Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder says he has “an enormous amount of respect” for “class act” Coventry City boss Frank Lampard as the Blades prepare to host the Sky Blues on Friday (20:00 GMT).
After a difficult start to the season under Mark Robins, the Sky Blues have flourished under Lampard to reach the play off places and have won six of their past seven league games.
“I just love the fact that he loves football and it shines through that he does, whatever job he takes,” Wilder said.
“People are critical of him and I just don’t get it. He could quite easily manage England in my opinion.
“It’s proving to be an inspired choice of manager.”
However, Lampard is not Coventry’s only strength according to Wilder.
“Coventry City have arguably one of the best groups of players in this division and that’s being shown now,” the Blades boss added.
“They are steaming through everybody so we understand the challenges of what they bring.
“Their support is amazing. It’s a real powerful football club, good manager and real strong set of talented footballers so this is a major test for us on Friday night.”
The Blades have been boosted by the returns of Vini Souza, Alfie Gilchrist and Jamie Shackleton to training.
However, while Harry Clarke and Tom Davies “are making good progress”, they are not expected to return to the grass for a further “week to 10 days”.
