Coventry City can ward off Southampton by completing big Frank Lampard objective | OneFootball

Promotion would surely safeguard the Sky Blues from Southampton's interest in their boss.

Coventry City can protect themselves from interest in their boss Frank Lampard by completing their promotion dream.

A stoppage time winner from Jamie Paterson on Tuesday night lifted the Sky Blues back into the play-off positions. It was a result that keeps them firmly in the hunt for a return to the top flight for the first time since 2001.

With City sitting in 17th when Lampard took over back in November, the former Chelsea and Derby County chief has overseen a remarkable turnaround at the CBS Arena, and that success has seen him linked with a move to Southampton this week.

According to Talksport’s chief football correspondent, Alex Crook, Lampard is under consideration by the Saints’ hierarchy, with their relegation from the Premier League confirmed last weekend.

If City could get themselves back into the Premier League come the end of the season, it would surely safeguard them from any potential approach from Southampton, as another shot at the big time would likely be a huge attraction for Lampard.

Lampard’s excellent start has attracted the interest of Southampton

After consecutive top half seasons under Mark Robins, it came as something of a surprise when Coventry struggled so badly at the start of this season.

A run of just four wins from their opening 14 games at the start of the campaign ultimately saw Robins pay the price by losing his job.

When Lampard stepped through the door at the Midlands outfit at the end of November, he took charge of a team that found themselves just two points above the relegation zone, despite enjoying a run to the semi-finals of the FA Cup a matter of months earlier.

Since then, the turnaround in Coventry’s fortunes has been hugely impressive. The Sky Blues have been one of the division’s form sides over the last 20 games and that run of form has catapulted them into the top six with just five games still to play.

Unsurprisingly, the former England midfielder’s success has attracted attention from elsewhere, with Southampton eyeing up a potential move for him over the summer.

With the Saints’ relegation back to the Championship confirmed over the weekend, they have since parted company with boss Ivan Juric, and have been linked with several names over the course of this week.

Among those names are the likes of Sheffield Wednesday’s exciting young German Danny Rohl and Liam Rosenior, who is currently impressing in France with Strasbourg, after previously enjoying spells in the English second tier with Hull and Derby.

Promotion would surely safeguard Lampard for Coventry

If Coventry were able to get themselves into the Premier League with a successful play-off campaign, it would surely hand them a crucial edge in ensuring that Lampard’s immediate future remains at the CBS Arena.

It’s been a whirlwind couple of years for City, who agonisingly lost the 2022/23 play-off final on penalties, before a remarkable cup run almost saw them go all the way to the FA Cup final last time out.

The foundations have been laid over the last few years for the club to go on and become a Premier League side and, after Robins fell at the final hurdle, Lampard now has the chance to make City’s dream a reality.

His stint at the club so far has been made all the more eye-catching by the fact that he has had to work without two key players in Haji Wright and Ben Sheaf (pictured), for a large chunk of his time in charge.

With the duo now back amongst the ranks, Coventry are well-placed to push for a top six spot.

Recent defeats to Derby, Sheffield United and Burnley have been unwelcome setbacks, but their midweek victory over Portsmouth looks to have got them back on track.

Lampard's men also have a favourable run-in, with games against Hull, Plymouth and Luton on the horizon, they will have plenty of opportunities to pick up the points needed to seal their spot in the post-season.

With Southampton set for another season in the second tier after a catastrophic Premier League campaign this term, there surely would be incentive for Lampard to make the switch, especially if Coventry became a top flight club.

While he has never maintained a job for long at the top level of the English game, Lampard did impress at times over the course of his spells with Chelsea and Everton. He must be desperate to prove once again that he is capable of leading a club to success in the Premier League, which would surely make the possibility of leading a Coventry side that he has lifted to promotion too good an opportunity to turn down.