Coventry City struck gold with £0 agreement - he was integral to their rise through the EFL | OneFootball

Dom Hyam signed for Coventry City on a free transfer in July 2017.

Dom Hyam signed for Coventry City on a free transfer in July 2017 after his release from Reading, and would go on to play a crucial role in the club's rise through the leagues.

After coming through the ranks at Reading, where he failed to make a single senior appearance, Hyam left the club on a free transfer at the end of his contract in search for more playing time.

The Scotland-born defender went out on loan spells to both Dagenham & Redbridge and Portsmouth during his time at the club, but failed to integrate himself into the first team fold in Berkshire.

Hyam had represented Scotland at Under-19 and Under-21 level during his time with Reading, yet wasn't given the chance to prove his worth with a chance in the first team.

At the time of the centre-back's departure, Reading had narrowly missed out on promotion back to the Premier League, after losing on penalties to Huddersfield Town in the play-off final, and the club was eager to reinforce the squad with proven options, leaving Hyam deemed surplus to requirements.

Coventry City signed Dom Hyam on a free transfer - both parties never looked back

Hyam made the decision to drop to League Two after his departure from Reading, joining Mark Robins' Coventry side, with the Sky Blues having just won the EFL Trophy after defeating Oxford United in the final.

Under Robins, Coventry were a side on the up, with Hyam achieving promotion to League One in his first season at the club, although he would not be a regular starter in his debut year.

The defender appeared 14 times in the league and started to play more matches towards the back end of the 2017-18 campaign, but he did play in every single minute of the play-off semi-finals and the final as the Midlands outfit made it back to League One.

The following season (2018-19), Hyam nailed himself down as a mainstay in the Sky Blues back line, playing 38 times in League One, before once again achieving another promotion in the 2019/20 campaign with Coventry, this time to the Championship.

The Scotsman retained his starting berth in Coventry's backline for each of the next two seasons in the Championship, playing 86 league matches across both seasons as one of the first names on the team-sheet for Robins.

Hyam would eventually join Blackburn Rovers in August 2022 for a fee of around £1.5 million, having made 192 appearances, scoring nine times and assisting once during his time in a Sky Blues shirt - perhaps a low fee for someone so consistent and reliable, but it was one that they seemingly couldn't turn down, having signed both Jonathan Panzo and Callum Doyle on loan that summer.

Dom Hyam was indispensable in Coventry City's rise

Hyam's rise from Reading outcast to a solid Championship centre-back has been remarkable, and may not have been achievable if he had not joined Coventry when he did.

The one-time capped Scottish international helped the Sky Blues rise through the EFL, with the club having helped Hyam develop into a mainstay at second-tier level.

Both Hyam and Coventry are in their seventh successive year in the Championship, with the Sky Blues now consistent top six contenders, whilst Hyam has recently completed a permanent switch to Wrexham for a fee of £2.7 million.

Wrexham themselves have had arguably an even more miraculous rise through the division than Coventry, having earned three consecutive promotions from the National League to the Championship.

The Welsh club have heavily invested in their squad this summer, and Hyam was one of the final additions to the squad, where he will provide over 200 games worth of Championship experience.