Coventry City's Matt Godden celebrates their third goal with team-mates during the Sky Bet Championship match at the Coventry Building Society Arena, Coventry. Picture date: Saturday August 12, 2023. (Photo by Bradley Collyer/PA Images via Getty Images)
Exclusive: In-form Coventry City star opens up on summer transfer interest, what next
Matty Godden, Coventry City striker, has confirmed that he was aware of interest in his services over the summer, but the situation was quickly sorted out after talks with Coventry. The 32-year-old had been the subject of speculation over his future over the summer, with the club having paid big fees to secure the services of Ellis Simms, Haji Wright, and others. It was thought that Godden could be one of the players to be pushed out of the first team under new manager Mark Robins, but with just three goals in his last five Championship games and four in his last six in all competitions, he has proved to be a valuable player for Coventry City. There was some interest in Godden over the summer, however, with Derby County, Ipswich Town, and QPR all being mentioned as potential admirers..
Now, speaking to Coventry Live, Godden has been quizzed on the interest in his services. The ex-Peterborough United and Stevenage man confirmed he was aware of the attention he was drawing, but talks with the club quickly swept aside any concerns. He said:
“Yeah, but at the end of the day that’s part of football.
“I was coming into the last year of my contract and there’s always going to be talk around players who are in that situation. But when the talks had started with the football club it was a matter of days before it was sorted, so that was all just brushed under the carpet and that was that.”
Here to stay
Godden’s deal was running out so amid the summer transfer interest, the club moved quickly to tie him down to a new deal. He signed for two years, keeping him onboard until 2025.
His early-season form has showed just what he’s still capable of at this level. Seeing him find this form at another club wouldn’t been a sore one for Coventry and manager Robins, so all parties involved will have been grateful for the new contract agreement.
While big-money signings Simms and Wright take a bit of time to get accustomed to life with Coventry City, the hope will be that Godden can maintain this momentum and keep chipping in with important goals for Robins.
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2 Coventry City players we are surprised didn’t leave last month
FLW have picked two Coventry City players we are surprised to see at the club still.
Coventry City had a very busy summer when it came to transfers at the football club.
The Sky Blues brought in 11 new players during the summer transfer window as they look to go one better than last season.
Coventry sold their two best players in the summer, with Viktor Gyokeres leaving to join Sporting Lisbon and Gustavo Hamer leaving to sign for Premier League side Sheffield United.
That meant the club had a lot of money in their pockets, and that allowed Mark Robins to bring in several players, which he hopes will improve his team.
The club has made a steady start to the new season, with six points out of a possible 15 collected, as they’ve won one and drawn three games.
Robins will hope his new signings can hit the ground running after the international break as they look to climb up the table.
But while there were many comings and goings at the club, there were also some players who remained who were probably expected to leave.
Here, we have picked two players who we are surprised didn’t leave the club last month…
Simon Moore
It’s no surprise that Coventry goalkeeper Simon Moore did not look to move on, or that Coventry let him go, given the strong goalkeeping options in the side and the fact that he’s no longer highly rated by the Robins. Coventry signed Brad Collins during the summer transfer window to join a department that already included Ben Wilson and Moore, who had already lost his place to Wilson in 2021/22. Last season Moore was Coventry’s regular number one, but at the turn of the year he was dropped and Wilson was promoted to the number one spot. Since then, Moore has been in and out of the first team, with his only EFL Cup start being on the bench..
Jake Bidwell
Another player that may come as a surprise to some is Coventry left-back Jake bidwell. He joined the Sky Blues from Swansea City in 2022 and has been a key player for the club throughout his time. He played 50 times for Coventry last season, but after Robins brought Jay Dasilva to the club in the summer, it looked like Bidwell’s time was up. He has played just twice in the league this season, and it looks like Dasilva is Coventry’s first choice left-back now. It was reported earlier in the summer that if Coventry signed a new left-back, they would have to sell Bidwell, but that didn’t happen. So it may be that Coventry didn’t sign a new defender and that’s why he’s still at the club, but it may be that he wants to keep playing regular football. If Coventry didn’t give him any guarantees, it’s a surprise that he’s still here.
