Frank Lampard’s Coventry played key role in Wayne Rooney’s demise, now they can sink Plymouth Argyle once and for all

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Monday’s game between Coventry City and Plymouth Argyle will likely be a defining in the season of both teams, with play-off glory and the heartache of relegation very much on the cards.

As things stand, Coventry could all-but confirm their place in the Championship play-offs if they win against Plymouth at Home Park on Monday afternoon.

Meanwhile, Argyle’s mini revival appears to be over, and it now looks to be a formality that they will become the first team to be relegated from the Championship this season.

For Frank Lampard, this moment of glory will be huge, but it is also another opportunity for him to pile misery on the Pilgrims.

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How Frank Lampard and Coventry City destroyed Wayne Rooney’s Plymouth side

Back in December, Coventry picked up a crucial three points in a massive 4-0 win against Plymouth at the CBS Arena just after Christmas.

It was only Lampard’s sixth game in charge, and in retrospect, can probably be regarded as a big turning point in him winning over the support of the Sky Blues fans after the devastating departure of Mark Robins.

Then-Plymouth manager, Wayne Rooney, was under immense pressure at the time and the result did him no favours at all, with the big defeat ultimately putting his neck on the line. He was taunted by Plymouth fans during and after the game, and the writing was very much on the wall.

Rooney was sacked after the next game, with Plymouth falling to a 2-0 defeat against Oxford United and the England legend being dismissed later that day.

Speaking in the fallout of that Coventry win, Lampard said (via talkSPORT): “I know the challenges of each job and you only know when you’re in it.

“Wayne obviously has his career behind him and now his management career as well, which he’s gone straight into. There will be challenges for him there.

“It’s not for me to comment on that, I’m very happy with us today. I always wish Wayne well because he’s a proper football person.

“Again, there’s challenges so people have to understand he’s working. I hope to see him do well because he’s a young English manager with a lot to give and that continues to be the case.”

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Plymouth Argyle are dead and buried if they lose to Coventry again

While Lampard will have felt a touch of guilt at having humiliated his former England teammate, it is not something that the Coventry manager will have lost too much sleep over.

Lampard previously admitted he loves beating his friends, like Scott Parker, and that winning mentality is helping his Sky Blues side thrive at the moment.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
21	DerbyDerby	43	11	10	22	44	55	-11	43
22	LutonLuton	43	11	10	22	38	63	-25	43
23	CardiffCardiff	43	9	15	19	45	68	-23	42
24	PlymouthPlymouth	43	9	13	21	45	84	-39	40

If Coventry can get the three points tomorrow against Plymouth, though, it will spell the end of the Pilgrims stay in the Championship.

Miron Muslic’s side have shown some signs of life in recent weeks, but it was always going to be an uphill battle to get out of this Championship relegation dogfight.

Defeat on Monday on home turf, plus a win for either Luton or Derby (or both) would leave Plymouth stranded at the bottom of the table. They’d still mathematically be six points away with six points to earn, but with their horrific goal difference, it now looks like it’s just a matter of time before they’re condemned to League One.