Mark Robins wants his Sky Blues to “embrace” the remainder of the Championship season ahead of City’s clash with Derby County tomorrow afternoon.
The Sky Blues were cruelly beaten late on against Middlesbrough in midweek and face a Derby side who are just two places above them in the table.
The manager wants his side to play without fear for the rest of the season and is focussing on what his side can improve on for the final 12 games of the campaign.
Robins said: “We’ve just got to pick up enough points to finish above the bottom three, we’ve got to concentrate on our performances, we’re in control of that, and concentrate on what we can do to improve and be as good as we possibly can in the remaining games.
“All we look at is the next performance, that’s what we’ve done all season and hopefully we can get the results we need to make sure we’re not in a sticky situation, everybody feels we’re a good side, we’ve got to embrace it and enjoy the rest of the season.
“We have to embrace the challenge, there’s nothing to fear and we’ve just got to focus on what we do well and that’s the message to the players.
“The supporters are always behind you and not to have that or feel that, that’s the biggest drive for us to remain in the division because we want them to experience what they’ve missed.”
Robins also stressed the importance of Saturday’s match with the Rams having made several changes to their squad in their midweek clash against Cardiff City.
“They work really hard, they’ve got pace, they’ve got power, they’ve got good players, everything you’d expect a Championship club to have, the only thing you’d say is that you wouldn’t expect Derby to be in the position they’re in.
“The fact they made six changes against Cardiff shows the emphasis and the importance they’ve placed on this game, it’ll be an interesting afternoon against a really good team.
“If we can get more things right than we get wrong we’ll give them a really good game, if we can cut out individual errors then we’ll get better results, it’s certainly an exciting period.
“Wayne looks like he’s comfortable on the touchline, the team is set-up well, he’s had some really good results and performances, it’s an encouraging start for him, each club has its own unique set of circumstances and you have to manage those, it looks like he’s made a decent start.”