The ingredients, the cake and the icing on top!

So, after the dismal spectacle of a 4-0 defeat by Watford in the final home game of last season and the rather muted welcome given to Aidy Boothroyd's arrival as manager, a sense of cautious optimism is in the air around the Ricoh Arena as Coventry City prepare for their final pre-season friendly.

Boothroyd pulled off an immediate coup in the transfer market by making Gary McSheffrey his first signing and has followed that up with an intriguing mixture of hungry young players from the top-flight (O'Halloran, O'Donovan and Jutkiewicz), a veteran midfield workhorse (Carsley) and from the lower leagues a potential find (Keogh) and a journeyman striker (Platt).

"For me I have got a fair idea of the specific ingredients needed to make that cake that can go on and do well in the Championship,' Boothroyd told the Coventry Telegraph as he waits for the icing on his cake, the eighth and final signing of the summer.

Marlon King's release from prison will ensure that particular story continue to run but, like many other Chamionship managers, Boothroyd may now wait until the deadline for Premier League teams to name their 25-man squads, which is set to release a host of players into the loan market.

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