Sheffield United returned to the top of the Championship on Friday night after a superb 3-1 win over Frank Lampard's in-form Coventry.
The Sky Blues had taken 30 points from their last 12 games - more than any other team in the top four divisions of English football - but they were given a wake-up call by the Blades at Bramall Lane.
Gustavo Hamer scored a stunning free-kick to open the scoring before Tyrese Campbell doubled the lead and Rhian Brewster scored his first home goal for the Blades since January 2022 to add the gloss. Jack Rudoni scored a late consolation for the visitors.
The result puts the pressure back on Leeds, who face Swansea on Saturday afternoon.
At first, it was cagey. With two of the country's most in-form teams facing off and the stakes so high in their respective promotion pushes, perhaps that was to be expected.
Then Bobby Thomas brought down Hamer around 25 yards from goal - and from the resulting corner, the midfielder scored a sure-fire goal of the season contender. He curled his free-kick with pace, over the wall and into the top-right corner.
The Sky Blues brought him to England from PEC Zwolle in 2020, so there was no celebration. In fact, he looked almost apologetic for his incredible effort.
It was 2-0 on the half-hour. Femi Seriki rode a challenge and flashed the ball across the box at pace, finding Campbell, whose first-time finish looked simple, even though that was far from the truth. It was the in-form frontman's fourth in five games.
The evening got worse for Lampard's side shortly afterwards, with goalkeeper Oliver Dovin stretchered off with an apparent knee injury after a Cruyff turn to take the ball away from Campbell.
Just after the hour mark, Brewster sealed the victory when he emphatically finished from Ben Brereton Diaz's lay-off. It was his second in as many games; the last time he scored in consecutive games was during a loan spell at Swansea in July 2020.
Coventry still pushed, with hopes of a miraculous comeback in the backs of their minds, and did get on the scoresheet in the 92nd minute courtesy of Jack Rudoni. All that did, though, was deny the Blades a clean sheet on an otherwise thoroughly positive evening in the Steel City.
Wilder: We've got to keep rolling on - more tough games are coming
Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder on Sky Sports:
"We wanted to get out of the traps, which we did. We understand Coventry and the run they are on, which has been outstanding under Frank, and we understood it was going to be a big game for both teams. But the consistency that my team has shown - and Frank's team have shown - over quite a long period is outstanding, just as much as Burnley and Leeds.
"The important part of the season started in August - you have to win games right the way through. We've managed to do that, and we're going to have to do that if we want to preserve and maintain our position.
"The teams at the top have done remarkably well. We're sat on 83 points and we went up in 2018/19 with 89 points. I'd be delighted if we just needed another two wins from seven games, but that ain't going to be the case. We've got to keep rolling on, be professional, act professional, enjoy our weekend and get set for another tough game away at Oxford next week."
Lampard: It's the reaction to this defeat that matters
Coventry manager Frank Lampard on Sky Sports:
"Sometimes you've got to credit the opposition; they are a strong team, that's why they are top of the league. They are very clinical, very quick in transitions and they play forward well. We didn't play terribly; we started the game pretty well until they scored a free-kick in the top corner and sometimes the quality moments can affect the game.
"It's important to have balance after a night like this, when you think about how far we've come, what run we've been on, and you can come to Sheffield United and lose a game, that's for sure. I don't feel terrible about it; what's important now is the reaction to it.
"It's the Championship - these results can happen in many different ways and we haven't felt that too much, so it's important we don't forget this is normal."
