Coventry City

Image source, Rex Features

Frank Lampard has revealed Coventry City striker Haji Wright has resumed light training after missing 10 games with an ankle ligament injury.

The American had scored seven goals in 11 starts for the Sky Blues this season but hasn't played since the 2-2 draw at Sunderland on 9 November - a game in which the 26-year-old's second-half goal started a comeback from 2-0 down.

Lampard told Friday's pre-match press conference ahead of the trip to Norwich City on Saturday: "He came out on the grass yesterday for his first sort of steps outside with some mobility work to get moving.

"We're hoping he's back in the next two weeks or so, but it's been a fair amount of time now, so I want to be conservative about how I say he will be on the grass and then with us.

"He has to get his fitness up and the staff have been doing a good job of doing what they can to keep him as fit as he can be."

Lampard added he is wary of the threat of the Canaries at Carrow Road, though a win would take the Sky Blues within a point of their hosts in mid-table.

"They play good football. We've had a lot of possession in our games so far and this will be a different challenge for us in terms of the opposition that they are for us, and we have to respect them completely," he said.

"They have threats in their team which are quite clear to see in terms of their style of play, because they have a lot of possession, and we have to be ready for that."

Norwich will seek to follow-up their 1-0 win at Luton on Wednesday as they welcome Coventry to Carrow Road on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

The Sky Blues had to settle for a point from a 1-1 draw at Cardiff as they try to haul themselves away from danger at the foot of the table under Frank Lampard.

• Norwich City are unbeaten in their past nine league meetings with Coventry City (W6 D3), a run that started in December 2010 under Paul Lambert.

• Coventry City have won just one of their past 17 away league games against Norwich City (D9 L7), winning 2-1 at Carrow Road in February 2009.

• Norwich City won 13 home league games in 2024 (D8 L2), their most victories in a calendar year at Carrow Road since 2018 (also 13).

• Coventry City have lost just one of their past eight league games on a Saturday (W4 D3), but that sole loss did come in their most recent such fixture, losing 4-1 at Portsmouth.

• Coventry City's Frank Lampard has only faced Crystal Palace (W5) more often in the league as a manager without losing than Norwich City (W3 D1), doing the double over the Canaries with Chelsea in the 2019-20 Premier League campaign.

Image source, Getty Images

Coventry City boss Frank Lampard said he was left frustrated that his side only managed a 1-1 draw at 10-man Cardiff City on New Year's Day.

Despite a decent return of five points from nine over the festive break, including a 4-0 thumping of Plymouth Argyle on Boxing Day, the 46-year-old believes his side are still playing far from their best.

"I was pleased with the reaction because I thought the first half was too slow from us and just not good enough," Lampard told BBC Radio Coventry & Warwickshire.

"So, frustrated. Listen, you come here and it's never easy in this league but with the circumstances of the game, you want to win it."

Callum Robinson's straight red card for an alleged elbow on Bobby Thomas early in the second half meant the Sky Blues had a man advantage for over 40 minutes but Lampard's side were unable to make it pay despite a great chance for Brandon Thomas-Asante late on.

"We created a few chances after that [the red card] which we should take one of so that's a bit of a frustration, yeah.

"The first half performance that we gave, you'll lose pretty much every time, so the players need to get that."

Image source, PA Media

Coventry City boss Frank Lampard admits he was hampered by the loss of in-form Ephron Mason-Clark and the continued absence of seven-goal top scorer Haji Wright in Sunday's 0-0 home draw with Millwall.

US international striker Wright has now missed nine matches with an ankle injury - and is yet to appear under Lampard, who hopes to get him back as soon as possible in the New Year.

But Wright's continued absence was compounded by the loss of Mason-Clark, who had scored four times in Lampard's first six games but has now been ruled out with a hamstring injury that will extend beyond the New Year's Day trip to Cardiff and next Sunday's game at Norwich.

"We need other solutions as they are two huge attacking outlets for us," Lampard told BBC CWR.

"Mason-Clark gives us real width and then there's his goalscoring and the balance he gives us. But he's got a hamstring issue and he may be out for some weeks.

"As for Haji, we're hoping to have him out on the grass in January. It can't come soon enough as I haven't had the chance to work with him yet.

"Millwall do make it very hard for you. They're very hard to get through and you just have to stay patient. You go though their results this season and you see how hard they've made it for other teams.

"In the first half they blocked the middle of the pitch and made us go out wide. But I'm only frustrated with the result. I'm happy with the performance and another clean sheet.

"And Jack Rudoni was so unlucky. That goes in another day and then you walk away happy having won a tight game 1-0. But that's not the reality of the Championship. It doesn't always work like that."

