Soap Opera Pt 1

Listen to most people in and around Coventry City Football Club, and they will tell you that Ray Ranson is a good chairman, with the clubs best interests at heart. I don’t disagree with that, but I do ask what on earth is going on at the minute regarding two important players for Coventry.

First of all is the potential signing of Marlon King. The deal was all set to be wrapped up on Friday 11 September, but for whatever reason, there was no signatures on the dotted line. Then, in a national newspaper over the weekend, King’s agent was quoted as saying “A deal has been agreed, all that’s left now is to sign.” So what was the hold up? Anyone who supports Coventry, or indeed lives in Coventry, can tell you quite confidently that manager Aidy Boothroyd desperately wants to sign the striker that he worked with at Watford back in 2006. Boothroyd has made no secret in his desire to get his man, not least because of the current injury problems his squad is facing. So King wants to sign, the manager wants him but why still no deal? One of the club directors is rumored to be against the deal, holding the whole thing up. One can only imagine that the anonymous opposer isn’t a fan of King’s controversial past.

A good goal scorer that he is - 121 career goals in 383 appearances equates to a goal just over every three games - it has always been his private life that takes the limelight. A total of 14 convictions consisting of driving bans, theft and assault has earned him 2 separate prison sentences. The most recent, well publicised incident involving a young woman whilst on a night out in the Soho area of London earned him an 18 month sentence. A sentence that he has only just finished, travelling to Coventry to train under Boothroyd almost immediately after his release. Other incidents involve several fall outs with managers and an alleged head butting, involving team mate Dean Windass.

The deal was set to be signed (again) today - Thursday 16 September - before an announcement around midday stating that it would now be signed on the Friday. The fact that Boothroyd is “praying for a deal to be struck before the weekend” suggests that there is something or someone that is currently holding up the deal. Me, I think he could do a good job for us. He could be exactly what we are missing, someone who can stick the ball in the net. But we need to get it sorted sooner rather than later. Either sign him up, or let him go.