Leeds striker Davide Somma scored his tenth goal from ten league starts and it proved sufficient to defeat Coventry 1-0 at Elland Road. Leeds boss Simon Grayson praised his in-form South African striker for earning the Whites three points.

"He's done brilliant to be fair," Grayson said. "We sent him out on loan last season, he started this season with a bang and then he was out of the team because of the formation we were playing, but he's scored whenever he's come off the bench.

"He's still got a lot more work to do with his overall play, but he's certainly got that one thing that a striker lives off and that's knowing where the back of the net is.

"It's easy to sit here and say I knew what he could do because that's why I signed him, but what we've seen in training is that he has a natural eye for the back of the net.

"He can shoot with both feet, he's strong, he works hard and he's got all the right ingredients. But to go from League Two to the Championship in half a season shows what the lad is capable of and I'm delighted we've got him."

At one stage Grayson had thought of leaving Somma out of the side, adding: "We thought we might play 4-5-1 but sometimes you have to give the opportunity to the players that are full of confidence and goals.

"We knew we would be involved in a battle today and we had to scrap, and I thought that we did that.

"We couldn't get the goal we needed before half-time, but I thought there wasn't too much wrong with the first half. But when we got the goal, we saw the game out in a professional manner.

"We told the players at half-time that they had to be patient and keep doing the same things. We created some really good chances and the overall performance of the team was pleasing."

For Coventry it is now 10 league games without a win and slide towards the relegation places.

Manager Aidy Boothroyd, who lost striker Marlon King to illness before the game, was remaining confident.

He said: "We had another thunderbolt before the game, Marlon was unable to travel due to flu, and that's the way it seems to be at the minute. We're in a bit of a storm.

"We've got to keep going. We picked the best team to get a result, we created chances and Leeds did, and I think we can say they had the better chances of the first half and we had the better in the second.

"We come away disappointed but encouraged by some of the individual performances. The facts tell us that we're getting done by single goals.

"We keep getting punched in the face. This (Elland Road) is a coliseum and a place to come and attack and have a go, but today was not our day."