Sideways Sammy

Jamie Allen

Appearances: 25, Minutes Played: 1,352, Goals: 1, Assists: 3

A season effectively bookended by two injuries, Jamie Allen has made a couple of decent contributions in a Coventry City shirt during almost a lost year. A hard-working player who can cover a few roles in midfield, Allen’s ability to cover ground and move the ball quickly has been handy, but the switch to a 4-2-3-1 made it difficult to find a regular role for him in the side. Not sturdy or tidy enough on the ball to play in a deeper position, not skilful enough to play further forward, Allen has mostly been plugging gaps as a rotation of bench option when he’s been fit over the past season.

Jamie Allen is a useful enough player that Mark Robins will be keen to keep him around the squad as cover over the coming campaign, but with competition in the form of Josh Eccles, Ben Sheaf, Victor Torp and Kasey Palmer for a starting position, before any new signings are added, Allen is going to have to show some quality to force his way into the side. Allen’s strongest quality versus the current competition is probably his ability to get into scoring positions, as was demonstrated by his goal tally the season before last. With a better luck with injuries next year, Allen will be a handy player to have, even if only as a rotation option.

Kai Andrews

Appearances: 2, Minutes Played: 6, Goals: 0, Assists: 0

Handed his debut early in the season in a striker’s position, Kai Andrews has played much of his football at youth level as a deeper central midfielder. Offered a second opportunity later in the campaign in the 5-0 win over Rotherham United,, Andrews experienced how little time on the ball you get in Championship football and was caught dallying once or twice in the limited time he had on the pitch. While Andrews is yet to show what he’s about at senior level, that taste of first-team football will serve him in good stead as he looks to develop over the next year or so.

Yasin Ayari

Appearances: 13, Minutes Played: 639, Goals: 1, Assists: 0

Signing a teenager on loan as effectively the only replacement for Gustavo Hamer last summer didn’t look a good idea, despite some promising glimpses, Yasin Ayari never got going for Coventry City. The biggest issue for the Brighton & Hove Albion youngster was that Mark Robins felt he lacked the physicality and work-rate to play in a deeper central midfield that was probably his best position, thus he was shoved further forward, where he wanted a little too much time on the ball to make an impact. There were still some nice touches and forward-thinking play from Yasin Ayari that threatened to add inspiration to a pretty one-note midfield in the early stages of the season, but he never got the chance to build on it. That it was a similar story in the second half of the campaign on loan at Blackburn Rovers suggests that Ayari just slightly too raw for the status demanded of him in Sky Blue.

Josh Eccles

Appearances: 51, Minutes Played: 4,108, Goals: 1, Assists: 6

After making the step up to regular first-teamer the season before last, the previous campaign saw Josh Eccles further establish himself as an important member of the squad. While Eccles has had some difficult moments, largely surrounding being the designated set-piece taker but also being occasionally losing the ball in dangerous areas, he has remained in the term for his work-rate and solid technique. Someone whose efforts tend to help others look better, Eccles is starting to develop the confidence to make an impact in his own right.

A return of six assists over the previous campaign highlight that Josh Eccles’ set-piece delivery and overall attacking contribution has been more effective than he’s been given credit for. Eccles can probably look to follow in midfield partner, Ben Sheaf’s, lead in building confidence to push forward more often, given that Mark Robins likes to have both midfielders share defensive and attacking responsibilities. With Victor Torp adding to the competition in central midfield, ahead of further summer signings, Josh Eccles will again have to step things up further to maintain his place in the side.

Gustavo Hamer

Appearances: 2, Minutes Played: 135, Goals: 0, Assists: 1

Able to take part in two games before his eventual, inevitable, sale to a top-flight side, Gustavo Hamer demonstrated just why he dragged the team into a play-off final in those 135 minutes he played last season. It was Hamer’s passing that nearly picked apart eventual champions, Leicester City, on opening day, before completely running the show against AFC Wimbledon in the League Cup. His departure left a massive hole in the side which is yet to be properly filled, it’s a shame that Hamer’s impact in the top-flight has hampered by playing for comfortably the worst team in the division. Hopefully, he’s done enough to avoid having to be an opposition player for the coming campaign.

Ryan Howley

Appearances: 1, Minutes Played: 73, Goals: 0, Assists: 0

Made just one appearance, in the League Cup and at centre-back, Ryan Howley endured a tough time out on loan at Dundee in the Scottish top-flight. Starting just two games, and barely involved during the second half of the campaign, Howley hasn’t really benefitted from the opportunity to pick up some serious minutes in senior competitive football. The youngster had looked okay at Championship level in the handful of games he played the season before last, but another loan spell at lower level looks the sensible move next year.

Liam Kelly

Appearances: 19, Minutes Played: 1,204, Goals: 0, Assists: 1

A play-off final the season before last felt like the perfect note for Liam Kelly to go out on, but he was kept around for another year to ease the transition to a new era. Largely tasked with sitting in front of the defence and to keep things simple, Kelly did a decent job at that when deployed over the past season but his lack of mobility and his struggles to move the ball quickly meant that he was only used in emergency situations.

A player who has served the club impeccably during its rise over the past seven years, Liam Kelly probably didn’t get enough credit for his key contributions in both promotion campaigns and in aiding the club establish itself back in the Championship. While he may have a year or two still left in his boots, Liam Kelly seems the kind of calm, thoughtful character who will go on to have a career in coaching after he retires. Legend feels the right word.

