Coventry City boss Frank Lampard has shared an update on the possible absence of Josh Eccles and Milan van Ewijk following Tuesday night’s 1-1 draw with play-off contenders Preston North End at Deepdale.
The Sky Blues arrived in Lancashire aiming to quickly bounce back after only their second league loss of the Championship season, which came against promotion favourites Ipswich Town over the weekend.
Still, given Coventry’s historically poor record at Deepdale — having never won a league game there and managing only a single victory in the EFL Cup back in September 2000 — many supporters viewed this as an unlikely venue for a turnaround.
Those struggles continued as City endured another frustrating evening. Despite taking the lead when Andrew Hughes put through his own net, Daniel Jebbison struck back almost immediately. This came even though Preston had been reduced to ten men when Liam Lindsay was sent off shortly before half-time.
The draw keeps Coventry five points clear of second-placed Middlesbrough, who earned a third straight win under Kim Hellberg by beating Charlton Athletic 2-1. Lampard’s side now turns its focus to Saturday’s clash with Bristol City at the CBS Arena.
But with injuries piling up in recent weeks, Lampard may have to adjust his squad again.
Lampard delivers latest on Eccles and van Ewijk
Lampard has already had to regularly reshuffle his midfield this season, with key players like Jack Rudoni and Victor Torp missing time.
Torp, who had sat out the Ipswich defeat due to illness, returned on Tuesday and came on for Eccles after just half an hour. Lampard confirmed after the match that Eccles had picked up a painful calf problem which could rule him out.
Meanwhile, dependable right-back Milan van Ewijk missed the match entirely after falling ill, shortly after Torp had suffered a similar issue. His place was taken by Kaine Kesler-Hayden, the ex-Preston loanee signed from Aston Villa.
Asked about the condition of both players, Lampard admitted he does not yet know whether van Ewijk’s symptoms match those of Eccles, raising the possibility of a bug circulating within the squad.
Speaking to Coventry Live, he said of Eccles:
“He’s taken a knock to his calf and was in a lot of pain. He couldn’t move well afterwards, so we’ll need to assess it.”
On van Ewijk’s illness, he added:
“I’m not a doctor, but it seems like the type of illness that’s going around right now. He became sick on Sunday afternoon.”
Coventry aim to steady the ship despite setbacks
Given the conditions and Coventry’s long-standing struggles at Deepdale, a point isn’t a disastrous outcome, especially as Preston have caused problems for several promotion hopefuls.
With back-to-back games without a win, there may be some nervousness, but Coventry’s home form this season has been excellent, and they’ll hope to build on that when Bristol City visit.
It is still uncertain whether Eccles or van Ewijk will recover in time, though Torp’s return offers a slight boost as the Sky Blues look to get back on track.
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