Coventry City’s Jack Rudoni sits down with Sky Blues reporter Andy Turner for an exclusive chat about his connection with Mark Robins, goals, ambitions and exactly where he’s been brought in to play.

Jack Rudoni’s arrival at Coventry City has been a long time coming.

Manager Mark Robins has revealed that his exciting summer signing had been on the Sky Blues’ radar for “a number of years,” having first caught the eye and launched his own career at AFC Wimbledon with attacking, goal scoring form that earned him an £800,000 move to Huddersfield Town.

But as far as Robins was concerned, he’d hoped that was always going to be a stepping stone to the CBS Arena.

“Yeah, I think the first time I heard about Coventry ’s interest was at the start of last season, maybe even before that,” said Rudoni, sitting down for an exclusive chat with CoventryLive.

“There was slight interest at the start of last season and I knew from when I saw the manager from when we played Coventry and we got good vibes and then this summer it all really came together. And they said they wanted to go ahead with it and a deal got done pretty quickly, actually, and I was quite surprised how quickly, but really happy about it.”

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Robins has also revealed that City beat off competition from a number of rival clubs to get the player. And the Sky Blues had a bit of a secret weapon in the form of Jamie Johnson, the former Head of Recruitment at Wimbledon and now Head of Scouting at Coventry, who clearly had a hand in the transfer.

“Jamie helped my move from Wimbledon to Huddersfield, helped get that one over the line and now he’s helped again,” admitted the articulate 23-year-old, who explained exactly what attracted him to Coventry City.

“I think it’s the vision of the club and the people here, especially speaking to the manager and the way he sees the club going, and even the guys higher up. The vision is to go forward and ultimately get to the Premier League, which is my vision as well. So I thought we aligned with the way we were going. Also the style of play, I think I can fit into that really nicely.”

After learning of City’s interest, Jack became a bit of an armchair fan, following the club’s fortunes, particularly in the FA Cup when, he says, the spectacular comeback against Manchester United in the semi-final at Wembley convinced him Coventry was the place to be.

“Even watching the game against Man United kind of sold it to me,” he said, “coming out and playing with no fear and it was great to watch, and I was thinking at the time that I want to be a part of that.

“I watched it at home and I knew by then, probably midway through the season that there was strong interest and that it was one of my big options in the summer, and then it all came together really nicely. I really believe coming here is the right option, and I am here to get promoted to the Premier League just like everyone else, so we are all in the same boat.”

The versatile player has played in all four Championship games, home and away, against City over the last two seasons when he stood out not only for the manager, but Sky Blues fans as well. And it turns out that feeling was reciprocated by the player.

“I remember playing against Coventry, I think I played against them in four games over the last couple of seasons and every time I have played against them I have thought that they’d be a great team to play in, with the football they play,” he said.

“It seems that everyone is on board with their ideas, the patterns of play and the way they work the ball and the goal threat. And I always thought that I could thrive in this team, and that was even before it was happening. I have always been a big fan of the gaffer and the way he works, and the way Coventry play.

“And especially the fanbase, playing at the CBS is always one of the best atmospheres you can play in. The fans never stop singing and I always enjoyed going there to play, even as an away player, so I can’t wait to get out there and play for them as a home player.”