Haji Wright hat trick: USMNT forward leads huge Coventry City win over Middlesbrough (video)

American forward Haji Wright showed up big when Coventry City needed him, ringing up a hat trick to put the Sky Blues back above Middlesbrough after a 3-1 win at Coventry Building Society Arena on Monday.

Coventry had been flying toward promotion to the Premier League but Boro overtook them on the table as a result of a three-match winless run in the Championship.

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Wright had not scored in those games — losses to Norwich and QPR plus a draw with Oxford United — but he dialed up his 11th, 12th, and 13th goals of the Championship season on Monday to halt Coventry's skid.

The 27-year-old USMNT center forward redirected a cross to open the scoring then defied the keeper with a clever finish in the 55th minute before rounding out his hat trick from the spot.

Boro had won six-straight division matches to climb atop the table, but Frank Lampard's men are now a point clear of their rivals. The silver lining for now second-place Boro is they remain five points clear of third-place Middlesbrough with a superior points-per-game over fourth-place Ipswich Town and fifth-place Hull City.

The top two teams in every Championship season secure automatic promotion to the Premier League while the third-, fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-place teams go to the playoffs.

Haji Wright hat trick video for Coventry City