Coventry sold two of their strikers on Thursday but still had more than enough firepower to see off a sorry Barnsley side whose dreadful away form is pushing them worryingly close to a relegation spot!
Dele Adebola and Kevin Kyle both departed the Ricoh Arena two days ago but Leon Best and little Maltese wizard Michael Mifsud proved too strong for a Barnsley defence that had Lewin Nyatanga back in it after his latest return from Derby County.
Tony Warner also made his debut in goal after arriving on loan from Fulham to deputise for the crocked Heinz Muller. Muller himself was in the stands watching.
And it turned out to be a real baptism of fire for the ex Liverpool youngster who could do nothing to stop Coventry and in particular Best .
We probably shouldn't be surprised. Yesterday's game was the third meeting in a row and fourth out of the last five encounters in which Coventry have smashed four goals past The Reds.
It started fairly promising for the travelling army when a great cross by Campbell-Ryce was begging to be turned in but neither Jon Macken nor Daniel Nardiello attacked it properly.
Barnsley looked pretty decent in midfield, with Brian Howard a woeful exception. Diego Leon and the returning Anderson De Silva showed quality with their passes and runs but once the ball arrived at Coventry's area the dominating presence of ex Red Arjan De Zeeuw and Elliot Ward had no problem nullifying any threat. On the rare occasions Nardiello broke through he was flagged offside each time. Kicking the ball away around four times during the game showed his petulant side and he was rightly booked for it in the second half.
Coventry looked far more dangerous when they attacked. Best, Mifsud and Julian Gray were at the hub of everything. Tony Warner nearly spilled a cross into the net under pressure from Best whilst Michael Hughes sent an effort over the top.
So it came as no surprise when the Sky Blues went ahead on 37 minutes.
Best received the ball on the edge of the D, and instead of getting close to him Dennis Souza flapped around waving his arms and Best easily turned him before lashing a great shot into the corner of the net.
Jamal Campbell-Ryce, victim of a horrendous challenge from Daniel Fox in the first half was replaced by Martin Devaney at half time and the former Coventry trainee looked like he had a point to prove.
He produced one excellent run that saw him surge past two defenders into the area but Isaac Osbourne cleared his effort off the line.
And that was about the sum total of Barnsley's attacking prowess, it just needed another Coventry goal to kill off the game. It arrived with 20 minutes remaining.
Miguel Tininho stood off Best and allowed him to send a low ball across the six yard area. Souza, Nyatanga and Foster all stood watching it zip across and Gray tapped it over the line at the far post.
The floodgates could now open. Five minutes later the defence and Warner fell apart again to allow Coventry to go 3-0 up.
Gray whipped in a cross that Souza allowed to bounce in the area. The ball looped up and Best beat Warner to it. The striker's effort came back off the crossbar and former Barnsley target Jay Tabb just nodded the rebound into the net.
The game really descended into farce on 81 minutes when Souza and Howard became involved in a game of handbags.
Howard volleyed some abuse at Souza for getting dispossessed and then as Howard turned round, Souza threw his glove at Howard who turned round and the pair tussled for a few seconds before Howard was booked.
It just needed a fourth to complete the day and it duly arrived on 83 minutes.
Another left wing cross this time from Tabb was headed straight up into the air by Tininho, Best brought the ball down before turning the on loan Portuguese and then fired across Warner into the far corner.
It could have been five in injury time. Best surged away from Howard and his drive was parried by Warner into the path of Robbie Simpson who slammed the rebound home. Barnsley though were saved more embarrassment by the linesman's generous flag.
It was a truly woeful performance. And away from home Barnsley look extremely toothless. Coventry had not kept a clean sheet since October but it was never in doubt yesterday afternoon.
With league leaders West Brom licking their lips ahead of next weekend's Oakwell visit, things could well get worse before they get better. On this occasion, to put it simply, Barnsley were crap!
