kick for Whiteman’s challenge. Fizzed a shot wide before the interval. Very quiet in the second half. 5

Daniel Jebbison: Just couldn’t get into the game. Service was limited but didn’t look after the ball consistently. Made way at the break. 5

Milutin Osmajic: Worked hard off the ball,just as he did on Friday, but Coventry contained him. Headed an effort at goal on the hour. 5.5

Substitues:

Jordan Thompson: Sent a decent cross into Osmajic on 57 minutes. Got stuck in even with the result beyond doubt. 6

Lewis Dobbin: Tried to add some life into the North End attack. Stabbed an effort wide from close range. 6

Brad Potts: Physicality still not quite there but did little wrong. 6

Andrew Moran: Looked lively and linked play up well. Penalty shout turned down. 6

Andrija Vukcevic: Introduced for the final 15 minutes or so. 6