Coventry City facing 'difficult' Tatsuhiro Sakamoto situation as Premier League doubt raised | OneFootball

FLW's Coventry fan pundit shares their thoughts on Tatsuhiro Sakamoto's prospective game time in the Premier League

Coventry City are a Premier League club once again, as head coach Frank Lampard prepares to make key decisions regarding the playing time of his squad following promotion.

Premier League football is returning to Coventry for the first time in 25 years, and Sky Blues supporters will likely never get tired of hearing it.

However, whilst the fans continue to celebrate promotion, those at the club will be preparing for the huge summer window ahead, where big decisions may have to be made regarding certain members of the squad.

The Premier League is as unforgiving as leagues come, with little time for sentiment, as Lampard will be beginning to make plans as to what his squad will look like next year.

It's unclear at this stage who he views as a key member of his plans, and the case is no different when concerning Japanese winger Tatsuhiro Sakamoto.

It's unclear whether Tatsuhiro Sakamoto will make the jump to the Premier League with Coventry City

Sakamoto joined Coventry in the summer of 2023 for just £1.2 million from Belgian side KV Oostende, having previously spent time with Montedio Yamagata and Cerezo Osaka in his native Japan, and has since gone on to become a firm favourite at the CBS Arena.

18 goals and 11 assists in 117 appearances for the club across all competitions thus far is a solid return, though it's his all round play and work off the ball which has endeared himself to the Sky Blues faithful.

Football League World's Coventry fan pundit, Chris, has provided their thoughts on whether Sakamoto is capable of making the jump to the Premier League, or whether a more experienced player will take his role in the side.

Chris said: "I can't remember the last time a Coventry player, other than maybe Carl Rushworth, was as universally loved and adored as Sakamoto is. He's a little superstar. He has been so important to our rise these last few seasons. He works his socks off, he tracks back, he's an absolute menace and a nuisance.

"Other team defenders know that he's going to cut inside and whip in a beautiful left-footed ball, and they still can't stop him doing it. He, possibly more than anybody, deserves a chance in the Premier League, and I desperately hope he gets it, but I'm worried that he might not.

"He started to have his injury problems towards the end of the season, and they were more often than not because he's a little bit lightweight. It's not often that you get a big, bulky winger, unless you're Adama Traore, who's just an absolute freak of a human. But I'm worried about how Tats (Sakamoto) is going to fare in the Premier League.

"It's a much, much more demanding league. It's a more physical league. And I don't know if he's going to be good enough to play against top-tier opposition every week. I hope he is. I hope I'm wrong, but I think that we are quite likely to bring in, I wouldn't necessarily say a better winger, but certainly one with a bit more experience, a bit more stature, maybe a bit of Premier League experience.

"I'm not expecting us to go out and sign a Dembele, or anything like that, but I think we are going to need to improve and upgrade in most areas of the pitch. Either that, or Sakamoto is given complete faith to be our starting winger, and we bring in somebody as backup.

"We signed Markelo for £4.5 million, and for some reason, he barely got a look in for the last four or five months of the season. So I don't think he's the answer for the Premier League if he can't even get a look in the Championship.

"It's a really difficult one to call with Sakamoto. I think he could make it in the Premier League. He's a tricky winger. He's tenacious, he's smart, he's adaptive. As I said before, he tracks back and helps cover his right back. So many times this season, we saw him sorting out Milan van Ewijk's messes that he'd created for himself.

"I think he could be an asset in the Premier League. I just, I get a feeling he might, he might be rotated and play against teams in and around where we are. I think he'd probably start games against the likes of Ipswich, whoever wins the play-offs, Nottingham Forest, teams like that.

Frank Lampard will have a huge decision to make on the future of Tatsuhiro Sakamoto following Coventry's promotion to the Premier League

It's a huge summer full of huge decisions for Lampard, who must ensure he finds the right balance by keeping his current squad happy, but bringing in the necessary upgrades.

On the right flank, Sakamoto has been the former Chelsea and England midfielder's first choice more often than not, with Jahnoah Markelo's £4.3 million arrival in January yielding just five league appearances.

Yang Min-hyeok and Romain Esse have returned to Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace, respectively, following the conclusion of their loan deals, leaving the Sky Blues with few options from out wide.

Sakamoto's tireless work ethic and relationship with the club makes it almost certain he will stick around for their Premier League journey, though how much of a role he will be given to play, at this stage, remains to be seen.