"I love that" - Coventry City: Frank Lampard reveals area Jack Rudoni is similar to Man United's Mason Mount | OneFootball

The Sky Blues' boss has compared his current attacking midfielder to the now-Manchester United man

Coventry City head coach Frank Lampard has revealed the similarities between Sky Blues playmaker Jack Rudoni and current Manchester United man, Mason Mount.

Speaking to Sky Sports pundit, David Prutton, on the newly-launched 'EFL Unfiltered' podcast, Lampard referenced how the former Huddersfield Town man has a similar mentality to the England international he had seen progress through the ranks at Chelsea after a fruitful loan at Derby County back in 2018/19, as the City boss guided a squad synonymous with eventual star-studded youngsters to the Championship play-off final versus Aston Villa.

The West Midlands side could also return to Wembley under the 46-year-old this season for what would be a third appearance at the National Stadium in as many seasons, having suffered penalty-shootout defeats to Luton Town in the play-off final and to the Red Devils in last season's FA Cup semi-final.

Rudoni has been one of the Sky Blues' most influential performers since the former Stamford Bridge ace was appointed on November 28th, with only Leeds United and Burnley picking up more points in an 18-game timeframe, which has seen Coventry shoot up to fifth-place with 11 games remaining.

Frank Lampard issues Jack Rudoni, Mason Mount comparison

After joining from Huddersfield Town for an estimated £5m sum during Mark Robins' final transfer window at the CBS Arena, the 24-year-old has amassed 15 goal contributions in 35 appearances, with nine of those coming since Lampard's first game in charge on November 30th.

Rudoni had hit a purple patch of two goals and as many assists in his last four games, including the opener in Saturday's pulsating 3-2 victory at Oxford United, before dislocating his shoulder and being replaced by Ben Sheaf, who has recently returned to fitness.

Whilst it remains uncertain at this moment in time how long the former AFC Wimbledon man could be sidelined for, Lampard was quick to praise his mentality and eagerness to improve his game whilst on the grass at the club's Ryton-On-Dunsmore training facilities.

The Chelsea record-scorer said: "I have this real professional drive and if I see something and I want to do it, I’ll do it. If I can’t do it, I want to do it. If I do it well, I want to do it better."

"I’ve always had that and I have taken it into management. It becomes a bit more taxing as you get older as well. It’s a bit more tiring. When you’ve got loads of energy in your 20s, it’s like I’m going to the moon! Then when you’re in your 40s, you have days where you go, ‘I need a day off’.

"I love seeing it in players, there’s some players that naturally have it. I always felt that with Mason Mount, working with him as a young player, I could see the look in his eye," Lampard added.

"I feel it a bit with Jack Rudoni here," the Sky Blues boss stated. "He’s got something about him that says, ‘I want to train, gaffer, how can I get better? What can I do?’ That was me. And I love that, it’s very infectious to me.

"But I also understand as a coach that not everyone is the same. It doesn’t mean that Jack should be my ‘pet’. Everybody needs a version of something to get them to where they can maximise themselves. (My) job is to support that," he concluded.

Mason Mount comparison is high praise for Jack Rudoni

Rudoni has established himself as one of the second-tier's most exciting attacking midfielders, which has seen him rack up 30 goal contributions in 116 games after initially finding his feet at the level at the John Smith's Stadium before his move to the Sky Blues.

There are plenty of similarities which can be drawn between this current side at the CBS Arena and the one which Lampard very nearly took to the Premier League at Pride Park, with Mount at the beating heart of a dynamic and full-throttle attacking side with eight goals and five assists.

Of course, Rudoni has already bettered such a tally this campaign, as he currently sits alongside Finn Azaz as the joint-second-highest assist maker in the division behind Tom Fellows, creating an average of 2.02 chances per 90 minutes, and 64 in total across his 35 appearances.

However, Coventry may be forced to cope without their creator-in-chief after the blow suffered at the Kassam Stadium for some time, meaning others will have to step up to the plate with plenty of season-defining games still on Lampard's agenda.