We looked at three Coventry City youngsters who could save the club from paying transfer fees in the future.
Coventry City will be looking to reclaim their place in the Championship this season.
The Sky Blues had a fantastic season last season, finishing fifth in the second tier, but they were defeated on penalties by Luton Town in the play-off final at Wembley in May.
Coventry lost star duo Viktor Gyokeres and Gustavo Hamer this summer, but Mark Robins was heavily supported in the transfer market by owner Doug King, with 11 new players arriving at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
| Coventry City – 2023/24 Signings | ||
|---|---|---|
| Player Name | Signed From | Loan/Permanent |
| Haji Wright | Antalyaspor | Permanent |
| Ellis Simms | Everton | Permanent |
| Liam Kitching | Barnsley | Permanent |
| Milan van Ewijk | Heerenveen | Permanent |
| Bobby Thomas | Burnley | Permanent |
| Tatsuhiro Sakamoto | KV Oostende | Permanent |
| Brad Collins | Barnsley | Permanent |
| Jay Dasilva | Bristol City | Permanent |
| Joel Latibeaudiere | Swansea City | Permanent |
| Yasin Ayari | Brighton | Loan |
| Luis Binks | Bologna | Loan |
The Sky Blues’ huge recruitment drive means that opportunities are likely to be limited for young players this season, but the club’s academy is producing a number of exciting talents.
With that in mind, we looked at three young players that could save the club money on transfer fees in the future.
Kai Andrews
Assistant senior professional development phase coach Chris Allen was delighted to see Andrews feature for the first team, but challenged him to continue working hard in order to fulfil his potential.
“Fantastic achievement for the club itself and for Kai as an individual,” Allen told the club’s official website.
“But you just don’t sit on your laurels. He’s come on for what 10 seconds and that’s great, but don’t get carried away with it, because he hasn’t achieved anything.
“You just need to get down and work hard and get himself amongst it as much as you can and that should spur him on to go and do some fantastic things.”
Andrews has clearly made an impression on his team-mates, with midfielder Ben Sheaf praising the 17-year-old for his attitude since making the step up to the senior squad.
“He has come in at the start of this pre-season and trained really well. He is a good lad and he deserves his chance,” Sheaf told the club’s official website.
“He trained well this week and the gaffer is not going to hand out starts and opportunities to anyone so he must obviously have good quality. He just need to get his head down and kick on.”
Strikers are notoriously the most difficult type of player to recruit and can often cost big money, with Coventry breaking their transfer record to sign Wright from Antalyaspor this summer for a fee of £7.7 million.
Of course, Andrews will need to be given time and patience as he adapts to the Championship, but if he continues his development, he could be a huge asset for the Sky Blues in the years to come.
Jack Burroughs
Burroughs enjoyed his breakthrough season at the club last term, making 14 appearances in all competitions.
The 22-year-old, who can play in midfield or at wing-back, has been with the Sky Blues since the age of seven and he signed a new two-year deal in June.
Burroughs is currently out on loan at League One side Lincoln City and he has been a regular for Mark Kennedy’s side so far this season.
If Burroughs can continue to impress with his performance at Sincil Bank, he could force his way into contention for a starting spot when he returns to the Coventry Building Society Arena next summer.
Burroughs is highly rated by Robins, with the manager describing the Scotland U21 international as a “Premier League athlete” after the 1-0 win over West Brom in December.
“What Jack does do is give you a problem if you’re a defender and if he gets a little bit more comfortable he could do anything, because athletically he’s a Premier League athlete. He’s really, really good, and I am pleased with what he is doing at the moment,” Robins told Coventry Live.
Fabio Tavares
Striker Tavares joined the Sky Blues from Rochdale in February 2021 and he made a big impact as he scored a late equaliser against Preston North End on just his second appearance for the club the following year.
The 22-year-old remained involved with the first team last season, making 11 appearances in all competitions, but his campaign was ended early when he suffered a serious Achilles injury against Wrexham in the FA Cup in January.
Tavares has remained sidelined ever since, but Robins says he is making good progress and is hopeful he could return in late September or early October.
It will be tough for Tavares to break into the team when he makes his comeback with competition for places from the likes of Wright, Simms and Matty Godden, but he is likely to be given opportunities and he will be hoping to pick up where he left off prior to his injury.
