Coventry City rocked Blackburn Rovers as the Championship side romped to a 4-1 win at Ewood Park.
Maltese ace inspires Sky Blues to win
Coventry City rocked Blackburn Rovers as the Championship side romped to a 4-1 win at Ewood Park.
Rovers may have had visions of winning the FA Cup this season, but succumbed to a Coventry side which knocked Manchester United out of the Carling Cup.
That day's hero Michael Mifsud was again a thorn in the side of a Premier League defence as his deflected shot put the Sky Blues ahead on 34 minutes.
The visitors scored a second on 64 minutes when Elliott Ward converted from the penalty spot after Leon Best had been nudged over by Zurab Khizanishvili.
Dele Adebola fired in a third goal for Coventry on 83 minutes before David Bentley replied with a low shot from 25 yards.
But in the final minute, Mifsud capped a superb day for the Sky Blues when he beat Brad Friedel at his near post.
Rovers boss Mark Hughes, who tasted FA Cup glory four times as a player, was without Roque Santa Cruz through injury and will surely rue his decision to start with established regulars Stephen Warnock, Ryan Nelsen and Morten Gamst Pedersen on the substitutes' bench.
In the eighth minute home-grown midfielder Keith Treacy used his electrifying pace to reach the left-hand byline and whip in a vicious cross which drew a fine block from Isaac Osbourne at the near post.
Early escape
Buoyed by their early escape, Coventry engineered an even better chance in the 18th minute.
Some neat interplay in midfield led to Best producing a delightful backheel which allowed Mifsud to scamper clear behind Blackburn left-back Berner.
Mifsud advanced forward at blistering pace and thrashed a shot goalwards which Friedel tipped around the post for a corner.
Benni McCarthy spurned an an excellent opportunity to open the scoring shortly before the half-hour mark, firing straight into Dimi Konstantopoulos' midriff after beating the offside trap and racing clean through.
The Sky Blues' most potent weapon is undoubtedly Mifsud - and he proved as much with the opening goal 11 minutes before the break.
Mifsud, who joined Coventry from Norwegian outfit Lillestrom 12 months ago, seized on Chris Samba's weak defensive header and hooked a volley from 12 yards which deflected off Berner and looped over Friedel and into the far corner.
Blackburn improved after the break and threatened to draw level in the 50th minute when Bentley swung in a corner from the left which Samba nodded onto the crossbar.
Ruthless
It was 2-0 after Jay Tabb hit a brilliant shot from 20 yards which smacked the crossbar and bounced up for Best, who was shoved in the back by Khizanishvili as he tried to head the ball into the net from inside the six-yard box.
It was a blatant penalty which Ward ruthlessly dispatched to put the Sky Blues in total control.
Adebola was allowed to race clear to fire home left-footed for a third and, although Bentley's low strike raised a brief cheer among the home fans, Mifsud's delightful strike in stoppage-time almost burst the net and ensured Coventry had the final say.
| Team Name |
Blackburn Rovers |
Coventry City |
| Possession |
56% |
44% |
| Goals |
1 |
4 |
| Shots On Target |
4 |
5 |
| Shots Off Target |
11 |
4 |
| Blocked Shots |
2 |
1 |
| Corners |
9 |
5 |
| Fouls Conceded |
10 |
15 |
| Offsides |
2 |
4 |
| Yellow Cards |
1 |
1 |
| Red Cards |
0 |
0 |
|
