New update emerges in Coventry City's race to beat Sheffield United to Brentford man | OneFootball

Frank Onyeka has been heavily linked with a switch to the Championship leaders

A fresh update has emerged in Coventry City's hopes of securing a deal with Premier League side Brentford for powerful midfielder, Frank Onyeka.

It has been reported that a minor stumbling block has come the way of the Sky Blues in this particular transfer pursuit, albeit they are still leading the race to sign the Nigerian international ahead of divisional rivals, Sheffield United.

Frank Lampard now has just a matter of days to finalise any late transfer dealings which he believes will give the West Midlands side the best possible chance of returning to the Premier League for the first time in 25 years at the end of the Championship season.

City are still leading the way in the second tier at present, but have let their previously healthy lead in the promotion race slip to just three points following a 2-1 defeat against a resurgent Norwich City side at Carrow Road on Monday night, as they now search for a return to winning ways against Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road in the final game of January.

Lampard has only made a handful of signings in CV6 ever since his appointment in November 2024 in place of Mark Robins, with the former Chelsea and England midfield icon adopting a defensive-based transfer strategy in the summer, before adding to his creative department so far in the current window with the loan signing of Romain Esse - who has already scored twice for the club - from Crystal Palace, before completing a permanent four-year switch from FC Zurich for 23-year-old wide man, Jahnoah Markelo.

Even prior to the second of those signings, the Sky Blues had been heavily linked with a move for Onyeka on either a permanent or loan basis from the Gtech Community Stadium, with the midfielder recently returning to duty for the Bees after a largely successful African Cup of Nations campaign with Nigeria.

And, although City are still the current favourites to acquire his services, they will have to overcome the current lull which they are experiencing in negotiations prior to the transfer deadline of 7PM on Monday evening.

Onyeka is now in his fifth year as a Brentford player, having signed for the West London outfit following their historic promotion to the Premier League in the summer of 2021 under former boss, Thomas Frank.

It also looks set to be his final year at the Gtech, as he now enters the final months of his five-year contract that was agreed upon a switch from Danish Superliga outfit, FC Midtjylland.

After initially starting out as a mainstay in Frank's midfield, the 41-time Super Eagles international has seen his gametime with the Premier League side rapidly diminish.

Indeed, he was not a part of the Dane's final season at the club before joining Tottenham Hotspur, spending last term on loan with FC Augsburg of the Bundesliga.

After making just nine appearances in the Premier League and EFL Cup so far this season, Onyeka has become the subject of interest from Coventry, the Blades and Birmingham City throughout this window, whilst Valencia CF were also believed to have lodged an approach for his services.

It has since been made clear that the 28-year-old is free to leave Keith Andrews' squad this window, with the Sky Blues still in pole position to strike a deal.

However, the Standard have reported that whilst that remains the case, negotiations have slowed down. The publication do claim, though, that Valencia and Sheffield United have chilled their interest in recent days, which will still be music to the ears of supporters in this part of the Midlands.

It is also fair to say that Coventry may have to offer Onyeka a sizeable wage, as according to ESTIMATED figures from Capology, the Nigerian is earning £40,000 per week at Brentford.

Frank Onyeka would be a welcome addition to Frank Lampard's midfield

Coventry will remain hopeful that they are successful in this pursuit, as Onkeya would be a welcome addition to Lampard's midfield.

Whilst City's midfield is currently stacked with great technical quality and experience, the Bees midfielder would offer a different dimension due to his physicality and ability to break up play.

Furthermore, Onyeka will also be viewed as a ready-made Premier League option for Lampard if the Sky Blues were to achieve promotion between now and May.