Doug King: Coventry City have done one thing "properly" under Frank Lampard - Mark Robins failed in this area | OneFootball

Coventry City owner Doug King has criticised the Sky Blues' former boss Mark Robins

Coventry City owner Doug King has criticised how the Sky Blues would start seasons under former manager Mark Robins.

The Sky Blues recently surpassed one full year under Frank Lampard’s rule, an appointment which was questioned by some at the time but has turned out to be a tremendously successful one.

Lampard guided the CBS Arena outfit from 17th in the second-tier to a fifth-place finish last term and narrowly missed out on a place in the play-off final due to a last-gasp Dan Ballard header v Sunderland.

Not letting that disappointment get the better of them, the Sky Blues have started this season in fine fashion, leaving the rest of the Championship in their wake. Coventry have won 13 of their first 18 matches, losing just once and scoring a remarkable 50 goals in that time.

Owner Doug King has used this form to praise Lampard, whilst also throwing some shade on previous boss Mark Robins.

Doug King criticises how Coventry City started seasons under Mark Robins

Before Lampard arrived at the CBS Arena, Robins had been Coventry boss for over seven years, in what was his second stint at the club.

The 55-year-old was much loved, having taken the Sky Blues up out of League One before pushing towards the top of the Championship.

Reaching the play-off final in 2023 and the FA Cup semi-final in 2024 were the highlights, cementing Robins’ place in Coventry folklore.

However, after a poor start to last season, he was relieved of his duties in late November. When reflecting on how Coventry typically started campaigns slowly under Robins before gaining pace as the year went on, King didn’t hold back in his criticism.

“This year we finally started the year properly,” stated Robins, when speaking on talkSPORT.

“And that’s remarkable because in the previous three we made a dog’s breakfast of it.

“But the issue is that now we’re in the position where we can kick on but we know there’s a long way to go.

“Nothing’s done yet but we’re excited at where we are because normally we’re about 15th or 16th at this time of the year.”

Coventry City’s good start could make the difference this season

Although Coventry supporters will always be grateful for Robins’ impact during his time as manager, they will relish the fact that they’ve been able to enjoy good form from the off.

The Sky Blues were 22nd in early November during the 2022/23 campaign and would ultimately go on to finish fifth. Similarly, they sat 17th at the start of December the following term, before eventually competing for the play-offs and finishing ninth.

If Coventry had started these campaigns stronger, they would’ve been in a much stronger position come May and could’ve perhaps fought for an automatic promotion to the Premier League.

This is the main point that King was holding against Robins, as it ultimately proved to be his Achilles heel and prevented them from taking the required step needed.