Patrick Bamford has shared that Coventry City owner Doug King backed out of signing him, despite initially inviting the former Leeds United striker to join the club.
The 32-year-old had been training with the Sky Blues at Ryton as a free agent—mainly to regain fitness, but also with the expectation of earning a contract with the league leaders after leaving Elland Road in the summer.
However, Bamford says King reconsidered the move because the team was performing so well. Shortly afterwards, the striker received an offer from Championship rivals Sheffield United and decided to take the opportunity at Bramall Lane.
Speaking to the Sheffield Star, Bamford said:
“Obviously, I’ve got my family to think about. When Coventry showed interest, it felt like a good option, and I already knew Frank Lampard from my time at Chelsea. So I went down there thinking that, at the very least, training with a squad would be better than working alone. I’d been putting the work in every day with my personal trainer, but it’s never the same as team training. When I arrived, everything was basically agreed.
“It’s disappointing it didn’t work out, but I told them I appreciated the chance to train and build my fitness. That actually helped me a lot because when I arrived here, it allowed me to settle in quickly.
“Then the owner decided he didn’t want to complete the deal because the team were doing so well—which they are. I’ve got no hard feelings at all. I spoke with Frank, and he apologised, saying he’d enjoyed having me around.
“Once that fell through, Chris called me. We talked for about 20 minutes, I came in on Wednesday, and within two hours everything was sorted. I didn’t need much persuading, and Chris and I had already spoken a few months earlier.”
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