Kasey Palmer has labelled his return to Ashton Gate as the “biggest game of the season” as Coventry City look to build on their slight upturn in form after a miserable start to the Championship campaign.
Palmer signed for Coventry in the summer after an underwhelming three years at Bristol City in which three successive managers - Lee Johnson, Dean Holden and Nigel Pearson - were unable to find a consistent place for him in the team.
Reunited with former Chelsea youth coach Ady Viveash at the Sky Blues, like many of his teammates, Palmer experienced a slow and frustrating start to life at the club as Mark Robins’ side plummeted to the bottom of the league amid issues with form and the fixture list stemming from the state of the surface at the CBS Arena which caused a number of games to be postponed.
However, with two draws and a victory over Middlesbrough in their last three games, with Palmer’s influence steadily growing, they will arrive in BS3 for Tuesday night's encounter with a degree of confidence as the 25-year-old highlighted the importance of the fixture.
“Yes, it’s a big game,” Palmer told Coventry Live. “I have been telling the lads it’s the biggest of the season so hopefully we go there and win but, more importantly, we need to perform like we did against Middlesbrough and if we do that then most teams would get the three points, so we need to back that performance up now and start to build some momentum.
“It’s going to be Saturday, Tuesday and that’s what we have missed, being able to play games. We’re behind everyone else and now we can gather some momentum and pick up some more points.”
Palmer has made seven appearances under Robins, in all competitions, with Saturday’s 1-0 win over Boro was only his fourth as a starter as he admits he didn’t begin the 2022/23 campaign in the best physical shape, a problem he believes he has now addressed.
He will likely line up as the advanced man in a central midfield three, with Jamie Allen and Ben Sheaf, meaning Coventry will match City’s system.
The Robins have issues in that area of the field with Alex Scott serving a one-match suspension having earned five yellow cards, Matty James injured and ongoing concerns over whether Joe Williams can start two games in a week. As a result, Pearson's central pairing is likely to be Han-Noah Massengo and Andy King.
“I wasn’t that fit when I arrived so I have had to put a lot of work in to get to where I am now,” added Palmer. “It’s been good but it’s been tough. I still don’t feel that I am 100 percent but I am getting closer to my best physically, and hopefully that can show on the pitch.
“I have been working on my body fat and bringing my weight down, things like that, and trying to get fitter from pre-season and it’s going well.”
Strangely, it’ll be the first time Palmer sets foot in Ashton Gate since January, having been out of favour for so long last season, but the second time he’s faced many of his former teammates.
City were comfortable 4-1 winners over Coventry in the first round of the Carabao Cup at the start of August - a game which propelled Tommy Conway into the first-team - but Palmer claims that game shouldn’t be a guide as to the relative health and merits of each team.
“It was hard with the cup because there were a lot of changes from the league team and people were still trying to find their feet because it was so early in the season. It’s been a frustrating one for everyone, but the performances have been there in parts," he said.
“I think we showed what we’re capable of, but it’s about backing up on Tuesday and Saturday again, just to build some rhythm. Now we’ve got all the games coming and they’re going to be on, and not going be cancelled so hopefully we can get some momentum.”
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