RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Twenty-five years, 94 days and countless twists later, Coventry City have started life back in the Premier League.
The result might not have gone their way, but a 3-0 away defeat by Arsenal in the opening game of the season is hardly a cause for panic for a newly promoted side anyway.
The supporters who made the trip down to London remained in full voice at Emirates Stadium throughout the 90 minutes.
For a club that has spent more than two decades in constant turmoil, merely being back on the big stage felt like a moment worth savouring.
And losing to the defending champions, who also reached last season's Champions League final , was not going to dampen their spirits.
"A few years ago this club was in League Two, playing in a different stadium," manager Frank Lampard told Sky Sports after Coventry's first top-flight game since 2001.
"When we came in, we were 17th in the [Championship] league. The boys have risen, the team have risen and the connection with the fans has been amazing - they have been a huge strength for us. They have to remain that way and the lads have to give everything."
Arsenal were dominant, with their three goals coming by the 49th minute, and Coventry registering just one shot on target.
Lampard, who succeeded Mark Robins as Sky Blues boss in November 2024, told Match of the Day: "It's a good learning curve for our players.
"You come here and want to do something but it's very difficult. It's a good experience to live. We hate defeats, but you can lose here and there is a lot to be done to do what we want to do this season, so we will take the learnings."
Swaggering Arsenal want title attack, not defence
A long road back to Premier League Coventry's previous outing in the Premier League was a goalless draw against Bradford City on 19 May 2001.
That result brought to an end not only a disappointing 2000-01 campaign, but also a 34-year top-flight stay.
Coventry spent the next 11 years in the Championship before dropping down to League One in 2011-12. They also spent a season in League Two before promotion back in 2016-17.
They returned to the Championship in 2020 as League One champions and six years later, they are back among English football's finest.
Their journey since relegation in 2001 has been rarely straightforward as Coventry were forced to leave their historic home at Highfield Road, endured ownership disputes and spent spells playing home games in Northampton and Birmingham.
Their return - the longest gap between games by a side in Premier League history - and first assignment was chastening and a reminder that survival will be no easy task.
But Lampard remained optimistic as he added: "It's hard. Leeds United came here early last season and lost 5-0 and stayed in the Premier League.
"I'm not making any early judgements. We will have to acclimatise."
Since winning the Championship by 11 points from Ipswich Town , Coventry have spent about £130m, breaking their transfer record four times already this summer.
They have signed midfielder Frank Onyeka, centre-back Aurele Amenda, winger Loum Tchaouna and goalkeeper Carl Rushworth, while Ghana midfielder Caleb Yirenkyi was their record signing at £23.1m.
All five started at the Emirates, while fellow new arrivals, Gustavo Hamer from Sheffield United and striker Taiwo Awoniyi from Nottingham Forest , came on as substitutes.
All of them have top-flight or international experience, as well as physicality to their game, but even those additions did little to prevent Arsenal from asserting their superiority on Friday night.
When asked what Lampard told the players at full-time, captain Matt Grimes said: "Our season won't be defined by coming to places like this and getting beaten. Coming here against players like this is always going to be a tough ask."
But a game that could define their season follows next week when they host Hull City - who came up through the play-offs - at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
The Sky Blues have the toughest opening schedule of any team this season, according to Opta , with trips against Manchester City and Nottingham Forest to come next month, so the game against Hull takes on greater significance.
The teams played out goalless draws in both meetings in the Championship last season.
"With that start, we have to remain calm," admitted Lampard.
"We want to get rolling. We had a good feeling last year of winning games and it makes everything pretty easy. It won't be so easy this year, but we want to get those points for sure."
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