Doug King may have to make emotional Coventry City decision ASAP.
Coventry City owner Doug King could be forced into making a big decision if results don’t improve after the international break. The Sky Blues currently sit 20th in the Championship, which is far from where they’d hope to be.
Since their return to the second tier in 2020, Coventry have slowly built up a squad capable of challenging for promotion back to the Premier League. Thanks to the guidance from legendary manager Mark Robins, the Sky Blues almost achieved this in 2023, but were beaten on penalties by Luton Town in the play-off final.
Having missed out on the play-offs last season, the Midlands club now sit near the bottom of the Championship after a tough start to the season. With poor performances yielding bad results, the once untouchable job of Robins could now be on the line if things don’t pick up soon.
Coventry’s summer window was steady
Mark Robins – Coventry manager
With a tight-knit squad that came so close to reaching the FA Cup final last season, the former Premier League side opted to go for quality over quantity in the summer. They complimented the excellent players that they already had with some extremely smart signings.
Jack Rudoni from relegated Huddersfield Town was a standout. The highly-rated English midfielder reportedly cost King’s club a hefty £5 million, as he looks likely to have a bright future ahead of him. Other proven Championship players, such as Brandon Thomas-Asante and former loanee Luis Binks came to the Coventry Building Society Arena. Hammarby goalkeeper Oliver Dovin was brought in to replace the ageing Ben Wilson, who had been a fantastic servant for the club. All in all, it was a solid window for Robins.
The notable departure of Callum O’Hare was, of course, a big blow for the Sky Blues, especially losing him for free. However, the signing of Rudoni almost seemed to be a like-for-like replacement for the Sheffield-bound midfielder.
They managed to retain pretty much all of their key players apart from O’Hare though. Haji Wright, Ellis Simms, Ben Sheaf, and Milan Van Ewijk all remained for the 2024/25 campaign, despite obvious interest in some of those from elsewhere. This makes the start of the season that Coventry has had even more shocking, as it can’t be excused as losing their key players.
Poor start hindering King’s ambitious project.
Since taking over, King has been vocal about these next few years being a new era in the history of Coventry City. For that reason, he will be tearing his hair out to see the position his club finds itself in, nearly a quarter of the way through the season.
Having made the play-off final two seasons ago, and making the FA Cup semi-final last season, results on the pitch have been a massive step backwards this time around. Whilst there is time to turn things around between now and May, King will be glossing over all potential actions he could take to get the Sky Blues firing once again.
The Midlands club have won just two of their first nine games, and frustrations began to boil last Saturday, as Robins’ men conceded a 93rd-minute winner to Sheffield Wednesday. King himself has even been on the end of some frustration from a few City fans during their trip to Watford last month, which many fans were appalled by, given his contributions to the club.
After throwing away a point on Saturday, star signing Rudoni came out and publicly blasted his team, citing the defeat as “criminal.” To make matters worse, new goalkeeper Dovin was on the end of plenty of criticism whilst on international duty, thanks to an embarrassing mistake while playing for Sweden under-21s. The former Hammarby man was looking for a confidence boost after being dropped for Wilson, but it seems that has gone out of the window following the mistake.
All of these negatives culminating are beginning to put some serious pressure on those higher up in the club. With fan frustration at an all-time high, King may be forced to make his toughest decision yet, should fortunes not change after the international break.
Legendary manager’s job at Coventry is on the line
Doug King
Nobody will deny that Robins has done an unbelievable job during his time at Coventry. The club were in financial ruin just seven years ago, mired in League Two. Since then, the former Scunthorpe United manager has won the EFL Trophy, won promotion to League One a year later, won League One in 2020 and gradually built up a squad capable of taking Coventry back to the top flight. He took the club within one game of a return to the promised land and almost humiliated Manchester United at Wembley last season.
However, football is a cutthroat business. If King believes that Robins has taken the club as far as he can, then he could be forced to do the unthinkable and make a change. It’s clear the new owner loves his club and has nothing but the best interests of the fans at heart, which makes this potential decision even harder.
Since the days of SISU, the club has come a long way, which is down to the magic worked by Robins. All Coventry fans will have an emotional connection to their beloved manager, who returned their club that was on its knees to a competitive outfit. Whilst everyone would love to see the 54-year-old go all the way and get his side back to the Premier League, the fairytale story might not have its happy ending.
Despite all the negatives, Robins is a proven winner and something could click after the international break. King’s best bet is to wait until the Sky Blues return to action and see if any progress is made, but he mustn’t leave it too long before acting if things don’t get any better.
