Coventry rocked by injury blow to 'incredible' player ahead of huge Burnley and Portsmouth games

The Sky Blues have been in scintillating form since mid-January, winning 10 of their past 12 second-tier games as they’ve climbed from 15th to fourth in the league table.

A key figure for Frank Lampard’s resurgent side during that period has been keeper Oliver Dovin, whose recent form was rewarded with a call-up to the Sweden squad for last month’s international break.

However, the highs of that selection have been quickly followed by an almighty low, with the 22-year-old shot-stopper now ruled out for a significant period after suffering an ACL injury in Coventry’s trip to Sheffield United last Friday night.

That leaves a massive void to fill - not just for Coventry’s remaining seven games of the season - but also for the first half of next term at least, too, with Dovin promoted to No1 at the CBS Arena following Pompey’s 4-1 win over the Sky Blues on December 21.

That day, keeper Bradley Collins was on duty for the Fratton Park visitors as Callum Lang beat the former Barnsley man four times as the hosts ran out convincing winners.

Those goals conceded proved costly, with Dovin appearing in every starting XI since for Lampard’s men - securing eight clean sheets and boasting a shot-saving percentage of 71.

But Collins now looks favourite to step straight back in and to make amends - starting with a home game against automatic-promotion hopefuls Burnley on Saturday, which will then be followed by the Blues’ trip to Coventry on Wednesday night.

Confirming Dovin’s injury on Friday, Lampard told Coventry Live: ‘As we’ve feared, he’s got an ACL injury, which ends his season. He’s going to have surgery so we’re really disappointed for him and we’ll see in terms of time frame. I’m not absolutely clear on that so I don’t want to go there, but in the short term we know his season’s done.

The former Chelsea and England midfielder added: ‘He’s had an incredible season, personally, the strides he’s taken since we’ve been here, making the Sweden squad makes it even slightly more bitter in a funny way because he’s doing so well. But I think with reflection he should understand how far he’s come. It’s an unfortunate thing for us and we all support him.’

Check out our latest episode of Pompey Talk here

Coventry stand in way of Pompey survival

Pompey have the small matter of a trip to Millwall on Saturday to contend before turning their attention to a midweek trip to the CBS Arena.

But both fixtures could have a huge impact on where the Blues finish this season, with John Mousinho’s side currently sitting 17th in the Championship table and with a five-point advantage over the relegation zone.

A point or two on the road over their next two games could go a long way to helping their survival hopes. Yet the Blues boast only two away wins away from home all season, while they’ve acquired just 10 points from a possible 57 on their travels.

Fratton Park has definitely proven to be a happy hunting ground this term for Mousinho’e men, with 45 points picked up at P04.

Collins’ present in goal for Coventry agaisnt the Blues just before Christmas benefitted them then. Here’s hoping his likely presence at Coventry next week has a similar effect.

For your next Pompey read: Millwall v Portsmouth: Jordan Cross' predicted line-up as Championship survival fight intensifies