Coventry City: How AI values Ben Sheaf, Ellis Simms and Haji Wright's transfer worth | OneFootball

Using Football Transfers' Player Valuation Model, we take a look at a transfer value comparison of Coventry City's star players.

Coventry City are going through a rare occurrence in their recent history - a period where they have no first-team manager.

The seven-year tenure of Mark Robins came to a surprise end last week, with Doug King deciding to part ways with the club's long-serving boss coming as a real shock.

In the last few years, Robins had built a pretty expensive squad for Championship standards, and that is due to the fact the likes of Viktor Gyokeres and Gustavo Hamer were sold for big fees, which enabled the Sky Blyes to spend.

Using Football Transfers' Estimated Transfer Value tool, we've decided to take a look at how much Haji Wright, Ben Sheaf and Ellis Simms - three of Coventry's top players are worth using AI.

The ETV tool uses a range of factors such as age, position, current performance, experience and projected potential to determine a player's value, so with that in mind, let's take a look at how much the Coventry trio are valued at.

Comparing Haji Wright, Ben Sheaf and Ellis Simms' current valuations

As expected, Ben Sheaf and Haji Wright have both seen a drop-off in their estimated value since the start of the season.

In March 2024, Sheaf was valued at €3.2 million (£2.66 million), a valuation which came in the same month that Coventry turned around a 2-1 deficit to win 3-2 in the dying moments against Wolves in last season's FA Cup.

Sheaf's value has now almost halved, with the 26-year-old priced at €1.8 million (£1.5 million), although Coventry fans no doubt would expect north of £10 million for the midfielder.

Similarly, Haji Wright has seen a fall in his market value, although it is less drastic than Sheaf's.

In January of this year, Wright was estimated to be worth €6.6 million (£5.48 million), having moved from Antalyaspor in the summer of 2023 for £7.7 million.

His price has since dropped to €5.7 million (£4.7 million), probably due to Coventry's poor showing in the league, despite his own appearances yielding a number of goal contributions - eight to be exact in 15 matches.

The only one of the three players to buck the trend is Ellis Simms. The 23-year-old striker has actually risen in valuation by nearly 50%, from €6.1 million (£5.1 million) in March of this year to a current estimate of €10.5 million (£8.7 million).

This would be an excellent return on investment for Coventry, who paid a reported £3.5 million to Everton for his services - a fee that could rise closer to £8 million in the future.

The only real reasons behind Simms' price increase are his age, as well as his development into an established Championship forward. Regardless of this, his stats this season have been far from impressive.

Comparing Haji Wright, Ben Sheaf and Ellis Simms' 2024/25 season stats

The current season's statistics make it clear why Sheaf's AI valuation has decreased, but Wright's situation is a more puzzling one given his output.

From all three players, the statistics demonstrate most clearly the reason for Ben Sheaf's value having plummeted. The centre midfielder has hardly been involved this season, directly contributing to one goal and only playing a fraction of the minutes that Haji Wright has mustered.

Simms has also been disappointing, managing only two goals in 12 appearances.

Alternative striker option Brandon Thomas-Asante has been preferred to him at times, resulting in Simms being limited to minutes off the bench for four of his appearances. However, since the forward's contract runs until the summer of 2027, his value has remained higher than ever.

Haji Wright is the only one of the three analysed players to have performed well this season. The striker has been a mainstay in Coventry's starting XI, notching seven goals so far.

This makes him the league's third top goalscorer. Wright's contract also runs until 2027, but since he will be 29 years of age at this time, his value has begun to decrease perhaps because of this.

Regardless of the alterations in his players' estimated prices, Coventry City find themselves with some issues to solve, with long-term manager Mark Robins having been recently sacked.

City only finished ninth last season after an expected play-off push, and began this term with the same aim, but Robins' dismissal characterises their shoddy start to the season.

With their downturn in form seeing the club slide towards the back end of the table, any incoming manager will need to turn this streak around and reestablish the team as contenders for promotion.

Caretaker manager Rhys Carr has started well in this regard, managing a 2-2 comeback draw against Sunderland that will allow fans to cling to hopes of a successful season.