After 18 months in the wilderness, Frank Lampard has returned to management at Coventry City, who currently sit 17th in the Championship table - two points above the drop zone. After an exhaustive hiring process spanning almost a month, Lampard has been chosen to succeed Mark Robins, seeing off reported competition from England Under-21s boss Lee Carsley and Wycombe's Matt Bloomfield.
Robins was the longest-serving manager in the Football League at the time of his dismissal, having been with the Sky Blues for seven years, and the decision to let him go did not go down well with supporters. Many felt that he deserved more loyalty after overseeing two promotions, a thrilling run to the FA Cup semi-finals, and taking the club to within one game of the Premier League, only to suffer play-off final heartbreak against Luton Town in 2023.
And the critics are now out in force again to protest Lampard's appointment, despite Coventry owner Doug King insisting the 46-year-old "knows what is needed in this league to be successful". Will Lampard be able to prove King right and silence the doubters, or has he bitten off more than he can chew?