Coventry City urged to seal 'incredible' Newcastle United transfer - but one Frank Lampard challenge cited | OneFootball

FLW's Coventry City fan pundit has given his verdict on potentially signing Kieran Trippier this summer

Coventry City are on the cusp of earning promotion to the Premier League under Frank Lampard.

The Sky Blues are top of the Championship table, and just need four points from their final five fixtures to clinch a return to the top flight.

The team have come close in two of the last three seasons, losing in the play-off final and semi-finals.

Coventry first lost to Luton Town in the 2023 final under Mark Robins before Lampard oversaw the loss to Sunderland last year in the semis.

The club haven’t competed in the top flight since 2001, and they could yet clinch the second division title en route to ending that 25-year wait.

Plans will already be drawn up for the summer transfer window in what could be a busy couple of months at the CBS Arena, with former scout Mick Brown tipping them to sign Kieran Trippier following confirmation of his departure from Newcastle United at the end of the campaign.

Kieran Trippier signing would be welcome at Coventry

When asked about the possibility of signing Trippier this summer, FLW’s Coventry fan pundit Chris Deez claimed that it would be a very impressive signing if the club could pull it off.

However, he cited number of stumbling blocks that could prevent a move, including the potential size of the full-back’s wage relative to what the Sky Blues could be able to offer, particularly as he’s likely to receive interest from elsewhere.

“I would be completely over the moon if we could sign Kieran Trippier,” Deez told Football League World.

“He’s got bags and bags of experience, loads of Premier League experience most importantly.

“He’s represented England at major tournaments, he’s won a number of trophies throughout his career, he’s played over in Spain as well.

“He’d be an incredible addition to the squad.

“But there’s obviously a couple of stumbling blocks.

“He’s no spring chicken, he’s 35, so he’s coming towards the end of his career and he’s sort of been displaced in the Newcastle team as well.

“I think he’ll have a lot of offers, a lot of interest from more established clubs than ourselves, and obviously wages are going to be the biggest stumbling block.

“Even with us, I assume, increasing our wage budget for the Premier League, I can’t imagine it’s going to be stretching to £50,000 per week for a 35-year-old — in fact, he’ll be 36 pretty much just after the season starts again.”

Deez has also cited Milan van Ewijk’s position in the team as a question mark that would need to be resolved if Trippier is signed, suggesting the Dutchman could be sold even with promotion to the Premier League.

“I can’t imagine he will want to come here to not start every game as well, so part of it would come down to if we sold Milan van Ewijk,” he continued.

“I don’t know if he would want to be playing second fiddle to Kieran Trippier.

“I do think we need to replace Milan.

“He’s been a solid player for us for a couple of seasons now but he can’t defend to save his life.

“He’s got incredible pace, and he doesn’t give up, but that pace really does get him out of trouble quite a lot of the time.

“He leaves giant spaces down on the wing, I just don’t know what goes through his head a lot of the time.

“The fact that he makes those last ditch pacy runs to get back and cover, it makes people think he’s an incredible defender.

“He’s not, he’s just not.

“He’s done a great job for us in the Championship, don’t get me wrong, but I think he’s one of the main areas that we’re going to have to improve on when we go up.

“And I think there will be a lot of interest in him anyway, he is likely to move on even if we wanted to keep him.”

Trippier has made 18 appearances in the Premier League for Newcastle this season, with his influence on the team waning as the campaign has worn on.

The defender has been a key figure under Eddie Howe, helping the Magpies win the EFL Cup last season, as well as qualify for the Champions League on two occasions.

But his time with the Premier League side is set to come to an end in the summer, which could open the door for Coventry.

Lampard’s side are 12 points clear of third place Middlesbrough with just five games to go, meaning only four more are needed to seal a top two spot.

Next up for the Sky Blues is a home clash against 24th place Sheffield Wednesday on 11 April in a 12.30pm kick-off.

Kieran Trippier signing wouldn’t be the smartest move for Coventry

Trippier has shown this season that the Premier League has now passed him by, and he’s been a poor performer in a Newcastle side that’s struggled for consistent results.

Taking the step down to Coventry would make sense for the defender in a lot of ways, with Kyle Walker joining Burnley being an obvious comparison.

However, the potential cost of his wages for a player that doesn’t immediately improve the team makes this a difficult move to justify for the club.

Coventry should be avoiding this move unless Trippier is ready to accept a role as a squad player at a reasonable wage package.