Coventry City fell just short in their promotion bid last term, as Frank Lampard’s side came unstuck in the play-offs. They will hope to avoid that end-of-season lottery by going straight up this time around.Hull City have more modest ambitions after surviving by the skin of their teeth in 2024/25. Can the Tigers cause an upset on matchday one?Coventry vs Hull best betsCoventry to win – 8/11 with SpreadexCoventry clean sheet – 6/4 with SBKJack Rudoni to score any time – 13/5 with LadbrokesCoventry vs Hull oddsFind the latest Coventry City vs Hull City betting odds here. All odds are provided by our recommended football bookmakers and are subject to change. Stay in-play between matches with bet365’s live casino! Coventry vs Hull predictionsSacking one of the most popular managers in your club’s history is never easy, but Doug King’s contentious decision was vindicated last season.To widespread dismay among the Coventry City faithful, King opted to part ways with Mark Robins in early November.The Sky Blues were not exactly firing on all cylinders at that time, but they routinely started seasons slowly under Robins, who usually managed to turn things around.Robins was adored by Coventry supporters for his work at the club over the previous seven years, and the appointment of Frank Lampard as his successor did not go down particularly well initially.Still, by the end of the season King must have felt justified in making the decision he did. Coventry were 17th when Lampard arrived; by the conclusion of the campaign, they were sixth. Had the season started when the former Chelsea manager was appointed, Coventry would have finished fourth.Perhaps Robins would have turned things around anyway, but it would be churlish to withhold praise for Lampard, who at one point guided Coventry to nine wins in 10 league games.In the end they fell short in the play-offs, losing 3-2 to Sunderland on aggregate, but Coventry are among the leading contenders for automatic promotion this season.The same cannot be said for Hull City, who only narrowly avoided relegation to League One last term having finished seventh the year before.Hull ultimately stayed up on goal difference after finishing level on points with Luton Town. But despite leading them to safety, Ruben Selles was fired at the end of the campaign, to be replaced by Sergej Jakirovic. He will be tasked with keeping Hull up first and foremost.Jakirovic has mostly had to make do with loans and freebies in the transfer market, although Hull did pay £3.3m to make Gustavo Puerta’s permanent move from Bayer Leverkusen permanent.Steven Alzate, Sean McLoughlin, Xavier Simons and Alfie Jones have all moved on, but on the plus side Liam Millar and Mohamed Belloumi are fully fit again after serious knee injuries.As for Coventry, Kaine Kesler-Hayden is the headline arrival, but it has been a pretty quiet summer overall. That does at least mean Lampard’s side have retained virtually all their first-teamers, with the possible exception of centre-back Luis Binks.Coventry City vs Hull City betting tips. 18+ GambleAware.org – Please play responsibly.Coventry vs Hull betting tipsCoventry City are the favourites to get the better of Hull City on the opening weekend of the Championship campaign.Coventry to winIf Coventry maintain the same level they managed during Lampard’s tenure last season, they should make the play-offs again.Or perhaps they will do even better. Time will tell, but the top end of the Championship looks slightly weaker this time around. After all, both Leeds United and Burnley broke the 100-point barrier in 2024/25. A repeat is improbable.Coventry have started to make their much-maligned home ground a fortress of late. Last season, only Leeds and Sheffield United won more matches in front of their own fans.In that regard, Coventry can pick up from where they left off this weekend. Tip Coventry to win at 8/11 with Spreadex Coventry clean sheetHull consistently struggled to put the ball in the back of the net last season. With just 44 goals to their name, they were the lowest scorers in the Championship.It was a comparatively strong defensive record that ultimately saw them avoid relegation to League One.Coventry had the opposite problem, conceding 58 goals – the second-most of any top-half team.They have moved to tighten up their backline this summer, though, signing the aforementioned right-back Kesler-Hayden as well as left-back Miguel Angel Brau.Given Hull’s attacking deficiencies last time out, these odds are well worth taking up. Back Coventry to keep a clean sheet at 6/4 with SBK Jack Rudoni to score any timeBoyhood Chelsea fan Jack Rudoni has put on record his admiration for Lampard in the past – and the feeling is now mutual.Lampard called Rudoni an “absolute dream” earlier this year. No Coventry player improved more in the second half of last season than the former Huddersfield Town man.Rudoni scored nine goals last term and the attack-minded midfielder will fancy his chances of breaking into double figures in the upcoming campaign.Coventry fans feared the worst when Rudoni was left out of the friendly against St Pauli amid transfer speculation.But Lampard revealed that his absence was due to a minor calf issue that will not keep him out of the Hull game. Bad news for the Tigers, then. Go for Jack Rudoni to score any time at 13/5 with Ladbrokes How to watch Coventry vs HullLocation: Coventry City Stadium, Coventry, England.Date and time: Saturday 9th August, 12.30pm.How to watch: Sky Sports+.About the authorGreg LeaGreg Lea is a freelance football writer from London. He predominantly covers the Premier League and has had work published by the Guardian, FourFourTwo, ESPN and others.Follow Greg on X: @GregLeaFootballCommercial content notice: Taking one of the bookmaker offers featured in this article may result in a payment to talkSPORT. 18+. T&Cs apply. 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