Raffaele Nuzzo - a five goal howler at Tranmere and its arrivederci Highfield Road

In the season when City failed to win on their travels (1999/00) it should have come as no surprise that a cup tie against lower league opposition would follow suit. Tranmere Rovers, then in the second tier, welcomed Gordon Strachan’s men to Prenton Park for the Worthington Cup second round, first leg tie in September 1999. A weakened City side lined up with Gary Breen at right-back, Gavin Strachan and Marc Edworthy in midfield with Gary McSheffrey, then just 17 years of age, leading the line. Messrs Hadji, Whelan, Keane and Aloisi were absent yet perhaps the biggest surprise for the travelling sky blue army saw on-loan Inter Milan ‘keeper Raffaele Nuzzo line up between the posts for his sole City outing. Between 1991 and 2000 Nuzzo was loaned out by Inter on many occasions to third tier Italian clubs and his spell at Highfield Road lasted from June to November 1999. By the time the final whistle blew at Tranmere his bags were packed and bound for Heathrow.

 

City led through Gary McAllister’s strike and there was no sign of the calamity the second-half would bring. Five goals - 50, 58, 63, 80 and 90 minutes - from Scott Taylor and a treble from David Kelly along with a red card for David Burrows ensured the tie was over before it reached Highfield Road. Nuzzo transferred from Inter to Reggiana in 2000, took in a loan spell at Wigan in 2001, before finally becoming Reggiana first-choice in 2005. His retirement came in 2007 at the age of 34 after just over 120 first team appearances in 16 seasons.

Five league games in and we’ve been outwitted by each side we’ve pitted our wares against. I can’t connect with this division, in the Premier League and Championship you knew all the players in every team. In League One I haven’t a clue who half the opposition players are yet they are tactically superior, sharper and hungrier for the ball. I’m not being disrespectful, just honest. Gary Johnson, Danny Wilson, Peter Shirtliff, Steve Davis and Gary Smith have set up their teams with a plan of action to not just counter our efforts but to take the three points. The Ricoh will be the best stadium fellow teams visit this season, as a result they’ll raise their performance level and see us as a major scalp. I’ve had 22 top flight seasons and 11 desperate second tier campaigns, my main ask is to be entertained by my club. If I’m driving 200 miles round trip I want wingers, ball to feet, skilful forwards and defenders bringing the ball out of defence to begin attacks. What I’m getting is long balls up to small strikers, a midfield so narrow they all fit in the centre circle and a defence unable to concentrate for 90 minutes. As I write Dennis Wise has still not been appointed manager, I’m assuming he’s amongst the shortlist of nine. His appointment will get the fans onside, two or three wins in succession and they’ll be flooding back in their droves. A bit of success is all we crave, heaven forbid if we got a bit of glory, we wouldn’t know how to cope it’s been so long. Eventually, we’d savour the moment and to quote Martin Tyler, as Sergio Aguero netted to clinch the title, “drink it in, savour it” – I think we’d drink Coventry dry.

 

Nii Lamptey - from Anderlecht to Highfield Road

John Filan, Brian Borrows, Marcus Hall, Kevin Richardson, David Busst, Paul Williams, Gordon Strachan, Paul Telfer, Peter Ndlovu, John Salako and Nii Lamptey. These eleven men were responsible for the last time Coventry City overcame a two-goal deficit to win a league/cup fixture – 25^th October 1995 – City 3 Spurs 2 League Cup third round tie. The man listed last on the team sheet may be unknown to younger City supporters but at the age of 16 (1990) he was a first-team regular with Anderlecht and one of the hottest properties in world football. Pele hailed him his ‘natural successor’ and he would score on his European Cup debut for the Belgian giants.

 

‘Old before his time’ can certainly be applied to Nii Lamptey. He was smuggled to Belgium in the back of trucks, virtually kidnapped, and after two years with Anderlecht shone for PSV Eindhoven (with his Robbie Keane-style goal celebration - see second clip) while collecting international caps for Ghana. He joined City from Aston Villa, signed twice by Ron Atkinson, and his year in sky blue, 1995/96, saw him debut at Anfield. Lamptey scored twice, home and away, against Hull in the Coca-Cola Cup but made just six starts with five substitute appearances before he was released to join Italian side Venezia. His one goal at Highfield Road is in the clip below when he also had his head trod on by a Hull defender who saw red for his slip of foot.

