FRANK Lampard hailed captain Matt Grimes as the ‘brain’ of the team but feared the midfielder’s move to Coventry City would not go through.
Grimes became Lampard’s first signing as Sky Blues boss in January 2025 as the midfielder’s mid-season arrival sparked a significant upturn in form.
The former Swansea City captain became Coventry skipper early in the 2025/26 season which ended with the club lifting the Championship title.
In a video posted on the club’s YouTube channel, Lampard and Coventry chairman Doug King discussed various topics since the former’s arrival as Sky Blues head coach.
And Lampard believes the signing of Grimes allowed him to change formation but feared the deal would not go through owing the the timing of the transfer and the midfielder’s role as Swansea captain.
Lampard said: “Through that run last season we signed Matt Grimes and he became the brain.
“We went back to a four at the right time and Grimesy was pivotal in that.
“He became a leader on and off the pitch and the brain of the team which really helped us as coaches and staff.
“I didn’t think we’d get him. I’m looking at it, it’s mid-season, he’s captain, can this happen by the end of the month?
“I spoke to Grimesy on the phone and I thought this fella is really impressive and he really bought in.
“He wanted to get promoted and I got an authentic feel from him.”
And Coventry owner King admits the club pushed hard to sign Grimes having failed to land the midfielder previously.
King added: “We tried to sign him a couple of years beforehand and he obviously made the wrong decision at that point.
“We went aggressive on that one because we felt like we needed that sort of player and got him out of there as the captain which disrupted Swansea a little bit.
“He’d earned the right to have another go and he turned up for us. I’d always loved watching him play.”
