CoventryLive got a rare look at the scout list at Coventry City’s pre-season friendly at Stevenage. Here we take a detailed look at who was there and ponder why.
A rare look at Coventry City’s matchday scout list often makes for a fascinating read, particularly for those of a paranoid persuasion.
The press are generally kept well away from such mines of information but on Tuesday night our friends at Stevenage had kindly typed the names of all those in attendance and, more interestingly, the clubs they represent and put a copy in the media room.
So what did we learn from the roll call of clubs casting an eye on what was a relatively low key pre-season friendly between Championship Sky Blues and their League One hosts?
The list showed a total of 13 clubs represented, including three from the Premier League, five from the Championship, two from League One, one from League Two and one from the Scottish Premier. But the one that jumped out off the page was Champions League finalists Borussia Dortmund! Who on earth were they having a look at, you might well ask? We’ll come to that later.
A quick educated guess can account for the majority and why they were there.
Three of the Championship clubs – Stoke, Oxford and Norwich – face the Sky Blues in the club’s opening four games of the season, so they were clearly checking out Mark Robins’ men early to get a feel of personnel and formations.
Derby and Plymouth were also in attendance but City don’t play the Rams until early November and meet Argyle for the first time next term at the CBS Arena on Boxing Day. They could, of course, have an eye on any number of Robins’ squad players with a view to making bids and/or inquiries about their availability. With new goalkeeper Oliver Dovin coming in, for example, does that mean either Ben Wilson or Brad Collins could be available at the right price?
Maybe there’s a cheeky bid around the corner for someone like Jamie Allen who, while an excellent squad player, may not be guaranteed a regular start next season.
The other possibility is that they were there to check out one or more Stevenage players. That would certainly account for Norwich City’s attendance, given that the Canaries host the League One outfit in the EFL Cup at Carrow Road in their second game of the new season.
Charlton’s presence can also be explained by the fact that they play Stevenage in September, although the other League One side on the list, Northampton Town, don’t play them until December.
There’s a strong possibility, meanwhile, that any number of the League One and two clubs (AFC Wimbledon) could have been there checking out some of City’s development youngsters with a view to taking them on loan.
Justin Obikwu, for example, caught the eye on the night, winning and scoring a penalty, providing an assist and being denied by the goalkeeper. The 20-year-old striker is getting first team game time in pre-season but the chances are he will be sent out to get regular game time to further his development next season. The same goes for midfielder Kai Andrews while question marks remain about what will happen to Jack Burroughs and Ryan Howley.
Looking at the three Premier League clubs at the game – Brentford, Southampton and Ipswich – begs the question as to whether any of them were checking out any of City’s star men. Ipswich have already been linked with interest in Ben Sheaf and it would be easy to put two and two together regarding any number of big names, from 19 goals apiece Ellis Simms and Haji Wright to Milan van Ewijk. But that’s purely guesswork.
Rangers is an odd one. But, again, one can only assume they were there to cast an eye on one of City’s more high profile personnel.
The one that leaves you scratching your head, however, is German Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund. Make of that what you will!
FOR MORE NEWS CLICK HERE
