Coventry City (H) Foster's Preview
Argyle’s game against Coventry City on Wednesday night heralds a run of three games at Home Park in seven days, all against teams in the top eight.
Games against Leeds United and West Bromwich Albion will follow the encounter with the Sky Blues, and the trio of games come off the back of a busy week last week, with trips to Swansea City and Sunderland either side of a 120-minute game against Leeds in the Emirates FA Cup.
For Ian Foster, managing players’ workloads and trying to impart the necessary tactical information in a short space of time is a challenge, but an enjoyable one, he says, calling upon his experience with England age-groups in tournament football.
“It comes thick and fast; it's challenging,” said Foster. “You get limited time on the grass to put in your tactical work, but it's intriguing and exciting as well.
“We try and keep our processes aligned in terms of still reviewing the games, still going through our process in terms of our tactical work. Obviously, it's a lot more condensed, and the players have to be a lot more focused. We stagger the meetings either side of the gym work.
“It's quite similar to tournament football at international level, in terms of the turnaround of the games. It's something I've been used to in terms of the planning, which has really helped me. It's part and parcel of this division, and we look forward to it.
“There's a lot of planning that goes into it in terms of the weekly schedule. What time do we have the players come in to make sure that the work is done for them in terms of review and match preparation. Everything down to the finest detail to make sure that it's player-led; that the players get exactly what they need, and they're prepared.
“[Having three games at home] almost feels like you could just take a deep breath, and almost relax, because the schedule is busy and gets busier when you're putting travel days into that as well.
“The fact that we're here, the fact that we can do all our work here, it gives us more hours on the training grass as well. It's a huge positive in terms of preparation, but a huge positive in terms of the opportunity to play here, which is what we're desperate to do.”
Coventry, managed by Mark Robins, are eighth in the Sky Bet Championship, They have lost just twice in their last 16 games in the league, and are much improved from the side that won just three of their opening 15.
Coventry’s slow start could be attributed to heartbreak from last season, in which they got to the play-off final only to lose to Luton Town following a penalty shoot-out.
The Sky Blues’ rise through the divisions, though, has been remarkable. When Mark Robins took over as boss, in March 2017, Coventry were in League Two. To get so close to the top flight just over six years after taking the role is a testament to the job Robins has done.
In a spell as a coach at Coventry, Foster crossed over briefly with Robins, and is a big fan of the City manager, who guided them to a 2-1 victory against Millwall on Sunday.
“They're an excellent side,” said Foster. “I’m very fond of the management team there, and all the work that they've done over the last few years has been outstanding.
“I think we have to respect where Coventry have been for the last few years, the journey that they've been on, and the fact that they were so close to getting promotion to the Premier League.
“After a difficult start, they're back at it again, challenging for play-off places and perhaps automatic promotion, which you wouldn't put past them.
“We know the challenge is great. We know that they're a very good team. We know how organised they are out of possession and how much of a threat they pose the other way.
“It just highlights the incredible run that they've been on, and the capability that they've got in terms of the players available to them.
“We know the depth of the group - I think they probably surprised one or two with the squad and team selection on Sunday - but then you see the impact they can have from the bench as well.
“Whatever team they decide to field tomorrow, it's going to be a challenge for us.
“Physically, it's been demanding, but that's not an excuse. We are well prepared. We trust our recovery methodologies. We're quite comfortable in terms of how the players have recovered from Leeds and from Sunderland. We'll be bang at it; we'll be ready to go and we'll give it our best effort.
“From a physical perspective, we're good, and the players are well drilled. They understand the tactical requirements of the game tomorrow. We're excited about the game.”
