After 18 months out of management, Frank Lampard will return to the dugout as Coventry City head coach when the Sky Blues play Cardiff City in the Championship on Saturday afternoon.
The hosts are looking to compete for a top-six finish in the second tier this term, whilst the Bluebirds are aiming to avoid an unthinkable relegation to League One.
Match preview
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After parting company with long-serving boss Mark Robins at the beginning of November, Coventry have finally announced a permanent successor, with England and Chelsea legend Lampard now in charge at the Coventry Building Society Arena ahead of Saturday's visit of Cardiff.
The 46-year-old has taken a step down compared to his previous roles considering that he enjoyed periods at both the Stamford Bridge Blues and Everton in the Premier League, meaning that the Sky Blues have one of the most high-profile names in the division in their dugout.
Since the dismissal of club legend Robins at the start of the month, Coventry have collected two points across matches against Sunderland, Sheffield United and Burnley, with interim boss Rhys Carr steadying the ship sufficiently until the arrival of permanent coach Lampard.
A daunting trip to a wet and windy Turf Moor was on the agenda for the Sky Blues on Tuesday night, when Scott Parker's Premier League-chasing Clarets secured a comfortable two-goal victory courtesy of second-half efforts from winger Jeremy Sarmiento and defender Conrad Egan-Riley.
Following back-to-back campaigns of mounting serious promotion charges, including a playoff-final appearance in 2023, Coventry are currently languishing down in 17th position in the Championship rankings, two points ahead of Hull City in the highest of the relegation spots.
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Two months after the sacking of Erol Bulut, Cardiff City are still soldiering on under the interim leadership of Omer Riza, who has made no secret of the fact that he is willing and ready to take the reins as permanent boss should club chairman Vincent Tan give the green light.
The 45-year-old's chances of getting the job for the entire season have taken a significant blow in recent weeks, though, with the Bluebirds currently experiencing a four-game winless run in the Championship, a spell that includes a sobering defeat in South Wales on Wednesday night.
Also a serious candidate for relegation, Queens Park Rangers visited the Cardiff City Stadium earlier in the week and returned to the English capital boasting maximum points, with Slovenia international Zan Celar bagging a brilliant brace for Marti Cifuentes's strugglers.
Collecting just the single point from their most recent quartet of second-tier contests, the Bluebirds are sitting down in 21st place in the Championship table ahead of this weekend's trip to the East Midlands, only one point above Hull, who are also searching for a new manager following the sacking of Tim Walter.
Managing only four points from eight second-tier away games so far in 2024-25, Cardiff join Preston North End, Oxford United and Wayne Rooney's Plymouth Argyle as the four sides in the division who are yet to enjoy the satisfying feeling of victory on the road in the Championship.
Team News
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Leading Coventry's goalscoring charts with seven goals from 15 Championship matches so far, Haji Wright is currently out of action due to a leg injury.
With the marvellous American expected back at the beginning of December, the likes of Brandon Thomas-Asante and Norman Bassette will not have long to prove their worth to Lampard.
The Sky Blues will be unable to call upon the talents of goalkeeper Ben Wilson, meaning that Bradley Collins could retain his spot in between the sticks despite a questionable performance at Turf Moor last time out.
Cardiff's attacking options have been massively restricted by the absences of Aaron Ramsey and Kion Etete, with the pair suffering from muscle and leg issues respectively.
Adding the Bluebirds' offensive woes, head coach Riza confirmed that winger Anwar El-Ghazi is set to be sidelined for a few weeks due to a groin strain.
Coventry City possible starting lineup:
Collins; Van Ewijk, Thomas, Binks, Dasilva; Sheaf, Eccles, Mason-Clark, Rudoni, Sakamoto; Simms
Cardiff City possible starting lineup:
Alnwick; Ng, Goutas, Chambers, Bagan; Robertson, Ralls, Willock, Colwill, O'Dowda; Robinson
We say: Coventry City 2-0 Cardiff City
With Lampard in the dugout, Coventry's players will be raring and desperate to put a relegation-threatened Cardiff side to the sword this weekend.
The Bluebirds have been woeful on the road so far this season, and we do not expect their fortunes to change in the East Midlands on Saturday afternoon.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Carter White
