One former target who is now proving himself against Premier League is Ellis Simms, who netted a brace against Wolves yesterday to take Coventry City through to the FA Cup semi-finals. The ‘unbelievable’ striker spent the first half of the 2022-23 campaign on loan at Sunderland and claimed nine goal contributions in 17 games in the Championship – six of which came in his final eight games before he was recalled by Everton. The Black Cats were eager to bring Simms back on a permanent basis in the summer but faced heavy competition for his signature, but they had to pull out of the race as they couldn’t afford his £8 million price tag. It certainly seemed extremely expensive at the time, but his recent success for Coventry is a bitter pill to swallow for Sunderland. Simms only scored two goals in his first 25 matches for the Sky Blues, but he has since found his feet and now has 15 goal contributions in his last 18 games in all competitions. The 23-year-old bagged his first hat-trick in their 5-0 win over Maidstone United last month, before picking up yet another against Rotherham United a week later. After claiming six goals in his previous four games, Simms took it to another level when he scored twice in a dramatic 3-2 win at Molineux Stadium yesterday. CoventryLive gave Simms a whopping 10 rating after his impressive display, which has helped take Mark Robins’ side to Wembley Stadium. His form has also contributed to Coventry’s push up the Championship table, where they now sit only four points from the playoffs – eight points above Sunderland. Everton demanded a hefty fee for Simms’ services, but there was no denying that the Black Cats could have afford it after Stewart was sold. It’s not to say the club should have definitely forked out money to bring him back to the Stadium of Light, but it is incredibly frustrating seeing a player impress so much while we are unable to find the net on a regular basis. Like Kieffer Moore – who has six in ten games – it is another decision that reflects badly on Kyril-Louis Dreyfus and Kristjaan Speakman.
GET MORE NEWS HERE
Leave a Reply