City 2 Hull City 0 Coca-Cola Cup

Ron Atkinson recalled how the restrictions on foreign players along with the amount of time he spent away on international duty made it impossible for him to feature regularly. Following his move to Italy, still aged just 22, he became a journeyman, ending up in Argentina, Turkey, Portugal, Belgium, Germany, China, Dubai and then home to Ghana. After scoring on his international debut at 16 he partnered Tony Yeboah and Abedi Pele in a fearsome strike force and went on to collect 38 caps, the last of which came in 1996. He promised so much and his arrival at City was a real coup, it was just a shame it failed to work out for him.

Nii Lamptey's time at PSV Eindhoven - prior to Highfield Road

Lamptey himself cited pressure as a big factor: “When Pele said I could go on to become like him it was a great honour for me. To get such high praise from him was wonderful but it had its negative side – everywhere I went I was supposed to live up to very high standards. Once I couldn’t meet people’s expectations I was considered a failure. It’s easy to be a star but it’s difficult to maintain being a star. When I went to Belgium I was alone at a very young age without anybody and it was so difficult.”

He has recently been immortalised by a group of Sky Blues’ supporters – Knowl (gmkonline), Neil Allison (Sky Blues Blog), Joey Crone and Ed Wilson - who have named a podcast after him – ‘The Nii Lamptey Show’ - which you can download on iTunes and follow via twitter @NiiLampteyShow. The audience is growing by the week and the content is excellent, you should take a listen.

N.B. Lamptey's quote and Atkinson's recollection taken from Amy Lawrence's 'Four Four Two' article in 2004.

From Crewe to Clarrie - in search of a Sky Blues' hat-trick

Over ten years have elapsed since Sky Blues’ supporters cheered a hat-trick on opposition soil. The Alexandra Stadium (formerly Gresty Road), home of Saturday’s opponents Crewe Alexandra, witnessed Roland Nilsson’s side coast to a 6-1 win back in February 2002. £5 million (cough) signing Lee Hughes took home the match ball while David Thompson and a brace from Laurent Delorge completed the rout. Gary McSheffrey was on the bench that day and would himself contribute a treble eight months later in the 8-0 thrashing of Rushden and Diamonds in the Worthington Cup.

With just two league trebles during the eleven second tier seasons (Freddy Eastwood against Peterborough for the second) there’s hope that surely this year will see a glut of goals. Cody McDonald looks sharp and opened his account down at Yeovil but he has some way to go to match the exploits of record goal scorer Clarrie Bourton. During his City career (1931-1937) he scored 13 hat-tricks with seven in 1931/32 alone when he set the club record of 50 goals in a season.

In the late eighties David Speedie claimed two headed trebles in one season, the 4-3 loss to Middlesbrough and the 5-0 destruction of Sheffield Wednesday, both at Highfield Road. The irony of the latter, as just five days later Sutton United and their Gander Green Lane ground took top billing on Match of The Day as we made national headlines. I’ve selected Speedie’s treble against Wednesday in the clip below for the quality of the goals and a reminder to the current crop that we really would like to see a City player topping the scoring charts this year and smashing the 20-goal barrier.

City 5 Sheff Wed 0 (Speedie 3, Sedgley, Kilcline (pen) )

When I wrote my 'Coventry City Miscellany' last year the section on Sky Blues’ managers detailed an average tenure of just over two years. Andy Thorn’s sacking on Sunday after less than 18 months in charge now makes it 11 managers in 12 years, a horrible stat and one that needs stability immediately. The new recruits look promising but the play is so narrow we rely on Hussey and Clarke/Brown to supply the service from out wide which is inconsistent to say the least. The new man must be able to vary tactics as messrs Fleck, Jennings, Barton, McSheffrey, Thomas, Kilbane and Baker can play the game of football. Cody McDonald and Stephen Elliott know the way to goal and need either ball to feet or supply from out wide. We need width and we need it quick, we’re still unbeaten after all and turning draws into wins will soon see us climb the table. Yet again we’re hoping the change will generate success, if the City supporters get a whiff of glory the roof will come off the Ricoh and all visiting grounds. The big name managers have flunked at City but the thought of Dennis Wise making the similar kind of impact he made as a player is inspiring. I want rid of the diamond formation and wing-play brought back to Coventry City. Arise Sir Dennis to work with Richard Shaw and Lee Carsley.

Footnote 10:30pm Tuesday - what a great comeback - the first time we've overhauled a lead since September 2009 at Watford - great stuff City and still unbeaten!

