Every transfer link rated and slated as Coventry City latest club to be linked with rising Aston Villa star
Frank Lampard admits that he would like to recruit “help” for his Coventry City squad in the January transfer window and there’s been no shortage of speculation on the subject.
The Sky Blues have already been linked with several potential signings, both loan deals and permanent moves, as fans eagerly await news on who might be drafted in to help the club climb the Championship table and get closer to the play-offs than they have in a turbulent and inconsistent first half of the campaign.
Asked if he has an idea of areas of the team he’d like to strengthen and a rough idea of numbers of new faces he’d like to add this month, Lampard told CoventryLive: “Yes to positions but not really in terms of a number. There are certain areas of the team, for example at the minute we’ve got wingers injured so it looks like an area where we’re short. But obviously we have Ephron (Mason-Clark) and Haji (Wright) to come back – Haji hopefully in two weeks-ish. By the time he’s fit, probably two to three weeks, and Ephron maybe a bit longer.
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“So in the meantime, can we help the squad? We’ll try to. If we can’t then we will keep going with the same character and personality that we showed at Norwich, and if we can help the team, we will.”
We have taken a look at some of the players linked with the Sky Blues so far and rated how plausible a deal might be...
Louie Barry
The highly-rated Aston Villa youngster has been linked with a number of Championship clubs after returning to his parent club this month. He enjoyed a successful loan spell at League One side Stockport County, scoring 16 goals in 24 appearances, lighting up League One this season playing mainly on the left-hand side of attack. The Sun’s transfer specialist Alan Nixon claims he could join Derby in another loan spell, while TEAMtalk reports that number of clubs have registered an interest in signing the 21-year-old, including Sheffield United, Coventry City, Middlesbrough, Queens Park Rangers and Stoke City.
Verdict: Frank Lampard has admitted he would like “help” on the wings this month despite the return of Haji Wright in the next couple of weeks, so Barry would fit from a positional point of view. The fact that he can also play on the right would make him all the more appealing. However, if better placed Championship clubs are also interested, they may be more appealing. Given his form and recent game time, Villa would certainly demand that he’s virtually guaranteed to play, wherever he goes.
Michal Helik
City are understood to be in the market for a centre-back, with plenty of social media chatter about the Huddersfield Town defender and the Sky Blues, albeit nothing concrete from any credible source. The 29-year-old Poland international has plenty of experience and knows the Championship well after four seasons in the second tier – two with Barnsley and two with the Terriers.
Vedict: This is appears to be very much a non-starter. Some Sky Blues fans got a bit excited on Tuesday night when Helik was absent from Huddersfield’s match night squad to face Wycombe but manager Michael Duff confirmed that the player was missing due to illness and when asked about transfer rumours about the player, he told Radio Leeds: “The only place he’s going is to bed.”
Rob Holding
The Sun claimed at the weekend that Frank Lampard is “trying to persuade” the former Arsenal centre-back to drop down to the Championship on loan. Currently at Crystal Palace, following a £4million move in 2023, the defender has never featured in the Premier League for the Eagles, initially due to injury but, more recently, due to falling out with his Austrian coach Oliver Glasner.
Verdict: A right-sided centre-back who can also play at right-back, the 29-year-old is another experienced head and leader – qualities currently lacking in City’s leaky back line. So he fits the profile but convincing the player to drop a division, coupled with his wages could be key to any deal being agreed.
Kai Wagner
City have been linked with interest in German defender Kai Wagner, who is currently plying his trade in the USA with MLS side Philadelphia Union.
Sky Sports Germany first reported interest earlier this month from the Sky Blues in the 27-year-old left-back, who has an impressive 12 assists and one goal so far this season. The broadcaster claims the player has also attracted the attention of Championship rivals Burnley as well as Italian Serie A clubs Atalanta Bergamo and Parma who, it is said, have already made inquiries for his services ahead of the January transfer window.
And another outlet claims that the player’s £1.6million release clause means that any club who manages to get “a defender this good for such a bargain is nothing short of highway robbery.”
Verdict: Seems to perfectly fit the bill for left-back, with the experienced player also able to play on the right.
Tyler Bindon
City, along with Hull and Watford are among a host of Championship clubs chasing Reading FC defender Tyler Bindon in the January transfer window, claims Football League World, which says the Royals are bracing themselves for offers for the New Zealand international as the player enter the final six months of his contract at the club.
Bindon has been an ever-present figure at the heart of the Berkshire side’s defence this season, making 19 appearances for the club as the Royals look to push for a play-off spot in League One. The 19-year-old centre-back joined Reading back in August 2023, arriving from the LAFC Academy in the USA and was immediately thrust into the first-team under previous Royals boss Ruben Selles, making 40 appearances for them in League One last term.
Verdict: Bindon perfectly fits Coventry’s development model but is arguably not what the team needs right now. The team is crying out for proven experience at the back rather than gambling on a bright young prospect who would be thrown in at the deep end.
