From 17th to 5th place! Lampard led the team to the Premier League!

On the evening of May 3, the final round of the Championship was staged. Leeds United and Burnley scored 100 points and staged a "Century Draw" and finally "White Rose" won the championship with a goal difference advantage.

But what is even more exciting is the "Cinderella" counterattack staged by 46-year-old Lampard, who led Coventry to perform - a team that was still struggling in the relegation zone midway through the season, has now raised the banner of "the return of the Premier League" to attack the top league.

In the last game of the 2024/25 Championship, Coventry led by Lampard won Middlesbrough 2-0 at home. This victory not only allowed Coventry to secure an upgrade to the playoffs, but also directly shattered Middlesbrough's dream of returning to the Premier League this season. In November last year, Coventry ranked 17th in the English Championship, only 2 minutes away from the relegation zone.

It was at this moment that Lampard took over the instruction stick and started the "fire-fighting" journey. After a crazy sprint of 16 wins, 4 draws and 9 losses, the team finally finished fifth and defeated Middlesbrough 2-0 at home in the final round to secure the playoff qualification.

"The Magic Lamp" During the coaching period, the team's offensive and defensive system was completely renewed, and the second score of the midfield core Rudoni became a classic moment in the final round: "Scoring in stoppage time in the first half to stabilize the morale of the army, and locking in the final victory before the final game, this is just like Lampard's goal script at Chelsea that year. "

According to the competition system, Coventry will compete with Sunderland in the two-round semi-finals, and the winner will meet the winner of Brentford vs. Sheffield United in a single final. This seemingly ordinary play-off actually carries the burden of changing the club's fate - as long as the upgrade is successful, the team will receive a Premier League event dividend of up to 120 million pounds per year. You know, this number is 10 times the average seasonal income of the English Championship! No wonder local fans sang: "We want money! We want the Premier League! "This is not the first time the "magic lamp" meets the playoffs.

In 2019, he led Derby County to the playoff final, but lost to Villa in the penalty shootout. Now facing the growth of his old club Chelsea's loan player Mount (a key player in Derby County back then) as his core, Lampard's tactical wisdom has ushered in the ultimate test. Interestingly, Coventry's last battle in the Premier League dates back to 2001. If this successful upgrade is made, this veteran team will write the legend of "23 years of Nirvana".