"Going to be tough" - Bleak Coventry City prediction made despite Frank Lampard form | OneFootball

FLW's Coventry City fan pundit has given his verdict on the club's chances of achieving promotion this season.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

It has been an outstanding few months for Coventry City in the Championship under the guidance of Frank Lampard.

Coventry made the shock decision to part company with long-serving manager Mark Robins in November after seven-and-a-half years in charge, and even more eyebrows were raised when Lampard was appointed as his replacement.

The Sky Blues were 17th in the table when Lampard arrived, and they were just two points clear of the relegation zone, but after an inconsistent start to his tenure at the CBS Arena, he is now certainly making an impact, with his side winning nine of their last 10 league games.

Coventry secured their fifth consecutive victory with a 3-2 win over Robins' new club Stoke City on Saturday, with Bobby Thomas' 97th-minute winner sealing a dramatic three points after the Potters had come back from a two-goal deficit to level the scores.

The Sky Blues currently sit fifth in the table, three points clear of seventh-placed Bristol City, and they will be looking to cement their place in the top six when they face relegation-threatened Derby County at Pride Park on Tuesday night.

Coventry City promotion credentials questioned despite Frank Lampard turnaround

When asked if he believes the club could win promotion through the play-offs, FLW's Coventry City fan pundit Chris Deez said that he is hopeful the Sky Blues can secure a return to the Premier League this season, but he admitted that whichever teams finish in third and fourth could be too strong for Lampard's men.

"Do I think we can win the play-offs? My heart says yes, but my head says no," Chris said.

"That's only because only two of the four teams above us are going to go up in the automatics, and whichever two end up in the play-offs, I don't see us getting past them.

"Leeds, Sheffield United, Burnley and Sunderland are all very good teams having very good seasons and scoring a lot more goals than we are.

"We've got to play Burnley, Sheffield United and Sunderland in the next month, so that is going to be a big test, and it will give us an idea of how we can fare against them.

"Obviously we didn't perform well against them earlier in the season, but as the season has gone on, we've grown as a team and Lampard has implemented his style and tactics, so it will be interesting to see how we do against them.

"We've got to Wembley in the play-off final before, we outclassed Middlesbrough a couple of times and became their bogey team, but we came up short against a good Luton team.

"However, I don't think that Luton team are as good as any of the four teams currently above us, so it's definitely going to be a struggle.

"My heart says yes, and I will go into it as hopeful as ever with full confidence in Lampard and his masterplan, but, realistically, it's going to be tough."

Coventry City should not fear any potential play-off opponent

With just eight points currently separating Coventry in fifth from Sheffield Wednesday in 13th, the Sky Blues' place in the play-offs is still far from guaranteed, but given their outstanding form, it is difficult to see them dropping out of the top six.

As Chris says, with Leeds United, Sheffield United, Burnley and Sunderland all significantly ahead of those below them, whichever teams finish third and fourth will go into the play-offs as strong favourites.

However, two of those teams will have missed out on automatic promotion, which could have a devastating psychological impact ahead of the play-offs, and Coventry have shown in recent months that they can be a match for any team in the division on their day.