Coventry City eyeing up Champions League-winning midfielder with 96 international caps | OneFootball

With their return to the Premier League confirmed, the Sky Blues are understood to be looking at an audacious move for the 35-year-old midfielder.

Coventry City's return to the Premier League ahead of the 2026-27 season is seeing them getting linked with a plethora of names that could potentially join Frank Lampard's revolution.

With promotion to the top flight following an absence of 25 years now confirmed, the Sky Blues face a busy summer as they prepare for their return to the top-flight of English football.

Cov ended the 2025-26 season 11 points clear of the pack at the top of the Championship table, but further strengthening will be required over the summer as they seek to consolidate their position back among the elite.

As manager Frank Lampard surveys the transfer market ahead of the summer transfer window opening at the end of this month, previous experience at this level of the game could be crucial, and reports are indicating that the Sky Blues could be set to make a bid for a player who has more than most at the upper end of the European club game.

Coventry City reportedly looking into potential Gini Wijnaldum swoop

Football Insider report that Coventry City are giving consideration to making an audacious move for the former Newcastle United, Liverpool and PSG star Georginio Wijnaldum for their return to the Premier League this summer.

They report that they could be about to offer a one-year contract to the 35-year-old midfielder, who's spent the last three seasons in Saudi Arabia with Al-Ettifaq, who Stevem Gerrard used to manage.

They also confirm reports that the midfielder, who is falling out of contract with his club in the summer, is "still very fit", and that he is interested in a potential return to the Premier League despite his advancing years.

With one game left to play, Al-Ettifaq will finish the 2025-26 season in seventh place in the Saudi Pro League, but even though they were unable to launch a championship challenge this season, Wijnaldum still produced some impressive statistics, scoring 16 goals and providing six assists in 32 appearances for them over the season, of which 31 were starts.

A 96-cap international for the Netherlands, Wijnaldum will likely be heading for the FIFA World Cup this summer, albeit as a back-up option, and that could attract some potential suitors ahead of a free agency period.

Frank Lampard could do worse than offering Gini Wijnaldum a Coventry City contract

Coventry City could be taking a bit of a cue from Sunderland's experience this season, in seeking to bring such an experienced midfielder as Georginio Wijnaldum back to the Premier League to bolster their squad for their return to the Premier League.

The Black Cats secured the services of the former Arsenal star Granit Xhaka last summer following their play-off win against Sheffield United, and Xhaka has turned out to be invaluable for them in the Premier League this season, with 32 appearances for them this season and a string of impressive performances.

Wijnaldum is two years older than Xhaka, but there's no denying the level of experience that he has.

Over the course of a senior career that spans 19 years, he's played at the very highest level for Feyenoord, PSV, Newcastle United, Liverpool, PSG and Roma. He's won the Eredivisie in the Netherlands, the Premier League in England and Ligue 1 in France, as well as the Champions League with Liverpool in 2019.

As Coventry City start their planning ahead of their return to the Premier League, such a move would demonstrate the value that manager Frank Lampard places on experience at this level of the game.

Having waited a quarter of a century to get back to the Premier League, the Sky Blues will not want to surrender their place there after just one season, and a sprinkling of players of the calibre of Wijnaldum could be a canny move in a division which has proved difficult for promoted teams to stay in, over recent years.