Former Premier League manager Tony Pulis says Frank Lampard must manage his own reactions as well as his players as Coventry City endure a difficult start to the season.
Frank Lampard is facing one of the toughest spells of his Coventry City tenure following a difficult start to life back in the Premier League.
BBC Sport columnist Tony Pulis has argued that Lampard's response to defeat could be just as important as the way he manages his squad.
The comments come as Coventry struggle for results following their promotion to the Premier League.
Pulis focuses on Lampard's reaction to defeat
Pulis' analysis centres on the psychological demands placed on managers during losing runs.
His argument is that Lampard must not only manage the confidence and mentality of his players, but also ensure that his own frustration does not affect the dressing room.
The BBC piece is an opinion column rather than an official statement from Coventry City.
Coventry facing a difficult start
Coventry have lost their opening four Premier League matches.
Their 5-0 home defeat against Brighton left them bottom of the table, still without a point or a league goal.
Lampard has acknowledged the difficulty of the situation and said his team must remain focused if they are to turn their form around.
The Sky Blues then suffered another setback when Aston Villa beat them 3-1 in the Carabao Cup, despite Victor Torp briefly bringing Coventry level.
After that defeat, Lampard said Coventry needed to improve and highlighted mistakes that had proved costly against Premier League opposition.
Pressure on Coventry to respond
Coventry's return to the Premier League has therefore begun with significant pressure on both the players and their manager.
Pulis' column places particular emphasis on how Lampard handles that pressure internally as Coventry attempt to stop the losing run.
The next few matches will provide an important test of how the team responds to its difficult opening weeks.
Sources: BBC Sport, Sky Sports