Coventry City, Ipswich Town and Hull City have all made encouraging starts to their Premier League campaigns after promotion, combining for 31 points from nine games — one of the best returns by promoted sides in the league’s history.
Coventry manager Frank Lampard (Credits: BBC Sport)
Coventry’s Turnaround Under Frank Lampard
It was only a few weeks ago that life in the Premier League looked like it might be a step too far for Coventry. After storming to the Championship title last season to seal a top-flight return for the first time since 2001, Frank Lampard’s side lost all four of their opening matches by a combined 10-0, leaving them rooted to the bottom of the table.
But since that humbling 5-0 defeat at Brighton, the Sky Blues have breathed new life into their campaign, winning three of their next five matches. Back-to-back victories over Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United were followed by Saturday’s 3-1 win over Sunderland, lifting Coventry to 15th in the table.
Ipswich and Hull Leading the Promoted Trio
Former Championship rivals Ipswich Town and Hull City have made even stronger starts. Hull and Ipswich account for 22 of the trio’s combined 31 points, with Sergej Jakirovic and Gary O’Neil’s sides both sitting on 11 points each. That combined 31-point haul is the 13th-highest tally by promoted sides at this stage in Premier League history.
There is further reason for optimism: since the 2010-11 season, all 18 promoted teams who have collected at least 11 points from their opening nine games have avoided relegation — a benchmark Ipswich and Hull have already hit.
Coventry spent more than £140m on 12 permanent signings in the summer, including club-record arrival Caleb Yirenkyi, and after a bruising start, midfielder Jack Rudoni insists belief never wavered: “We always had that belief. We have a really good squad here, where the morale is good and we get behind each other.”
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Source: BBC Sport — read the full story there.
