Frank Lampard fires Coventry City warning to Doug King | OneFootball

Frank Lampard oversaw Premier League promotion with Coventry City against Blackburn Rovers on Friday night

Coventry City earned automatic promotion to the Premier League with a 1-1 draw against Blackburn Rovers on Friday night.

Frank Lampard was then rewarded with the EFL manager of the year on Sunday evening as a mark of his role in the club’s accomplishment, beating off strong competition from Kim Hellberg, Sergej Jakirovic and Alex Neil.

The Sky Blues have not competed in the top flight since 2001, with the team ending a 25-year absence from the division.

Coventry had come close in two of the previous three campaigns, twice losing in the play-offs to Luton Town and then Sunderland.

But work will now begin on preparing for life in the Premier League, with their sights set on surviving at that level beyond one season.

The team can also still clinch the Championship title if Lampard’s side can earn three points from their final two fixtures.

Frank Lampard issues Coventry City warning to Doug King

Lampard has opened up on his relationship with Coventry owner Doug King following the club’s promotion to the Premier League.

The 47-year-old has claimed that he gets on very well with his boss, as well as recruitment chief Dean Austin, and that they have an open dialogue any time something needs to be discussed, which is vital at this level.

“I think if you can get on well with your owner, man to man, that’s a good start,” said Lampard, via Coventry Live.

“And we can laugh and talk and agree and disagree, and I’m sure we’ll have some disagreements over the next few weeks maybe over the summer.

“When you have that hands on thing, and we’re a small operation, and I think that’s a good thing because if I want to convey something I can go and speak to Doug or Dean Austin who has recruited players at a level that we were working at, and good people and boys that want to work.

“The whole thing has been amazing and I came into that and myself and my staff have added to that process and we have seen the results of it.”

Lampard also warned King about the hard work that now lies ahead, as Coventry look to build a team capable of competing in the Premier League next season.

“Have we got a lot of hard work? Yes, we have,” he added.

“Doug, we have lots of hard work.

“And this club has come a long way in a short period of time and Doug should get lots of credit for that because of what he’s done to the training ground, with his passion, what he’s done with a club that’s gone down and come back up.

“His passion is huge and now we will have to take on the challenge of what it is and go for it.”

Lampard took charge at the CBS Arena in November 2024 following the departure of long-time manager Mark Robins.

The 56-year-old oversaw promotion from League Two and League One, as well as an EFL Trophy win in 2017 during his time with the Sky Blues.

Coventry also reached the play-off final in 2023, as well as the 2024 FA Cup semi-final, before Lampard took over, meaning he had big shoes to fill.

The former England international also had to rebuild his reputation after a couple of disastrous stints in the Premier League at Everton and Chelsea.

Lampard went back to Stamford Bridge for a second stint as an interim head coach for the remainder of the 2022/23 campaign, but he led the team to just one win from 11 games, with the Blues finishing 12th in the Premier League table.

Coventry are now just two games away from clinching the Championship title, with just three points needed to get over the line.

Next up for the Sky Blues is a home clash against Portsmouth on Tuesday evening in a 7.45pm kick-off.

A busy summer awaits for Coventry City

Lampard and King will have to work hard over the summer, as preparing for life in the Premier League won’t be easy.

Recruitment will be a crucial factor in their ability to survive in the top flight, as the squad will need to be strengthened.

While a balance will need to be struck between rewarding the players who earned promotion, the reality is that the jump up in divisions is a big challenge and greater quality will be needed throughout the first team.

Lampard had a relatively quiet first summer in charge at Coventry in terms of recruitment, but it would be a real surprise if it’s that quiet again this year.