Rob Gurney
Sports editor, BBC CWR

Image source, Rex Features

What do Coventry need?

It's been obvious since the early part of the season that the team is lacking experience and leadership. At 32, Ben Wilson isn't first choice, or at time of writing, a fit goalkeeper, and yet he's the oldest member of the squad.

Left-back Jake Bidwell is seven months younger, at 31, but due to injury and form, hasn't been an automatic selection either. They are crying out for at least one 30-something at the back and in central midfield.

Are they likely to do any business?

See above, plus the need to utilise Frank Lampard's contacts book to shoehorn one or two hungry loan players into his squad, which head of recruitment Dean Austin was reluctant to facilitate under Mark Robins.

The squad does need a refresh, and there's no way Lampard would have taken the job if owner/chairman Doug King hadn't agreed that he could put his own stamp on things.

How successful have they been in recent January windows?

It was largely regarded as club policy that strengthening in January was to be resisted, due to a perceived lack of value, although signing Danish midfielder Victor Torp for £2m last January was an exception to that stance.

He started with a fabulous flourish, but injury blunted his effectiveness, and is only now starting to get proper, regular football again.

Arguably, a bigger loss last January was iconic centre-back Kyle McFadzean, whose influence around the players, rather than actual game minutes, certainly hasn't been effectively replaced.

Are there likely to be any notable departures?

There will certainly need to be a degree of churn to regulate the wage bill, offsetting any arrivals with the odd departure or two.

Glancing down the squad list, the likes of Fabio Tavares and Liam Kitching seem surplus to requirements, while fans have been suggesting trying to offload centre-forward Ellis Simms, and even possibly Ben Sheaf, to generate some spending money.

The club captain has 18 months left on his contract, but hasn't scaled the heights of previous seasons.

How key is the window?

Under Robins in recent years, the Sky Blues were slow starters, but saved their best form for the second half of the season. They made the play-off final in 2023, despite a poor start, and for all that the run to the FA Cup semi-final last season was memorable, physically and mentally it took its toll on the players, which ultimately cost them.

It's still very early days for Lampard, but he'll be targeting at least a top-half finish, to give everyone some fresh impetus to take into next season.

Coventry City host Millwall in a mid-table Championship clash on Sunday.

The Sky Blues are 15th in the division but have picked up three wins in their past five fixtures, while the Lions are two places higher but have just a single victory from their past eight.

In their last head-to-head, Frank Lampard picked up his first win as Coventry boss courtesy of a 1-0 away day triumph.

• Coventry City have won their last four league games against Millwall, their best ever winning run against the Lions.

• Millwall have lost their last league visits to Coventry since a 1-0 win in December 2021 under manager Gary Rowett.

• Coventry City have not ended their calendar year with a win in any of the last four years (D2 L2) since a 4-1 win over Wycombe in 2019.

• Millwall are unbeaten in their final league game of the year in each of the last nine years (W7 D2) since losing 2-0 to Bournemouth in 2014.

• Coventry's Frank Lampard won against Millwall earlier this month at the Den but his only previous home league game against the Lions resulted in a 1-0 defeat in February 2019 when he was at Derby County.

Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Wolves 2-3 Coventry

This is the kind of game that brings football writers doing match reports out in a cold sweat. Late goals are an occupational hazard.

These days, some newspapers demand reports anything up to 20 minutes before the final whistle for evening games. But this match at Molineux was something else.

Firstly, it was a cracking atmosphere between local rivals who had reached the FA Cup sixth round and were therefore one game away from Wembley. Coventry were the better side and deservedly in front going into the final 10 minutes, so I was confidently putting together my report on the basis of a shock taking place. Wolves equalised with seven minutes left.

It was a shame for Coventry but no dramas as a draw takes the tie into extra-time. Wolves take the lead after 88 minutes. Damn. The context of what I was writing has to change and the story stripped out. Now the report is 'Wolves' late double breaks Coventry hearts' – and getting over by the final whistle is going to be tight.

Coventry equaliser, 90+7. Whaaattt. This is ridiculous – but at least we are back in the extra-time scenario and I have another 30 minutes to sort through the mess my report has become. Coventry winner 90+10. Effectively I have to write a whole new match report, from scratch, 10 minutes after I was supposed to finish to reflect Coventry first thinking their FA Cup dream had been wrecked to winning in the most dramatic fashion.

Coventry's humbling defeat by Portsmouth at the weekend was their third defeat in six Championship games.

That defeat left them 17th in the table and six points off the drop zone.

Meanwhile, Plymouth are rock bottom of the pile and without a win since beating Portsmouth on 5 November.

• Coventry City have won eight of their last 11 home league matches against Plymouth Argyle (D1 L2) and have won each of their last two.

