Sideways Sammy

Matt Godden

Appearances: 33, Minutes Played: 2,362, Goals: 8, Assists: 4

In what was probably his worst year in a Coventry City shirt, a return of eight goals and four assists shows the innate quality that Matt Godden possesses. A series of injury set-backs make it difficult for Mark Robins to tailor the team’s play to get the best out of Godden, on top of the presence of a superior all-round striker in the squad, in Viktor Gyokeres, who has also been almost always available. Godden’s reduced output over the last season can largely been explained by having to adapt his game to suit Gyokeres, spending a lot of time running channels, challenging for headers and just generally being nowhere near the penalty area.

While Matt Godden couldn’t be accused of a lack of effort in that supporting role, a lack of a natural ability to link play or impose himself physically on opponents meant he was often very peripheral and almost non-existent at his very worst. He may have been better off as an impact substitute, where less of his energy would have needed to be expended in unproductive areas of the pitch, but Mark Robins was very keen to start him at pretty much every and any opportunity. Godden may well be looking forward to this coming season and a chance to be the main man in attack again, but his injury record counts would make it dangerous to go all-in on him leading the line.

Viktor Gyokeres

Appearances: 50, Minutes Played: 4,842, Goals: 22, Assists: 12

If there had been a debate as to whether Viktor Gyokeres’ first full season at Coventry City had been something of a one-off, a storming goal on opening day against Sunderland ended that at the first opportunity. Gyokeres was better than ever in a Sky Blue shirt last season, carrying the team on his back for the majority of the campaign and reaching new heights for both goals scored and created. Such is Gyokeres’ relentlessness in attack that his 22 goals and 12 assists could easily have had 10 or so added to with better finishing and passing technique, but when numbers are that high, it doesn’t really matter that they could have been greater.

The strategy of sending the ball in the general direction of Viktor Gyokeres and waiting for him to race there, muscle of a defender, carry the ball into the penalty area and either score or create is going to be something that Coventry City will struggle to wean themselves off this coming season. While he remains a Sky Blues player at the time of writing, there are enough teams with strongly-reported interest to suggest he won’t be for much longer. Gyokeres is the best striker that the club has had since the Premier League era, a true freak of nature, the only way to effectively replace him will be to completely change the team’s style of play.

Sean Maguire

Appearances: 7, Minutes Played: 127, Goals: 0, Assists: 0

Brought in to provide an additional body in attack in January following Fabio Tavares’ season-ending injury and Martyn Waghorn’s loan to Huddersfield Town, Sean Maguire was very quickly relegated out of the match-day squad and was only used under severe duress. As someone who struggled to get into a Preston North End side that finished seven places lower than Coventry City, it probably shouldn’t have been a surprise how little Maguire featured. He was a cheap, stop-gap signing who provided a cheap, stop-gap solution.

A striker who once relied on his pace before some serious injuries forced him to adapt to a deeper role, Sean Maguire could theoretically have been a useful foil for Viktor Gyokeres but was just not given the chance to get up to speed in a Coventry City shirt. He showed some useful touches here and there, but Maguire often looked to be trying to play a different game to what his team-mates were looking for. Whether he was hard done by or just not up to the task, is impossible to tell from 127 minutes played across seven appearances. Sean Maguire will be hoping to find a home over the summer where he can get a run of starts.

Fabio Tavares

Appearances: 11, Minutes Played: 286, Goals: 0, Assists: 0

There has been a lot of excitement around Fabio Tavares over the past couple of seasons for his exploits at under-21 level, but he has yet to get the chance to prove or disprove the hype. Quick and enthusiastic, Tavares has been a useful substitute for Mark Robins to attempt to occasionally change games with, but he has only showed flashes of being a genuinely dangerous player in his own right. A season-ending injury picked up in the FA Cup defeat to Wrexham prevented Tavares progressing further towards first-team status.

Recovering from serious injury will be a big challenge for Fabio Tavares, demonstrating that he can be a genuine part of the first-team may be an even bigger one. Currently out of the picture as a result of that injury set-back, Tavares does not have a weight of evidence behind him for Mark Robins to consider leaving a spot in the senior squad open for him as summer transfer plans are made. The next few chances Fabio Tavares gets with the first-team, if they even come, will be decisive in his Coventry City future.

Martyn Waghorn

Appearances: 13, Minutes Played: 451, Goals: 1, Assists: 1

Brought in as an experienced head in attack two seasons ago, Martyn Waghorn’s best spell at Coventry City came in his first few months, where he provided a useful foil for Viktor Gyokeres in attack. Injuries hampered the rest of his first season at the club and saw him relegated to a bench role over the first half of the last campaign. Waghorn’s performances, when used, last season were probably a touch better than for much of the previous year, but not by much. He carried the look of someone attempting to play in a manner his body could not keep up with.

It was a surprise that Martyn Waghorn found a Championship club to join on loan in January, less so was his underwhelming impact at Huddersfield Town – scoring one tap-in across 13 appearances. Playing across occasional substitute appearances and the odd start can’t be conducive to building form, but Waghorn never did enough with the time he was given to warrant further inclusion. Martyn Waghorn has gone past his sell-by date at Championship level and it’s debatable how effective he would be even a level or so lower.

Tyler Walker

Appearances: 19, Minutes Played: 607, Goals: 1, Assists: 0

Tyler Walker’s time at Coventry City looked up when he scored in two consecutive starts two years ago yet was dropped as soon as Matt Godden was available. A difficult loan spell in League One at Portsmouth meant that the club couldn’t find any takers for him last summer, forcing the striker into a year in limbo as fourth-choice striker with the Sky Blues. It is to Walker’s credit that he worked hard enough to earn time on the pitch, but there was clearly nothing he could do to force a starting place in the side, as evidenced by Mark Robins’ persisting with an underperforming Matt Godden despite a run of decent cameo appearances from Walker back in March.

It was Matt Godden who was Tyler Walker’s biggest issue during his three years at Coventry City. The two are very similar strikers who require the team behind them to generate their chances, unable to operate together effectively, Godden’s slightly superior finishing meant that he was the player Mark Robins repeatedly turned to in that goal poacher role. Another factor in Walker’s difficult spell with the club seems to have been a lengthy Covid absence in his first season, which seemed to rob him of some of the early momentum and sharpness he had shown in a Sky Blue shirt. Clearly a hard-worker and someone who can score goals, even at Championship level, with the right backing, it wouldn’t be surprising for Tyler Walker to get back to his old scoring ways with a new club next season, probably at a lower level.