Coventry’s Jake Bidwell tells The i Paper how Lampard has reinvigorated the Championship club after five consecutive wins.
Brandon Thomas-Asante’s 40-yard lob helped Coventry City win 2-0 versus Swansea, marking their fifth consecutive win in all competitions. This moment summed up the previous three months under Frank Lampard.
Lampard took over on November 28, after Mark Robins’ nearly eight-year tenure was abruptly ended. Lampard’s leadership has transformed Coventry’s season, which was 17th in the Championship table when Robins was fired.
“It came as a shock [Robins’ sacking], and I think the fans were the same, but at the end of the day, they are Coventry City fans and want the club to do well,” said left-back Jake Bidwell to The i Paper.
“They will be eternally grateful for the job the manager [Robins] did, but the fans have been singing the manager’s [Lampard’s] name from the first game, and this has not changed.
“Nothing breeds team support and confidence like winning games.”
Since Lampard’s arrival, Coventry has collected 24 points from 13 games. Bidwell speculates that this is due to “a solid foundation that he has built over the last few months, meaning the eye-catching things like Brandon’s goal become possible” .
“He had very clear ideals with us from the start, valuing hard effort and trust.
“We are on the same page and we feel that on the pitch everyone is backing each other up.”
Lampard pushes his players to take risks, creating the type of climate that enabled Coventry to defeat Swansea for the first time since 1981, and on the road for the first time in 75 years.
It was a statement win that indicated Coventry were becoming a constant force in the Championship.
Lampard’s success coincides with the departures of Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard from Plymouth Argyle and Al-Ettifaq.
Lampard, a former England international, has struggled in management after first leading Derby County to promotion.
An FA Cup final marked the top of his first season at Chelsea, but he was fired in 2021 following five defeats in eight games.
At Everton, he was fired after just one win in 14 games. In 2023, he returned to Stamford Bridge as caretaker manager, but was not hired permanently.
Coventry provided an opportunity to turn that run around, and his presence in the dugout immediately boosted the club’s recruitment efforts. Matt Grimes, the Swansea captain, missed the weekend’s game as his move to Coventry was finalised.
“It shows the type of players Lampard is trying to bring in and those who want to play under him,” says Stuart Rendall from the Coventry podcast, All Things Sky Blue.
Doug King’s decision to fire Robins appears to have been correct, since he may have been trapped in his ways. He will always be remembered as a legend, but Lampard is a fantastic match and will propel us to new heights. He was initially under the shadow of Robins, but after 13 games, he is now on his own.
Bidwell admits that “when Robins went, it came as a shock to everyone”.
“But we had to move on and put it in the back of our thoughts, no matter how brutal it was.
“When a new manager arrives, it marks a new beginning for everyone, thus there is excitement. “I grew up watching that generation play, so having someone of Lampard’s calibre come in is very exciting.”
Coventry are now 11th, three points behind the play-off places, but the real challenge lies ahead. They meet league leaders Leeds on Wednesday, which would be a massive scalp for Lampard ahead of a promising run of games.
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