• Plymouth have won just one of their last six league meetings with Coventry City (D2 L3), beating them 2-1 in League One in January 2019.

• Coventry have won six of their last seven home league games on Boxing Day (D1), last losing on home soil on December 26 in 2007 against Crystal Palace.

• Plymouth Argyle have lost just two of their last 25 league games on Boxing Day (W14 D9), going down 2-0 to Newport in 2014 and 2-1 to AFC Wimbledon in 2018.

• Plymouth manager Wayne Rooney has lost both of his Championship games on Boxing Day, losing with Derby in 2020 and Birmingham last year.

Image source, Rex Features

Coventry City head coach Frank Lampard speaking to BBC CWR following Saturday's 4-1 defeat at Portsmouth:

"It is the first one I've had here where I've felt like that, our performances generally have been really good.

"It was a clear show of what football, especially in the Championship, is all about. When you find a hard moment and you don't compete, then the result will look after itself.

"I'm not going to harp on about individual errors because they happen, but they do lose you games.

"Heads were dropping in the second half and they now have to realise that can't be the way. We can lose a game of football but you can't lose the confidence, you can't lose the desire to do something about it.

"They were too aggressive for us in the second half and we weren't aggressive enough, and when you get that wrong in the Championship then you lose games like this."

You can listen to the full post-match interview on BBC Sounds.

Image source, Rex Features

Coventry City boss Frank Lampard is looking forward to making his first visit as a manager to "old fashioned" Fratton Park - after so many enjoyable past trips as a player.

"It's a great football stadium," Lampard told BBC CWR, ahead of Saturday's lunchtime kick-off between Portsmouth and the Sky Blues.

"One of the old ones that has that bit of character about it. I played there a few times. And you always felt the atmosphere of the stadium.

"It's an old-fashioned stadium - but it's nice to have a few of those still around.

"That's part of the game when you go to these stadiums. The players understanding that, if you give their fans what they want, they'll be active and affect the game.

"I felt that as a player and that's on us to try to take that away from them."

It is something Lampard did very successfully in his Chelsea days.

In six separate visits, he was on the winning side each time - and scored three goals.

Chelsea did not concede a goal in any of them. And, for three of those six wins, Frank's Uncle Harry Redknapp was the home manager.

No such family ties exist this time round. But, after two victories in his first four games as Sky Blues boss, he'd clearly love to keep up that winning Fratton Park record.

Image source, Tom Leach - Coventry City FC

Coventry City boss Frank Lampard will take his team to face Portsmouth at Fratton Park on Saturday greatly encouraged by the Sky Blues' growing attacking threat.

City have only scored five times in his four games in charge - but in the last three matches alone they have created 49 efforts on goal.

"It says something about the way we play," Lampard told BBC CWR. "The next step is to be more clinical about the way we take them. That's not easy because it's an easy thing to say.

"We can practise through the week but, when you have some developing players as we do, you have to understand you might not take all your chances.

"Players need to find confidence, they need repetitive work and feeling, to be confident at that end of the pitch. But it's a nice sign for the team that we are creating."

City have not been helped by being without US international striker Haji Wright for six games with an ankle injury - but Ephron Mason-Clark has stepped up with three of those five goals under Lampard.

As to who might play at Fratton Park, Lampard says goalkeeper Ben Wilson, out for 12 games with a knee problem, is closer to a return than seven-goal top scorer Wright.

"Ben's been training the last day or two with us, fully training which is good news," the Sky Blues head coach said.

"He won't be available this weekend but he won't be far.

"Haji is not on the pitch with us yet. We'll miss him for a few games more because they come thick and fast so we're looking at the early part of the New Year."

Frank Lampard was talking to BBC CWR's Clive Eakin

Portsmouth will seek to climb out of the bottom three and haul Coventry closer to danger when the Sky Blues visit Fratton Park on Saturday lunchtime.

Seven places separate the sides before kick-off but a win for Pompey would take them within four points of Frank Lampard's side, having played two fewer games.

• Portsmouth have lost just one of their past six league games against Coventry City (W3 D2), though their sole defeat did come in their last meeting in February 2020 (1-0).

• Coventry City have failed to win any of their past four away league games against Portsmouth (W3 D1), conceding 2+ goals in each of those matches.

• Portsmouth have won just two of their nine home league games this season (D4 L3), scoring just nine goals in total across those matches – only West Brom have netted fewer (8).

• Coventry have won just two of their past 14 away league games (D5 L7), failing to score in seven of those matches.

• Ephron Mason-Clark has scored three goals in his past four Championship games, also registering an assist – in his first 14 games this season, he had failed to score and only assisted one goal.