How much money Coventry City could save on Haji Wright as shock sale plea sent | OneFootball

We looked at how much Coventry City could save on striker Haji Wright's wages amid speculation linking him with a January exit from the CBS Arena.

Coventry City are flying high at the top of the Championship, but they could face the prospect of losing star striker Haji Wright in the January transfer window.

It has been an outstanding start to the season for Coventry, and with the campaign now just beyond the halfway point, Frank Lampard's men look firmly on course to secure promotion to the Premier League.

The goals have dried up a little for the Sky Blues in recent weeks, and two defeats in a matter of weeks against Ipswich Town, the latest being a 2-0 loss at the CBS Arena on Monday night, have slowed their momentum, but they are still 10 points clear of the third-placed Tractor Boys.

With a relatively thin squad compared to some of their promotion rivals, Lampard has admitted that his side "need help" in the January transfer window, but while it looks certain there will be some incomings, there could also be a few outgoings.

Wright is one player who has been linked with a move elsewhere, with Premier League outfit West Ham United and Turkish giants Besiktas both said to be keen on the 27-year-old, but Coventry will reportedly turn down any offers they receive next month.

The US international became the Sky Blues' record signing when he made the move from Antalyaspor for a fee of £7.7 million in the summer of 2023, and having scored 19 and 12 goals respectively in his first two seasons at the club, he has already netted nine times in 22 appearances so far this campaign.

Coventry City sent shock Haji Wright transfer demand amid January exit speculation

Given the starring role Wright has played for Coventry in their promotion push this season, many supporters will understandably be fearful about the prospect of his departure in January.

​​​​However, when asked for his thoughts on Wright's possible exit, FLW's Coventry City fan pundit Chris Deez claimed that he would be more than happy to see the striker move on next month, and he issued a damning criticism of his attitude and work rate.

"I quite frankly don't care where Haji Wright goes, just as long as he goes," Chris told FLW.

"I'd be more than happy to see him leave in January, and wherever he does end up going, I'll drive him there myself just to make sure he goes.

"A lot of our fans have this idea that he's a great striker. I just, I don't see it. I've never seen it.

"He scored 16 goals in the league in his first season with us, and then 12 last season. Yes, he was out injured for four months, but still.

"Currently, this season, he's on eight. It looks great on paper, but if anybody has watched him play for more than 5 minutes, you'll understand what I'm saying.

"He makes Dimitar Berbatov look like the most engaging and hard-working player of all time. He's so incredibly lazy.

"He looks great when he's on it, when he can really be bothered - so not like the playoff semi-finals last season against Sunderland.

"When he can be bothered, sort of like once a month, maybe twice a month, depending on if we're on TV or not, he looked great.

"He scored that amazing hat trick against Sunderland last season when he came back from injury, and then he did nothing for the rest of the season.

"He doesn't work hard, he doesn't work for the ball, he has no physicality at all. So seeing Premier League teams linked to him is hilarious. He wouldn't last five minutes in the Premier League; it's far too physical for him.

"But West Ham and Leeds seem to think he's a good player, so give us £20 million - £25 million, and, as I say, bite their hands off, I'd take him there myself.

"I'm still furious that we didn't go for Oli McBurnie when he was a free agent. We let Patrick Bamford come and train here and get back to fitness and go to Sheffield United, and now he's scoring goals for them.

"Everybody laughed at me when I mentioned those two players, and look who's laughing now, because McBurnie's banging them in for Hull, and, as I say, he's a bit part player at Sheffield United, but Bamford's doing brilliantly for them already.

"I would rather have half of one of those players over Haji Wright. I have never seen him look like he actually cares; he just looks disinterested, looks like he doesn't want to be there.

"He looks like he just doesn't want to play for Coventry most of the time; he looks like he thinks he's bigger than us, like he's better than us. He's not bigger than the club in any way, shape or form.

"I don't think he'll go on to have a great career, because his stats from before he joined us weren't exactly incredible either. He scored, give or take, a dozen goals in the three seasons before he joined us. He's not a 20 to 30 goal-a-season striker. He's maybe a one or two goals a month.

"I'm still baffled. I can't get my head around why Frank Lampard dropped Simms when he was in such good form for Haji, and since he's come back into the team, he has proven me right again and again and again. He offers nothing."

How much Coventry City could save on Haji Wright's wages amid West Ham United, Besiktas talk

It has been claimed that Coventry are unwilling to sell Wright in January, but if they were to change their stance on the striker, they could make a significant saving on wages.

According to Capology, Wright earns £25,000-a-week and £1,300,000-a-year at the CBS Arena, although it should be stressed that those figures are estimates.

That salary means Wright is the Sky Blues' joint-highest paid player, along with Luke Woolfenden, Matt Grimes and Ellis Simms, which is perhaps unsurprising given that he is their record signing.

Kaine Kesler-Hayden is second on the list of Coventry's biggest earners, with the defender taking home £20,000-a-week, and he is followed by Brandon Thomas-Asante (£15,000-a-week), Jack Rudoni (£12,500-a-week) and Ephron Mason-Clark (£12,000-a-week), so Wright's wages are higher than many of his team-mates.

With that in mind, there could be some financial benefit to the Sky Blues in cashing in on Wright next month, and given that he has failed to get on the scoresheet since the start of October, it could be sensible to take the money now before his value decreases.