As the players went through their warm-ups at Burton's Pirelli Stadium, the game almost had a pre-season feel about it.
A neutral stadium on a glorious evening with supporters dotted all around the ground taking in the novelty of playing the first round of the Carabao Cup in an unfamiliar setting under the lights.
Coventry started like they were in a pre-season contest, sloppy in possession and struggling to string any kind of play to their game as Nigel Pearson's side quickly stamped their authority on proceedings.
Eager to find a reaction following Saturday's defeat against Sunderland, it didn't take long for the Robins to punish Coventry's lackadaisical start when Kal Naismith opened his City account after just 13 minutes.
Then it was the Tommy Conway show with the 20-year-old striker taking his form from pre-season into competitive football after scoring twice in 12 minutes to put the game out of sight. Coventry rallied in the second half, they couldn't have been any worse, but Andi Weimann added the gloss to grab his third in three games at the end. Who else?
Here's the verdict as City set up a trip to Wycombe in the Carabao Cup second round.
The midfield dynamic
When the team news was announced an hour before kick-off, I have to hold my hands up and say I gulped when I saw City lining up with the midfield two of Han-Noah Massengo and Andy King.
Not that it was particularly surprising given the fact Matty James is out injured and Joe Williams wasn't going to be risked given his hamstring record throughout last season. But casting my mind back to the pre-season victory over Plymouth where King and Massengo started but were overran on numerous occasions and there was the danger of something similar unfolding against Mark Robins' side.
Although it quickly became clear after kick-off that it wasn't just the simple two players sitting in front of the defence. King was instilled as more of a defensive midfielder shielding the back three with Weimann dropping deeper to bolster the numbers in the middle of the park alongside Massengo.
That allowed the Frenchman with the freedom to get forward and do what he does best - be a nuisance to the opposition without having to be overly concerned about losing his positional sense as King and Weimann were on hand to keep it tight in the middle.
These are the games that King will prove so important for. The priority is the league and the veteran midfielder will find game time few and far between in the Championship this season but cup games he provides that extra option and allows the likes of Alex Scott to be rested.
Last night he proved why he was worthy of the one-year extension on the field. He was disciplined and vocal in keeping City organised, also providing the wing-backs with the opportunities to get forward when necessary.
Pearson singled him out after the game by saying: "Andy King was very disciplined and showed his game understanding playing as a deeper player in midfield so there were a lot of good things."
You never know which Massengo is going to turn up on the evening but in the first-half especially, he was unplayable and assisted Conway's first of the night when the constant pressure on the ball paid dividends.
Against Sunderland, City lacked that midfield solidity in the final 30 minutes but with Weimann dropping deeper to make up the numbers, it stifled Coventry's attack and helped take Kasey Palmer out of the contest. Tasked with pulling the strings in midfield, the former City man grew increasingly frustrated at not being able to find the space between the midfield and defence.
A resilience
How many supporters were thinking 'here we go again' when Coventry pulled a goal back on the hour mark through a fine strike by Jamie Allen?
It's almost a natural reaction, particularly coming into the contest on the back of two defeats when City were leading in both contests. There's also the fact that City lost 35 points from winning positions last season.
Coventry manager Robins had made a triple substitution just one minute before that goal to make it 3-1 on the evening. They started the second half the brighter of the two sides with the manager surely spelling out some home truths in the dressing room after their opening 45 minutes.
Allen's strike came when Coventry were in the ascendency. The crowd were back on their side after 45 minutes of moans and groans and City were on the back foot, their defensive frailties put to the test.
But Pearson's side rose to the challenge, getting players back in numbers and dealing with the crosses that came into the box from either side. Rob Atkinson won his headers, Naismith was marshalling at the back and Zak Vyner was dealing with everything that came at him.
Credit to Vyner who picked up a booking after the first minute when he hacked down Palmer. Walking a tight rope, he maintained his concentration and was strong up against Coventry's Tavares who looked lively on occasions in their attack.
So many times we have seen City crumble in that situation and there was an expectancy that it could happen again. Although City dug deep and showed a welcome resilience to ride out the storm before Coventry ran out of ideas without really giving Dan Bentley too much of a test.
The manager said afterwards: "We test ourselves so it's whether our own demons kick in or whether we were able to deal with the pressure and I thought they did very well."
Welcome back, Cam Pring
It's certainly been a while. Just under 19 weeks to be more precise since he last made a competitive start for City.
In Tuesday's press conference Pearson challenged the wing-back to earn the shirt again following his absence from the first team towards the end of last season.
Pre-season was unfortunate for the 24-year-old. He was introduced in the first game against Cheltenham with the deadlock yet to be broken and made an instant impact by assisting two in a 2-0 victory before picking up an injury and missing the remaining schedule of matches.
Pring was then out of the matchday squads against Hull and Sunderland while the manager has always remained adamant his spell out of the team has been nothing sinister. Last night he was handed his opportunity, replacing Jay Dasilva on the left flank.
There have been the odd mutterings questioning Pring's levels of fitness but there was no such evidence as he featured for the full 90 minutes, heading up and down that touchline with the manager eager for his wing-backs to contribute in attack.
There were a couple of moments where he had to shake off some rustiness including a couple of loose passes, while positionally he sometimes drifted too far away from Rob Atkinson but Pring soon settled and proved important in City's doggedness at the back.
He won the corner in the first half that led to the opening goal when he bravely launched himself at a header inside the area and barely gave his opposing number Fankaty Dabo a sniff up the other end.
Pring offers a different dynamic to Jay Dasilva. He may not be as technically gifted on the ball but he's stronger in the tackle and more of a threat aerially and his performance last night will certainly give Pearson a welcome selection dilemma going forward on that left side depending on the type of opposition they come up against.
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