Mark Robins appears to be keen to keep Coventry City fans guessing as to where he’s likely to deploy exciting summer signing Jack Rudoni this season.
The Sky Blues boss has been speaking about the 23-year-old capture from Huddersfield Town who, he revealed, has been on the club’s wanted list for a “number of years” and said City finally managed to get their man despite a “load” of interest from rival teams.
Asked when the versatile, forward-thinking midfielder first came to his attention, and whether it was an eye-catching display against Coventry over the last couple of seasons, during which Rudoni has played in four matches against the manager, Robins said: “What caught my eye? He’s just a really good player.
“There was a load of interest in Jack. In fairness, he’s been on our radar for a number of years and when we spoke we had a really good conversation. Dean (Austin) had done a lot of good work, the recruitment department had done brilliantly with him – he was really well known by Jamie Johnson.”
Johnson is City’s Head of Scouting, having previously worked at AFC Wimbledon where he was Head of Recruitment when Rudoni moved to Huddersfield two years ago.
Asked how the player has settled in after a week and a half of the pre-season, Robins said: “He’s hit the ground running. And he’s hungry and he wants to improve – all of those things that attract us to players. He has a lot of those qualities and he fits the bill for us because he can add dynamism, energy and quality into the already good squad we have got.”
As for the 64 thousand dollar question that fans are desperate to know – Rudoni’s best position and role he’s been brought in to fill, the manager seems intent on keeping it a mystery until supporters see him play.
He played as a number ten at Wimbledon, scoring 12 goals in his last season in League One with the club, but was then deployed more as a box-to-box eight at Huddersfield, albeit latterly reverting to playing in the hole behind the strikers. Giving no clues away with his squad number, the player has taken the number five, last owned by Kyle McFadzean and traditionally worn by centre-halves, rather than taking Callum O’Hare’s No.10 shirt, which has gone to winger Ephron Mason-Clark.
When asked directly about his best position, Robins simply said: “He’s played as a six, as an eight, a ten, an eleven and seven… He’s just a good player and he’s infectious as well. And like all of them, he understands the trajectory that we’re on and been on over the last few years, and has liked what he has seen and wants to be part of it.”
