'Big blow' for Coventry City as ex-Sunderland player misses midweek clash ahead of Black Cats trip

Former Sunderland striker Ellis Simms was absent from Coventry City’s 2-1 defeat to Derby County on Wednesday evening as the Sky Blues prepare to take on the Black Cats in the Championship this weekend.

The centre forward spent the first half of the 2022/23 campaign on loan at the Stadium of Light, scoring seven goals in 17 appearances across all competitions before being recalled by parent club Everton. At the end of that season, he would go on to join Coventry City on a permanent basis, establishing himself as a key presence at the CBS Arena in the time since.

So far this term, Simms has scored two goals and assisted one more across a dozen Championship outings, but missed out on Coventry’s 3-0 win over Middlesbrough at the weekend, and was absent again as Mark Robins’ side slumped to a loss at the hands of the Rams in midweek.

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It is understood that the 23-year-old is sidelined with a foot injury, and speaking after the final whistle on Wednesday, his manager made it clear that he remains a doubt ahead of Coventry’s trip to face Sunderland on Saturday afternoon.

When asked whether there was any update on Simms’ injury status heading into the weekend, Robins - who was sacked on Thursday - said: “No, nothing as yet. It’s just something that’s down to him and his management of the pain, so we have to wait and see. But the fact that we had him and Norman [Bassette] missing was a big blow tonight.”

Simms had initially been expected to feature against Middlesbrough last weekend, but declared himself unfit when he woke up at the team hotel on Saturday morning, with Robins previously explaining: “He got up this morning and felt he couldn’t play. He’s got a problem with his foot. “Hopefully it’s not anything serious. It’s just something that came out of the blue really. I think he had an impact in training on Friday and got up on Saturday morning and felt it was too sore.”