Exclusive: Sky Sports pundit sends Coventry City, Frank Lampard warning to Sunderland | OneFootball

David Prutton has given his view on whether Coventry City can bounce back from their midweek defeat at Derby County against Sunderland.

Pundit David Prutton believes Frank Lampard will inspire a reaction from his Coventry City players when they host Sunderland on Saturday following their midweek defeat at Derby County.

The Sky Blues made the surprise decision to replace long-serving manager Mark Robins with Lampard in November, and they sat 17th in the table, just two points above the relegation zone, at the time of his arrival.

After an inconsistent start to his tenure, the Sky Blues have surged up the table under Lampard's guidance in recent months to emerge as serious promotion contenders, but they suffered a rare setback as they were beaten 2-0 by Derby at Pride Park on Tuesday night.

Coventry had won nine of their previous 10 league games, but it was a disappointing evening against the relegation-threatened Rams, with goals in each half from Matt Clarke and Marcus Harness sealing all three points for John Eustace's side.

Despite the defeat, the Sky Blues remain in the play-off places, but they could find themselves out of the top six by the time they kick off against Sunderland if Bristol City beat Norwich City at Ashton Gate on Friday night.

David Prutton backs Frank Lampard after surprise Coventry City defeat

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Prutton insisted that Lampard will remain calm after Coventry's defeat at Derby in midweek, and he backed him to get a response from his players against Sunderland on Saturday.

"I think he'll be as balanced as ever," Prutton said.

"He didn't get carried away with winning nine out of 10, and he won't get carried away with a defeat heading into the weekend.

"As we've seen so far, his real gift is for motivation, context and perspective and for putting a very good team together, which he has done very, very well indeed.

"I think he will want an instant reaction.

"He will want his team to know the hurt that comes with losing a game, but he will want them to embrace what they've done so wonderfully well since he took over.

"It's all about the reaction, there's always the next game, and that's exactly why we love the Championship."

Frank Lampard is facing his biggest Coventry City test yet as tough fixtures loom

It was always going to be tough for Coventry to maintain their strong form, and Lampard himself admitted that "we couldn't keep winning as much as we have done" after the defeat at Derby, but he will no doubt be disappointed by the performance his side produced against a team languishing in the relegation zone.

After the Sky Blues' last defeat against Leeds United in early February, they went on a run of five consecutive victories, so there is certainly no reason for Lampard to panic, but it could be a difficult few weeks ahead with some tricky fixtures coming up.

Coventry play three of the top four - Sunderland, Sheffield United and Burnley - in their next three games, while they also face West Bromwich Albion and Middlesbrough before the end of the season, so their promotion credentials will be severely tested.