Coventry City may not have got the dream start they wanted against Stoke City at the weekend, but boss Mark Robins isn’t going to be losing any sleep over the team’s performances this season.
There’s a very good reason for that – and it comes in the shape of a sleep specialist that the club has sought advice from as they look to give their players the best chance of recovery after matches.
The Sky Blues chief welcomed a sleep specialist to the club’s revamped training base this week to provide his squad with advice on how to optimise their rest.
He commented: “Yes, someone’s been in this week, looking at the best things we can do to help ourselves and recover as best we can. Recovery is important. Why not look at every aspect and maximise it?
“That was why performance director Claire-Marie Roberts came in – to put things in place like that. The takeaways from it were personal to the individual, but we’re trying to work in a way that helps us.”
“Last year, Callum O’Hare was a player we identified that needed more rest, for example. In terms of sleep patterns, some people need to have theirs regulated. I’m making no apologies for it. We’re trying to give ourselves the best chance possible to be successful.”
Robins, now in his eighth season as Sky Blues’ chief, has overseen consistent progress. The Sky Blues narrowly lost in the play-off final against Luton in May 2023 on penalties, and a questionable VAR decision denied them a triumphant comeback win over Manchester United in this past season’s FA Cup semi-final, reports the Mirror.
Losing O’Hare to Sheffield United on a free transfer was a setback, but significant funds have been invested in Huddersfield Town’s Jack Rudoni, Luis Binks from Bologna and Brandon Thomas-Asante from West Brom.
Robins stated: “We’re looking to go higher. But that’s the dream of all 24 in this division. We’ve added new faces and money’s been spent on and off the pitch. Expectations levels will go up – and that’s happened since the new owner Doug King came in.”He made it clear that he wanted three play-off seasons out of five. Why not?
“I’m fine with that. This summer, we’ve added more players than we have done in the past. Good ones, too. We’ve now got better depth in the squad than we’ve had in my time here.
