Luke O'Nien, just brought on, hits a perfect diagonal out to the right and Amad Diallo picks it up by the byeline for Sunderland.

He wriggles into the box, crossing low...

...it ricochets to Patrick Roberts, but his shot dribbles just wide.

Should have come closer.

Sunderland's Trai Hume heads over after a corner seemed to bounce its way through to him on the edge of the six-yard box.

It took a nick though, another corner.

Coventry clear.

Lovely ball in from the left by Jake Bidwell was begging to be attacked by Coventry, but it wasn't truly made the most of.

Sunderland press, but Coventry get in to concede the corner.

Sunderland ring the changes, with Pierre Ekwah, Alex Pritchard and Abdoullah Ba come on.

Joe Gelhardt, Jack Clarke and Edouard Michut make way.

Coventry striker Viktor Gyokeres really has a direct, exciting style.

He picks up on the edge of the box and again scorches forward but Danny Batth edges him wide enough to render his fierce, acute-angle drive too difficult.

Sears wide.

Eventually Sunderland work their way between the lines, Amad Diallo receives a pass from Joe Gelhardt, who then retakes the ball and drives on but drags his shot tamely wide.

Better though, breaking through the wall of Sky Blue.

Sunderland try to play out from the back but Coventry's squeezing, wrenching press is making it tricky.

They eventually free the ball. Jack Clarke gets it left, but he's being pushed out.

Coventry just nudging Sunderland back.

There's a pyro on the pitch. Blue smoke streams from a flare. Boos around the ground. Not a universally popular move it seems.

Jake Bidwell wraps his left foot round a cross from the left for Coventry, but can't curve it enough and Viktor Gyokeres' header spoons wide.

The Sky Blues have roared back into superiority now.

Sunderland defender Danny Batth takes an awful touch across his own penalty area and Coventry pinch the ball in the box.

Viktor Gyokeres shuffles across the edge of the 18-yard box and tees up Gustavo Hamer, but his fierce drive is blocked.

Image source, Rex Features

Brooke Norton-Cuffy stretches his legs for Coventry down the right, but his cross is straight down Anthony Patterson's throat for Sunderland.

Coventry win it back, though Gustavo Hamer's shot on goal looked more like a bomb to the corner you might have seen from Australia's Nathan Cleary during last autumn's Rugby League World Cup at the CBS Arena.

It was that wide and high.

Aji Alese does well to foil a powerful barrelling run down the right by Brooke Norton-Cuffy for the home side.

Sunderland clear.

Tackles razing the turf in midfield on the back of that, with the desperation from Sunderland to get back into the game.

Penalty box fracas after a scramble in the Coventry box.

Joe Gelhardt dives in as Ben Wilson gathers, and then Wilson reacts.

It's a lot of shirt-pulling and wrestling, as their team-mates tumble in afterwards.

Seemed like they were both looking for that, as in both teams.

Again Sunderland enjoy plenty of possession in range of the Coventry box, but the ball is being harmlessly fanned about from one side to the other without puncturing the backline.

Someone needs to be more direct. Dan Neil tries it, tees up Patrick Roberts, but his shot squirts away.

Then, Amad Diallo wriggles into the box... low drive! Great save Ben Wilson! Superb effort. Down at the near post.

Sunderland win a free-kick in midfield as an otherwise quite enjoyably skilful game gets scrappy.

The visitors have shown a bit more gumption and resilience in midfield.

Luke McNally clears the free-kick for Coventry, who for all their lack of possession don't look too ruffled.

Josh Wilson-Esbrand is coming on for Kasey Palmer, a Manchester City prospect.

Palmer looked disconsolate, as you might imagine.

Image source, Rex Features

Coventry seek to break from the resulting corner but Sunderland smuggle it back to Anthony Patterson and build again.

Kasey Palmer came back on but he will surely go off as he's just gone down.

Coventry broke with Palmer on the deck, Viktor Gyokeres striding on but he's robbed.

Sunderland tried to push on with Palmer down, and the home fans booed. Brilliant double-standards.

Image source, Rex Features

Coventry's Kasey Palmer pulls up in midfield and Sunderland pinch the ball from the stricken player.

Cruel.

They get it into Joe Gelhardt, who brings Patrick Roberts in, but Palmer gets back to cover and concede a corner before going down for treatment.

There will be concern, his hamstring just seemed to twang and he stopped dead.

Image source, Rex Features

Sunderland certainly have width with Patrick Roberts and Jack Clarke stretching the play.

However, the coverage has been equally good, suffocatingly so.

Sunshine cascades across the surface at the CBS Arena. Half of it anyway, the rest in shadow.

Coventry get us under way for the second 45 minutes.