Coventry City

Frank Lampard said the reality of Coventry City's title-winning promotion back to the Premier League has now sunk in.

The Sky Blues sealed their return to the top flight for the first time in 25 years with a draw at Blackburn on 17 April before clinching the Championship title at home with a 5-1 thumping of Portsmouth four days later.

Sunday's victory over Wrexham at the CBS Arena was a chance for the Sky Blues' fans to enjoy their celebrations at home and Lampard said that what they achieved had finally hit them.

"We're fortunate that we've had a few occasions to celebrate it now, away from home, at home twice. But it really sunk in at the weekend," he told BBC CWR.

"It was a fantastic opportunity for the fans to just purely enjoy it and I think they enjoyed the performance.

"But the realisation kicks in, it's quite surreal when you do something like this. I think with the situation of our club and the history, and even what we thought we might have at the start of the season to what the boys have absolutely produced is quite surreal, but now it's a reality."

Coventry go to Watford aiming to round off their campaign with a 28th win and their 11th in their past 15 games.

One more clean sheet would also guarantee on-loan goalkeeper Carl Rushworth the Golden Glove award - an accolade he is already sure of sharing, at least, with Ipswich Town's Christian Walton, who is one behind on 15.

"He's been an outstanding player for us," Lampard said. "He's brought consistency, calmness, level of quality, a professional training ethic.

"I know he's been on loan to different clubs, but the feeling of a Premier League player, how they train, how they act - he's brought a really professional nature to the club and he's been big for us.

"So I hope he gets that clean sheet award, whether he shares it or whether he wins it. I want him to win it because he's our player and he deserves it."

Watford come into their final game of the season bottom of the Championship's form guide with no wins and five defeats from their past six games

Coventry will hope to bid farewell to the second tier with an eighth game unbeaten when they travel to Vicarage Road on Saturday (12:30 BST).

• Watford are winless in eight league meetings with Coventry City (D4 L4) since a 3-2 victory in November 2020.

• After their 3-1 win in October, Coventry could complete their first league double over Watford since the 2004-05 season.

• Watford have only won their final league game in two of the past 13 seasons (D3 L8), drawing 1-1 with Sheffield Wednesday last term.

• After their 2-0 win over Middlesbrough on MD46 last year, Coventry could win their final game of successive Championship seasons for the first time since 2005-06/2006-07.

• Among managers to take charge of 100+ Championship games, only Scott Parker (1.95) and Daniel Farke (1.92) have a better points per game ratio than Coventry City's Frank Lampard (1.82).

Former Coventry City striker Clinton Morrison says Sky Blues fans deserve their day in the sun after securing the Championship title and a Premier League return after 25 years.

Morrison was the club's top scorer in 2008-09 and 2009-10 as the Sky Blues finished in the lower reaches of the Championship, though they were relegated to League One two years after his release.

Speaking on the latest episode of the BBC's Football Daily podcast, Morrison said: "They've had to suffer over the years.

"I was at (Sunday's) game against Wrexham and it was a great atmosphere. The fans deserve it.

"Frank Lampard has done a brilliant job, but you can't forget what Mark Robins did for that football club over the years when they struggled with ground shares and so on.

"They have suffered so it's great to see them back in the Premier League where they belong."

Middlesbrough and Ipswich have faltered against the pace set by Coventry at the summit, and City might yet finish double-digits clear after 46 games.

"They have been outstanding," Morrison added. "It's not a fluke when you finish top of the Championship because it's a hard league and it takes a lot out of you.

"They've had a few ups and downs but you have to credit their owner Doug King who went and brought in a couple of players in January that Lampard needed.

"They have been the best team in the league by a country mile."

Image source, Getty Images

Coventry midfielder Jack Rudoni has had surgery on a longstanding shoulder injury and the club hope he will be fit for the start of pre-season.

Rudoni, 24, has played a key role in the Sky Blues' promotion-winning campaign.

And with the Championship title having been secured, it was decided that he would have an operation to give him as much recovery time as possible.

He watched from the stands as Coventry beat Wrexham 3-1 in their final home match of the season.

Manager Frank Lampard explained to BBC CWR: "A shoulder operation which gets him hopefully fit for pre-season or slightly midway through pre-season.

"It was an easy decision to do it as soon as possible. We got over the line and he got it done."

Frank Lampard savoured the party atmosphere as his title-winning Coventry side beat Wrexham 3-1 and lifted the Championship trophy.

The Sky Blues boss praised his players for staying focused in their final home match of a memorable season.

"The celebrations at the end, lifting the cup, families on the pitch - that's what football is all about," Lampard told BBC Radio CWR.

"An incredible fanbase that have suffered a lot and now they get to see a team get 92 points, play with great style, score so many goals - and you can see that connection [with the fans] out there.

"The boys were at it. They wanted to show that they're title winners. Wrexham are fighting for the play-offs, but our boys played really well.

"I've enjoyed watching this team. It's been brilliant. It's been amazing seeing the qualities that they've shown."

Wrexham will aim to retain their place in the play-offs as they make the trip to title winners Coventry City on Sunday (12:00 BST).

The Sky Blues, who won the Championship title on Tuesday, have nothing else to play for except a winning end to their season before they head to the Premier League.

But the Red Dragons are still chasing a place in the top flight and depending how things go for Hull City on Saturday, could be in a need of a win to give them the advantage on the final day.

• Coventry City have won all four of their previous home league games against Wrexham by an aggregate score of 13-3; this is their first, though, since a 3-0 win in October 1963.

• Wrexham are looking to complete their first ever league double over Coventry after their 3-2 win in October. Only Ipswich have beaten the Sky Blues home and away in the Championship this season.

• Coventry have only lost their final home league game in two of the past 10 seasons (W6 D2 – including curtailed 2019-20 season), although those defeats have come in their past four campaigns – 1-2 v Huddersfield in 2021-22 and 1-2 v QPR in 2023-24.

• Wrexham have won their final away league game in each of their past three Football League seasons, never before doing so four times in a row in the Football League.

• Coventry have 52 points at home in the Championship this season; assuming three points/win all-time, only in 1931-32 (53), 1935-36 (58), 1958-59 (58), and 1966-67 (64) have they had more at home in a league season.