Callum O’Hare

Appearances: 36, Minutes Played: 2,280, Goals: 10, Assists: 4

Callum O’Hare’s return to fitness was one of two key catalysts – along with the move to a back four, that turned the season around in November. For a couple of months, O’Hare was not just back but playing comfortably the best football in his career, finally finding the killer touch in the final third that had once eluded him. Whether it was a natural drop-off – which it most likely was – or the uncertainty over his future, O’Hare couldn’t quite find that form again, even if he still remained a valuable source of creativity and attacking inspiration.

Without explicitly stating it, Callum O’Hare’s intentions this summer are clear, he wants top-flight football. Any realistic possibility of him staying probably ended in January, when he didn’t sign a new contract. As someone who missed over a season of his prime football years to injury, it is understandable why O’Hare wants to progress his career even if it is a little disappointing that he no longer views Coventry City as the place to achieve his ambitions. Anyone but Leicester City, please.

Kasey Palmer

Appearances: 38, Minutes Played: 2,384, Goals: 4, Assists: 6

Probably the biggest positive for Kasey Palmer over the previous campaign was his ability to stay fit for the majority of it. The first time in his career he’s played over 30 league games in a season, the challenge Palmer has had to face is being able to sustain an impact over an extended period of matches, rather than coming in for short, sharp impacts. For all the moments of brilliance Palmer was able to provide throughout the season, doing so on a regular basis was his shortcoming. As someone who likes to attempt difficult, high-risk, high-reward actions, Kasey Palmer produced several truly baffling moments for every one flick of genius he produced.

Ending a long campaign in poor form, Kasey Palmer may have some work to do over the coming campaign to earn a regular starting place. With the benefit of the best run of fitness of his career, Palmer has yet to transition from impact player into the first name on the team sheet that his natural talent level should command. While he will remain a very useful option to bring off the bench or to switch things up over the course of a campaign, it is up to Kasey Palmer to prove that he is capable of better, more consistent brilliance if he wants to deliver on his potential.

Tatsuhiro Sakamoto

Appearances: 32, Minutes Played: 2,289, Goals: 7, Assists: 2

From his first pre-season appearances, it was apparent that Tatsuhiro Sakamoto would be a source of excitement in a Coventry City shirt, the question was how to fit him into a team that didn’t play with wingers. After catching the eye consistently over the first months of the season, largely from the bench, the move to a back four finally saw Sakamoto graduate into a regular starring role. The Japanese wide man more than delivered on that early promise, regularly skinning full-backs through the ease with which he could turn on the spot and also finding scoring form. A season-ending injury robbed the team of a key source of attacking penetration that was clearly missed during the business end of the campaign.

Getting back to full fitness is the number one priority for Tatsuhiro Sakamoto over the summer, with it being a huge positive that he was back in training over the final weeks of the previous campaign. With there likely to be competition in wide areas added to the squad, that should reduce the reliance on Sakamoto but will also place him under pressure to continue to deliver the kind of impact he made over the winter period. Tatsuhiro Sakamoto being one of a number of impactful options out wide can only be a positive for Coventry City over the coming season.

Ben Sheaf

Appearances: 36, Minutes Played: 3,308, Goals: 4, Assists: 2

It was the season in which Ben Sheaf finally become known to a wider audience than Coventry City. In the wake of the departure of Gustavo Hamer, Sheaf has been promoted to the orchestrator role in central midfield and has become the player others have turned to when looking for inspiration in difficult moments. Nonetheless, Sheaf has had his, non-injury related, struggles over the previous campaign, still appearing to be a little awkward when on the edge of the opposing area, with the sense being he’d be better off paired with a more attacking, creative player alongside of him. There is a reason why he is being mooted for a bigger move this coming summer, Ben Sheaf has largely been excellent over the past season.

Whether Ben Sheaf stays or goes looks to be largely up to him. After four seasons of excellent service to the club, Sheaf would be well within his rights to feel as if he deserves to make the step up to the Premier League. However, it may also be the case that the chance of captaining Coventry City into the top-flight within the next year is a realistic enough prospect to stay firm. It would be a huge boon to keep Sheaf at the club, providing Mark Robins with a figure to build around as he looks to plot better things over the coming campaign.

Victor Torp

Appearances: 20, Minutes Played: 1,086, Goals: 1, Assists: 1

A brilliant debut goal in the FA Cup against Sheffield Wednesday, followed up by a series of key contributions to goals in the following games, Victor Torp looked a ready-made star for Coventry City upon his arrival in January. Fitness issues – likely the result of having arrived mid-way through his pre-season – have hampered Torp’s progress in his early months at the club, with the coming campaign looking to be his opportunity to make the impact he promised to make in his first weeks. An attack-minded midfield player with excellent touch, eye for a pass and a great shot on him, Torp feels like the Gustavo Hamer replacement that the team never quite had over the previous campaign.

Fully fit and with better luck with injuries, Coventry City fans should be able to look forward to what Victor Torp may be capable of over the next year. The only concern is whether he is suited to bearing the defensive responsibilities that Mark Robins likes to share among his midfield players. Where Torp has struggled in his first months at the club is in playing closer to his own goal, where he has given the ball up in dangerous areas and struggled to impose himself physically on opponents. If Torp is to excel, either Mark Robins will have to tweak the team’s tactics or he’ll have to add that defensive responsibility to his game.