Coventry City goalkeeper Oliver Dovin has said the sacking of Mark Robins as Sky Blues boss was “understandable”. The Sweden international was signed by Robins from Hammarby in the summer, but in an interview with Fotbollskanalen via Sport Witness he said of the November dismissal: “I was shocked and surprised, I guess.
“It’s difficult in this business. He had taken them up from League 2 to the Championship and was here for seven years. It didn’t go so well – we were a point above the relegation places – so it’s more the owner (Doug King) who makes the decision.
“I think a lot of people were shocked because he’s kind of an icon at the club, but if you look at where we were in the table and how things had gone in terms of expectations, maybe you could say it was understandable.”
Dovin, aged 22, was instantly installed as Robins’ first-choice goalkeeper on his arrival at Coventry, but later dropped as the Sky Blues struggled to make an impact in the Championship.
He added: “We had four points from five matches and the coach thought that something needed to change. I was new and young, and perhaps I was not as vocal as our other goalkeeper. So I had to look at myself and think what steps I could make to get a chance to play again. I had time to work on that, and I think it has become much better.”
In fact, it was only after Robins was dismissed and Frank Lampard brought in as his replacement that Dovin’s fledgling Sky Blues career got back on track.
Asked by Fotbollskanalen for his views on the new man, Dovin said: “I was happy because he is such a big icon in the world and in England. Everyone knows who he is, which means that Coventry as a club gets more attention. To be close to him every day and learn from what he can give out with his experience is just good.”
The youngster has been an ever present in the Coventry goal since Boxing Day, a run of 11 consecutive games that has yielded 11 points and just one defeat – at Norwich City on January 4. It is a run of form that leaves Coventry with an outside chance of reaching the Championship play-offs after last night’s victory at Blackburn leaves them just seven points outside the top six.
Dovin said of Lampard: “I think he’s a good coach. He’s not so much a manager who sits back and lets his assistants do everything, but he’s very involved with the whole team and with individuals. He’s also a good guy. A good person.”
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