Coventry City are believed to be eyeing up a summer move for a former Newcastle star who has scored 17 goals this season.
Frank Lampard is not hanging around.
Coventry’s return to the Premier League after 25 years is less than a month old, and the recruitment department is already working at full speed to ensure the Sky Blues are not making up the numbers when the new season begins.
The squad that swept through the Championship needs upgrading, and Lampard knows it.
The early signs suggest the club are willing to think creatively.
Earlier this week, we reported on Coventry’s pursuit of Chelsea striker Marc Guiu, with SportsBoom revealing the Sky Blues are leading the race for the 20-year-old, who is available at up to £21m as the Stamford Bridge side look to trim their oversized squad.
Burnley’s Zian Flemming has also been linked, with reports suggesting that Lampard is keen on adding players with proven Premier League experience to his group.
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Flemming scored 11 goals in 30 appearances for the Clarets this season despite their relegation, and his agents have been in contact with several top-flight clubs.
Now, a far more unexpected name has emerged on Coventry’s radar — and it is one that carries serious pedigree.
Coventry City exploring deal for Georginio Wijnaldum
According to Football Insider’s Wayne Veysey, Coventry are exploring a deal to sign Georginio Wijnaldum.
The 35-year-old former Liverpool, PSG and Newcastle midfielder is currently captain of Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq, but his contract expires this summer, and he is open to a return to English football.
It would be a remarkable move.
Wijnaldum won four major trophies during five seasons at Anfield, including the Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League in 2020.
He scored the two goals that turned the famous 4-0 semi-final comeback against Barcelona, and was widely regarded as one of the most complete midfielders in European football during his peak years.
Wijnaldum earned 96 caps for the Netherlands, scored 28 international goals, and left Liverpool on a free transfer for PSG in 2021 before eventually moving to Saudi Arabia in 2023.
His time in the Middle East has not been a wind-down.
Wijnaldum has produced 17 goals and six assists for Al-Ettifaq across all competitions this season — outstanding numbers for a midfielder in any league.
Football Insider’s sources describe him as “still very fit,” and there is a genuine desire on the player’s part to test himself in the Premier League once more.
The model has worked before.
Jordan Henderson, Wijnaldum’s former Liverpool and Al-Ettifaq teammate, returned to English football with Brentford this season and has made a meaningful contribution to Keith Andrews’ side.
If Henderson can do it at 36, there is no reason why Wijnaldum, a year younger and still producing at a high level, cannot do the same.
Coventry are understood to be weighing up a one-year contract. It would be a low-risk, high-reward piece of business — no transfer fee, a player with vast experience of the biggest occasions in club football, and a presence in the dressing room that could lift the entire squad.
The wage demands will be the key hurdle, but with Premier League broadcast money now flowing into the club, Lampard has more resources to play with than at any point in Coventry’s modern history.
Whether Wijnaldum ultimately decides the Coventry Building Society Arena is the right stage for his Premier League swansong remains to be seen.
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