Coventry City manager Mark Robins is breathing a sigh of relief after Callum O’Hare’s potential move to Championship rivals Burnley broke down over the playmaker’s £10 million price-tag, speaking to the Coventry Telegraph.
If you’d told Sky Blues supporters that Viktor Gyokeres, Michael Rose, Gustavo Hamer and O’Hare would still be calling the West Midlands home one week before the club’s season curtain-raiser against Sunderland, well, even the most optimistic Ricoh regular might have questioned your sanity.
But with Robins’ star players sticking around, a side who confounded the critics with a top-half finish in May can afford to look forward to the new campaign with a sense of real optimism.
Negotiations between Burnley and Coventry regarding a potential Turf Moor switch for the talented O’Hare broke down on Thursday. A £10 million price-tag, it seems, proved to be the final nail in the proverbial coffin, much to Robins’ delight.
Callum O’Hare staying at Coventry despite Burnley interest
“Fantastic news! I said before he is a fans’ favourite. But he’s also a favourite in the dressing room and he’s a really good player,” the manager says of his former Aston Villa youngster.
“The players love him, the staff love him. He’s just an infectious character. It’s the energy you get from him, and his energy being around is just second to none.”
The Coventry Telegraph add that Robins may have turned to Derby County’s Louie Sibley had O’Hare departed. Those plans can now be placed on the backburner for the time being.
“You can’t replace (O’Hare). He’s irreplaceable, so I am absolutely delighted,” Robins adds. “We just move forward with him in the squad. And it’s much better to have him in the squad than not.”
Burnley have signed eight new players since Vincent Kompany was confirmed as Sean Dyche’s replacement, even if deals for both Bart Verbruggen and Jackson Muleka fell through at the eleventh hour.
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