Midfielder Jamie Allen talked all things Sky Blues, his new deal and his thoughts on the season, whilst previewing the Derby County FA Cup clash.
Having recently been awarded with a new contract, City workhorse Jamie Allen will be extending his stay with the club until 2024.
Allen shared his delight at penning the new deal and revealed his thoughts behind the decision.
“In the summer I got my head down started working on me, came back in pre-season, worked hard, found myself in the team now and again and with playing games you’re going to play better football yourself, thankfully I’ve been playing games and that’s been rewarded for me.
“We [Allen and Mark Robins] had a chat and things were said that we both needed to get off our chest, I had a good think about it and was just trying to get into the team.
“It all happened really quickly, but I was happy here, as long as I was playing I was happy, so it was easy to do the deal.
“It was a pleasant surprise, I didn’t expect it this early, but happy to get it done.”
The Sky Blues have only been able to play once since Allen’s new deal was announced, so the midfielder spoke on the frustrations of the current covid situation and what it’s been like behind the scenes.
“It’s been very strange not being able to come in and train every day, it’s difficult to be fair, a bit weird, but we need to get on with it now and get back to what we’ve been doing at the start of the season and start winning games now.
“I’m looking forward to playing again, even the last couple of weeks looking forward to training, getting everyone back in has been enjoyable, but we’ve been seeing loads of games over the festive period and we’ve just been sat there waiting for our games to come around, so we’re very excited for the games to come.
“It’s frustrating, but it is what it is at the minute, we’re doing everything we can in our camp and hopefully everyone else is in their camp, but it it is what it is in this day and age now.”
With eyes on the next game, Allen discussed the joys of the FA Cup, looking back at his time in the competition before, as well as previewing City’s match against Derby County.
“It’s a big competition and you look forward to the FA Cup games coming around, even though they start in the cold winter days, but you always look forward to the FA Cup games, it’s a special day when the first game comes around.
“I remember the Rochdale run, beating Leeds and Forest in the cup, obviously Rochdale being a small club, beating those teams was massive for the club and it gave us a little boost for the rest of the season.
“It will be a good game for us, they’re in good form in recent times, but we’re at home, we need to stamp our authority on it and hopefully we can get the win.
After agreeing his new contract, Allen will be vying for a spot in the midfield, but spoke of the competition he faces at the club and the importance of the middle pack chipping in with goals.
“We’ve got a lot of midfielders and they’re all good players, so it’s competitive in training, that makes it better because if trainings competitive it’ll be like that game time.
“I’m enjoying playing with this group of players, so when I get on the pitch I just need to stamp my performance down there and hopefully I can stay in the team then.”
Finally, the midfielder gave a nod to the Sky Blue Army and the importance they will have for the remainder of the season.
“The fans have been brilliant since they’ve been back, loud at every home and away game, but especially at home we’ve been getting 18-20,000 each week, so it’s been brilliant to play in front.”