Player Ratings:
Tony Warner: What a debut! Backed by a porous defence he really had no chance with any of the four goals although could have reacted quicker to stop Best heading against the bar for Tabb to net the third. 6
Stephen Foster: He is one who can look in the mirror this morning but moving him back to right back to accommodate Nyatanga was a mistake. He has been a rock at centre-half but found his involvement restricted out wide. Kept going. 7
Dennis Souza: Had a shocker! Even worse than the Hull game. Leon Best tortured him for 90minutes and he finally lost his rag with Howard. 3
Lewin Nyatanga: Back at the club, straight back into the side and maybe you can tell he has been playing in a brittle Derby defence. Was dragged all over the pitch by Mifsud and couldn't cope. 5
Miguel Tininho: At fault for at least two of the goals. Seemed very slow in closing down the opposition and after a decent start to his Oakwell career this was very disappointing. 4
Jamal Campbell-Ryce: Produced a great cross early on but then was crocked by a shocking challenge from Daniel Fox which should have brought a red instead of yellow card. Never the same after that and subbed at half-time. Subbed. 6
Brian Howard: Surely it's only the captaincy that is keeping him in the side?! He was awful again at the Ricoh. And what captain fights on the pitch?? Booked. 4
Anderson De Silva: Another rare bright spot. His passing and tackling were spot on. Pity the rest of his team-mates were not on his wavelength. 7
Diego Leon: Bright and bubbly in the first half but as the side were penned back in their own half after the break he saw less and less of the ball. Subbed. 7
Daniel Nardiello: Still needs to play more games to be properly judged. After all we know what he can do. He was subdued again though and for some strange reason kept kicking the ball away whenever caught offside. Finally booked for it in the second half. Booked. Subbed. 5
Jon Macken: Never gave the ball away but did not have a chance to add to his goal-scoring streak. Booked. 6
Substitutes:
Martin Devaney (for Campbell-Ryce 45) Started off like a house on fire when he came on. The biggest threat the Coventry defence had all afternoon. 7
Istvan Ferenczi (for Nardiello 62) Did not get very much involved but by now Barnsley hardly saw much of the ball. 6
Kayode Odejayi (for Leon 69) Nearly got in near the end but again has no confidence. 6
Unused Substitutes:
Bobby Hassell, Michael Coulson
COVENTRY CITY: Konstantopoulos, De Zeeuw (Dann 85), Fox, Ward, Hughes, Doyle, Osbourne, Mifsud (Simpson 72), Tabb, Best, Gray (Davis 82).
Subs: Cairo, Hughes.
BarnsleyBoy's Man of the Match: Hard to pick after such an abject display but Foster refused to give in.
Impressed by Coventry's: Leon Best: Scored twice and had a hand in the other two goals. The Reds simply could not deal with him.
Ref Watch: Mike Russell: Should have sent off Fox for a shocker of a tackle on Campbell-Ryce but did not have much to do after that. 6
Other Reports:
Official Website
BBC
Coca-Cola Championship Results: Saturday 2nd February 2008:
Blackpool 2-1 Leicester
Colchester 2-2 Sheffield United
Coventry 4-0 BARNSLEY
Crystal Palace 1-1 Southampton
Norwich 1-0 Preston
Plymouth 0-1 Hull
QPR 3-0 Bristol City
Scunthorpe 1-0 Charlton
Sheffield Wednesday 1-2 Ipswich
Stoke 2-1 Cardiff
Watford 3-0 Wolves
West Brom 2-1 Burnley
Barnsley lie in 17th place in the Coca Cola Championship with 37 points from 30 games.
We are 8 points off the Play-Offs, 15 points off the Automatic Promotion Places, 17 points off First Place and 7 points above the Relegation Zone.
Up to and including 3/2/08
Next Up:
At Oakwell:
Coca-Cola Championship Matchday Thirty One: Barnsley v West Bromwich Albion Saturday 9th February 2008 Kick-Off 3pm.
On The Road:
Coca-Cola Championship Matchday Thirty Two: Plymouth Argyle v Barnsley Tuesday 12th February 2008 Kick-Off 7:45pm.
Tickets:
Adults - £22.00
Senior Citizens - £15.00
Young Adults (Under 23) - £13.00
Juveniles (Under 18) - £6.00
Official Reds On The Road coaches will be making the trip to Home Park. Coaches will depart Oakwell at 1pm on the day of the game and the fare is £22.00.