The St Mary’s side are inside the Championship’s top six but only just ahead of Wrexham on goal difference, and are set to play the Red Dragons next.
Beating Phil Parkinson’s Hollywood-backed outfit will see Eckert’s charges go at least three points clear of seventh, and they could go higher.
Hull City are only three points ahead of Saints with 66 points, while Saints are the best team in the league on form in the last 12 unbeaten outings.
Starting with Wrexham on Tuesday, April 7, after facing Arsenal in the FA Cup on Saturday, April 4, Saints will play seven league games in 26 days.
“It’s one game after another, and the story is always going to be the same. It just shows that we are in crunch time now. That’s what it is,” said Eckert.
📈 @Coventry_City move nine points clear at the top and 11 clear of third!#EFL | #SkyBetChampionship pic.twitter.com/XWACt97XWh
— Sky Bet Championship (@SkyBetChamp) March 21, 2026
“Every single game that comes up is going to be a big one, and it’s going to be determining of where we end up towards the end of the season.
“I think the players are very much aware of that, of the importance of games. We will have time to improve on a couple of bits also this week.
“But the good thing is that I think that we have shown more and more in recent weeks that we are able to win games in different ways.”
Should Saints finish in the top six, they will enter the play-off semi-finals, looking to reach Wembley to play for a place in the Premier League.
Both legs will be played within 10 days of the regular season’s conclusion, before a near two-week break until the final on Saturday, May 23.
Saints won promotion via the play-offs during their last Championship campaign in 2023/24. Adam Armstrong netted in a 1-0 win over Leeds United.