John Williams - from Royal Mail to the Premier League

Twenty years ago this week the FA Premier League opened its doors as 22 clubs competed in its debut season. As we all know Coventry City were one of those teams and began 1992/93 under the second reign of Bobby Gould. With the bulk of Terry Butcher and Don Howe’s legacy at his disposal, Gould handed opening day debuts to two players recruited from the lower leagues. Substitute Phil Babb signed from Bradford City while £250,000 headed to Swansea City as the services of speed merchant John Williams were secured.

During his three seasons at Highfield Road Williams appeared 86 times and scored on 11 occasions. He was the Sky Blues' first ever goal scorer in the Premier League and his goal on home debut against Middlesbrough was the second quickest in Premier League history. Three days later he followed this with both goals at Tottenham as City won 2-0. They secured three straight wins with a 2-1 triumph at Wimbledon to become the first outright leaders of the new division. His celebration with Mick Quinn at Highbury in the 3-0 opening day success is well remembered as is the pace and strength he used to his advantage against unsuspecting defences. Williams departed for Wycombe in the summer of 1995 having etched his name into Coventry City’s Premier League history.

City 2 'Boro 1 1992/93

Four months on from THAT day at the Ricoh Arena against Doncaster Rovers, my first sighting of Andy Thorn’s men since that woeful afternoon took me to Bristol Rovers last Saturday. Clearly apparent was the freshness on show, new personnel on the pitch but also a shake-up in the dugout. A back four of Clarke, Hussey, Wood and Reece Brown had the odd hiccup but on the whole looked solid and this augurs well. New recruit Adam Barton looks a more than decent acquisition while Carl Baker will shine at this level. Gary McSheffrey should mirror the form he showed on loan to Luton many years ago and create havoc while Kevin Kilbane’s experience will calm the nerves.

Conor Thomas has removed Gary Deegan from his Christmas card list after his recent crocking, hopefully by the time he returns to fitness we'll be lodged in the upper reaches of the division. David Bell's hip injury I must have missed on Sky Sports breaking news, I can see another bit part season for him, he has the technique but seems physically unable to play 46 games. The pairing of Cody McDonald and Callum Ball looks good, Cody the 20-goal marksman we've craved since Dion while Ball could well be the ace in our pack with his left foot and strength. Stephen Elliott appears on the attacking periphery at present while John Fleck’s goals from midfield will support the aforementioned trio and catapult at least one City player into the PFA Team of the Year for a pleasant change.

So, all in all, a cause for sky blue optimism? Definitely.

Footnote: Kevin Kilbane's experience came to the fore in the 90th minute at Dagenham and Redbridge last night - let's hope for more of the same at Yeovil.

Peter Atherton - from Wigan to Division One

In a rare astute moment during his 15 months in charge at Highfield Road, Terry Butcher replaced a crowd favourite with a 21 year old whose three seasons in sky blue would prove simply outstanding. Having caught Butcher’s eye in the previous campaign’s FA Cup tie against Wigan Athletic, Peter Atherton signed for £330,000 and stepped up from the third tier like he had played in the top flight all of his career.

Upon Trevor Peake’s departure to Luton, Atherton partnered Andy Pearce and David Busst before his third and final season saw him team up with Phil Babb. They would form one of the best central defensive pairings in modern times before they went their separate ways within months of each other in 1994. During his time at City the composed and quietly effective Lancastrian made 120 appearances without finding the net and took the Player of The Year award in 1992/93.

His final game in sky blue came at Old Trafford the day United lifted the Premiership trophy for the second time. Atherton typically bowed out with a clean sheet as City finished 1993/94 in 11^th position. A key departure along with Babb, this weakened the side as Ron Atkinson subsequently arrived to ensure final day safety just 12 months later. After six seasons with Sheffield Wednesday he spent a further five with Bradford City including relegation along with us in 2001 before his career concluded at Halifax Town where he remains assistant manager to this day.

For a Peter Atherton-related Sky Blues' clip (as he never scored for us) I've gone for one of my favourite games at Highfield Road (in which he played and we kept a clean sheet), the Boxing Day win over Villa in 1992...

Sky Blues 3 Villa 0

With the backbone of Andy Thorn’s defence having gone their expected ways this summer, Richard Keogh and Martin Cranie will be a hard partnership to follow while Sammy Clingan, still without a club, is long gone in the memories of City supporters. With the arrival of the tall and promising Adam Barton and the goal glut through pre-season from John Fleck we have options and we didn’t say that very often last season. Stephen Elliott has pedigree while Kilbane's experience will be vital away from home against partisan crowds. The big glamour friendly is at Bristol Rovers this Saturday as we count down to Huish Park, home of Yeovil and the M5 traffic in eleven days time.