Frank Lampard faces Coventry City sack call as fans 'revolt'

Frank Lampard is expected to face calls for his sacking in the near future after a miserable start to the season for Coventry City.

The Sky Blues won promotion to the Premier League last season, but their return to the top flight has been far from a success, with four defeats in their first four games.

A midweek 3-1 defeat to rivals Aston Villa in the League Cup has piled on added pressure, while they have suffered big defeats including 5-0 to Brighton at the weekend.

Former Coventry assistant manager Mick Brown told Football Insider that the supporters at the CBS Arena will soon become frustrated and could start to turn on Lampard.

While a slow start to the Premier League season was to be expected after years in the Championship, it is the manner of the defeats which has added to the concern.

Coventry's -10 goal difference is currently the worst in the league, while they have yet to score a goal, ahead of what looks to be a difficult run of fixtures coming up.

Could Frank Lampard be sacked by Coventry?

Brown told Football Insider on 14 September that Lampard is "in danger" at Coventry and is facing increasing scruitny over his position just four games into the season.

Brighton's emphatic 5-0 win at the CBS Arena last time out has led to questions being asked of the manager's position and his role in their difficulties so far.

There are now concerns the fans could turn on Lampard after the manner of the defeats they have suffered at home, including the midweek loss against Aston Villa.

"Frank Lampard will come under huge pressure at Coventry," Brown told Football Insider.

"When you come up into the Premier League and you're losing games 1-0 or fighting hard and just missing out, that can be okay, but losing 5-0 at home is very worrying.

"Brighton are a good side, and on their day they can beat anybody, but that doesn't ease the frustrations amongst the Coventry fans who will want answers.

"If they're losing games at home and losing heavily, it won't take much until the fans start to turn on him, because they start to question what they're paying the money for.

"Fans of any club will expect results at home, so big losses like the ones they suffered recently won't go down well.

"Often it's the fans who can be key to managerial decisions; if they lose patience then the board can start to panic and feel they have got to make a call.

"I'm sure they're still behind Lampard at the moment after what he did last season and because he's not in an easy position, they understand that, but those frustrations can creep in."

What is Coventry's current plan for Lampard?

Coventry have been keen to back Lampard and are planning to stand by him despite what has been a difficult run of form following their promotion to the Premier League.

However, there is also a feeling that their negative run of form cannot go on for too long, or they will find themselves in a position where relegation is inevitable.

Former Aston Villa scout Bryan King told Football Insider that Lampard could be given until Christmas to turn their form around, otherwise he will be sacked.

It has been a tough run of fixtures to start the season for Coventry, who have already travelled to Arsenal and Manchester City, but their fixture list is not growing easier.

The Sky Blues will face a visit to Nottingham Forest ahead of the international break, and Newcastle upon their return, with no end in sight to their tricky run.