Coventry City eye Swansea City figure as Mark Robins successor | OneFootball

Swansea City assistant head coach Alan Sheehan is reportedly a target for Coventry City, who are looking to replace Mark Robins

Coventry City are reportedly plotting a surprising move for Swansea City assistant head coach Alan Sheehan in a bid to replace Mark Robins, who was controversially relieved of his duties on Thursday morning.

The latest development in Coventry's managerial search is according to a recent report published by Football Insider, where it is claimed that the 38-year-old is being lined up as a potential successor to Robins.

Coventry's decision to part ways with Robins has been subjected to significant and widespread criticism from both club and neutral supporters.

Prior to his sacking, the ex-Barnsley and Huddersfield Town manager was the longest-serving boss across the entire English Football League. Robins enjoyed an inspirational seven-year rein during his second spell with the Sky Blues, leading them from the depths of League Two to within one penalty kick of a Premier League return in 2023 along with taking in four trips to Wembley, including last season's FA Cup semi-final thriller against Manchester United.

Coventry, who received strong backing in the summer transfer window from owner Doug King, have failed to kick on according to expectation thus far, enduring a slow start for the third campaign running.

The Sky Blues currently find themselves 17th in the Championship after fourteen matches and, despite having recently claimed back-to-back victories over Luton Town and Middlesbrough, Wednesday evening's 2-1 home defeat to newly-promoted Derby County ultimately proved the final nail in the coffin for Robins' legendary tenure.

Coventry will be led by first-team coach Rhys Carr for tomorrow afternoon's trip to league leaders Sunderland, with all eyes on who King recruits to succeed Robins.

Alan Sheehan named as potential Mark Robins replacement at Coventry City

Football Insider's latest report has described Sheehan as a "surprise contender" for the vacant managerial hot-seat at the CBS Arena, with this development sure to inspire some mixed reaction from the Sky Blues faithful.

Sheehan, who represented the likes of Leicester City and Notts County across a 19-year playing career, returned to former club Luton Town as a first-team coach in January 2022. The Irishman then followed Nathan Jones to Southampton following his appointment on the south coast, before leaving with him when he was sacked.

He returned to coaching by arriving at Swansea in June 2023 as one of two assistant head coaches and was handed seven matches in charge on a caretaker basis last season after the sacking of Michael Duff, winning three of his seven games at the helm.

Sheehan has remained at the Swansea.com Stadium since Luke Williams' arrival at the start of the year and is said to be highly regarded within domestic coaching circles, helped by being a holder of a UEFA Pro Licence.

However, Sheehan has only ever taken charge of seven senior matches and that could be a concern for Coventry supporters, who will naturally have high expectations and will be placing significant demand on King to get it right after the dismissal of Robins.

Swansea City's Alan Sheehan would be a risky replacement for Mark Robins at Coventry City

It's going to prove extremely difficult for Coventry to truly replace Robins, who left an indelible legacy and propelled the club to unprecedented heights against the backdrop of intensely trying times in the fourth-tier.

That's why this latest development may be viewed as underwhelming, with Sheehan's track record paling in comparison to that of Robins. Sheehan is clearly a promising coach at first-team level, but Coventry need to make an outstanding appointment to get the fans back onside even somewhat and he perhaps lacks the pedigree to replace Robins.