"I think he stays" - Coventry City urged to take clear Ben Sheaf action | OneFootball

Thankfully for City fans, the midfielder has gone a bit under the radar this summer.

Coventry City haven't had to worry too much about the prospect of selling star midfielder Ben Sheaf this summer, despite previous links to other teams.

After turning down the chance to join Luton Town last summer, it appeared that Rob Edwards' side would make another attempt to try and get the Arsenal academy graduate.

Journalist Alan Nixon reported, in May, that the Hatters may try and get the Coventry man, even if they ended up being relegated, which they were, but nothing is yet to come of it.

He also stated that Fulham's chief scout had checked in on Sheaf around then but, again, there has been little movement on that front either.

Neil Littlewood, Football League World's Sky Blues fan pundit, has laid out an action plan for how City should deal with the potential interest in Sheaf so that they keep him for at least the next season, and stated that he thinks that the 26-year-old will stay.

He said: "I think Ben Sheaf stays, personally. We've had a couple of seasons of letting players go - obviously Callum O'Hare went this summer, we lost Gus [Hamer] and Vik[tor Gyokeres] last year. So I think we need to keep hold of Sheaf.

"It looks like there's a new contract offer on the table. The owner has said that it will take a new record sale to get him. Gyokeres went for £20 million, so fees have got to come in around that sort of number for him. So I think he stays.

"It looks as if he's got the armband. He's quite openly said that he wouldn't say no to a new contract. Fingers crossed we can get that.

"Look, the guy is a real player," continued Littlewood. "He's the first name on the teamsheet. It looks to me like Robins is trying to build the team, and I don't blame him.

"If it's me, I think you offer him a new deal. You say to him 'Look, here's a three-year deal, You've got a £30 million release clause. If we go up this season, that gets disregarded; you give us a go in the Premier League. If we don't go up, then you're free to go to whoever offers.'

"Seeing the clubs that he's linked with, I don't think that Ipswich Town is the one. If he was to go, I think he'd fit into a Fulham. They've just lost Paulinha and I think that he'd be a great replacement for him. Obviously I don't want him to go though.

"I think that's a move that would suit him stylistically and in club size. I've seen a lot of Manchester United fans that like him after his performance in the FA Cup semi-final. That's a move that I don't think any Coventry fan would stand in his way for.

"Gut feeling: he's here. But, if he were to go, then I'd hope that it is the right move for him."

Coventry need to get away from being a selling club

There comes a time when a team like Coventry, who have aspirations of being promoted, need to start holding on to their top talent. Three of their best players from the past two seasons - Hamer, Gyokeres and O'Hare - have all left in the last two summer windows; they can't continue to operate like that if they want to go up.

Of course, with the former two, they received decent fees, and everyone has a price that they are willing to sell at. But it's hard to move forward when all of your best pieces are leaving every season.

If Coventry do go up, Sheaf will be an integral part of it, as he was in the previous campaign. They may have given themselves another shot at promotion through the play-offs had they not gone on that cup run which seemingly sucked the life out of them and killed their post-season hopes.

To be able to get themselves into the best position possible to reach the Premier League, they need to be a club that attracts and retains these top talents, and not one that sells them. That change could start with Sheaf staying at the CBS Arena.