BACKS TO THE WALL!
SKY BLUES’ BARE-BONES DEFENCE FOR BATTLE WITH THE BEAST
COVENTRY City boss Russell Slade admits he faces a defensive headache for tonight’s Checkatrade Trophy semifinal at the Ricoh Arena.
Three of the Sky Blues’ back four from the weekend – Nathan Clarke, Farrend Rawson and Kevin Foley – are cuptied while skipper Jordan Willis is suspended for the clash against League Two Wycombe Wanderers as the Sky Blues look to book a trip to Wembley Stadium.
That opens the door for Jordan Turnbull to return to centre-half alongside teenage Cian Harries, while fellow Academy graduate Dion Kelly-Evans is likely to fill in at right-back. They face a daunting challenge against an in-form Chairboys side spearheaded by man-mountain striker Adebayo Akinfenwa and Slade, speaking to BBC Coventry & Warwickshire, conceded: “Defence is a problem area, a headache, but
when someone is out you have to see it as an opportunity for someone else. Let’s hope they can deliver.”
There is better news on the midfield front with the return of Ben Stevenson from a minor injury that ruled him out of Saturday’s 2-0 home defeat by Millwall.
“Ben had his first training outing today,” said Slade. “The main thing is there will be changes, because people are unavailable for the fixture, but we’ve made those before and been successful. Let’s hope we can do that one more time.”
Yakubu is not expected to be signed up in time to play in the tie as Slade takes time to assess the veteran striker’s fitness.
As exclusively revealed by the Coventry Telegraph on Sunday, the Sky Blues have invited the 34-year-old Nigerian, once a prolific Premier League marksman, to train with the club ahead of a possible short-term deal until the end of the season.
“Yakubu is in and had his first training day with us this morning,” Slade said yesterday. “He’s 34 now, his last club was in Turkey but he’s not played for a while.
“That’s the only concern but he’s got a great pedigree. I think he is a one in two, goals wise, while he was here so we’ll see, and if that’s the sort of thing he can do for us then we have got to be interested.
“We need to see more and will look at him more over this week and see how he gets on.”
The Checkatrade Trophy offers a diversion from City’s alarming League One form – no win in 13 matches – which sees them marooned eight points adrift of the relegation cut-off.
Slade confessed: “I think it is fair to say that this is one of the toughest challenges in my career, but it is only a crisis if we turn it in to one. We know the situation we’re in, it is important to be real.
“The key is to do something about it now, not in three weeks. If we do address it we give ourselves a realistic chance. We need to find a spark that can turn our season around.”
In contrast to league struggles, the Sky Blues are undefeated in the EFL Trophy, having already beaten Wycombe once in the competition.
The tie is a one off 90 minutes, with the winner earning a spot in the Wembley final on April 2 against Oxford United, Luton Town or Yeovil, and City are hoping for a good turn out with around 9,000 tickets sold as of yesterday
Slade added: “Knowing how to get over the line and managing situations is crucial. Tomorrow’s game is not as important as staying in the league, but an opportunity to spread momentum. The fans can make a massive difference in numbers, when they are vocal we’ve got the strongest fanbase in the league. That is partly why I came to this club to help, it has got such a great history. Storms don’t last forever, eventually we’ll come through and be stronger for it.
“Let us be able to focus and concentrate on our jobs while the game is going on. To be fair to the lads, they have been good in the cup competition. We need to embrace the challenge, an opportunity we don’t want to miss.”