Coventry manager Frank Lampard says his side must take confidence from their performance against Manchester City, despite suffering a second away defeat against one of the Premier League’s leading teams in their opening three matches.
The newly promoted club were handed an especially demanding start on their return to the Premier League, with away fixtures against Arsenal and Manchester City included in their first three games.
Those matches were separated by a disappointing 1-0 home defeat by Hull City. The result left Coventry bottom of the table, with no goals scored and five conceded.
However, Lampard believes the performance against Manchester City showed clear progress from Coventry’s opening match against Arsenal. He said the team had looked more like a competitive Premier League side and had played with a defined approach and attacking threat.
“We’re not playing Manchester City every week,” Lampard said.
“The Premier League is a high, high level and we’ll play different versions of quality against us.
“What’s more important to the players today is they take confidence out of the performance and we’re disappointed to lose, but in reflection there will be a lot of good taken out of it if we can use it in our mentality.
“Going to Arsenal two weeks ago felt very different, it felt like our first game for 25 years in the Premier League.
“Today felt like a competitive Premier League team coming with a clear idea and a threat, so we must take that forward.”
Lampard’s comparison between the two defeats underlined the difference he has seen in Coventry’s approach during the early stages of their Premier League campaign.
The match at Arsenal, played two weeks before the trip to Manchester City, had felt like a particularly significant occasion for Coventry. Lampard described it as resembling the club’s first Premier League game in 25 years, suggesting that the occasion and the level of the challenge had made it a very different experience for his players.
Against Manchester City, he felt Coventry had been better prepared to compete. Although the result was again a defeat, Lampard said the display should provide the squad with belief as they adapt to the demands of the division.
Coventry’s opening schedule has therefore presented them with two of the toughest possible away assignments, while the defeat by Hull City has left them without a goal after three matches. Their position at the bottom of the table reflects that difficult start.
Lampard’s message was that the performance, rather than the result alone, must now become a foundation for the next stage of the season. He wants his players to carry the confidence gained from the Manchester City match into future fixtures, while recognising that they will face different levels and styles of opposition throughout the Premier League campaign.
The Coventry manager accepted that his team cannot expect every week to bring a challenge on the scale of Manchester City. But he also believes the response to that challenge showed the mentality and quality his side will need to improve their results.