With eight games left to play this season, Coventry City still have an outside chance of securing a top-six finish in the Championship.

Currently six points adrift of the play-off places, the Sky Blues could potentially climb the league standings if they pick up positive results in their upcoming league fixtures.

Mark Robins' side were forced to settle for a draw in their meeting with Derby County before the international break as Matt Godden's strike was cancelled out by an effort from Tom Lawrence.

One of the players who featured for Coventry in this particular fixture was Jordan Shipley.

After falling out of favour during the opening stages of the 2021/22 campaign, the midfielder has been deployed regularly by Robins since the turn of the year.

As well as making an appearance in Coventry's FA Cup defeat to Southampton, Shipley has participated in 10 of the club's last 15 league fixtures.

The standard of Shipley's performances in these games has been mixed as he has struggled with his consistency this season.

Whereas the midfielder managed to find the back of the net in the club's 2-1 defeat to Queens Park Rangers in January, he has failed to add to this goal contribution in recent fixtures.

Currently averaging a WhoScored match rating of 6.60 in the second-tier, it is fair to say that Shipley will need to step up to the mark if he is to earn a new deal at Coventry.

The 24-year-old's current contract is set to expire in June and thus he will become a free-agent if the Sky Blues opt against extending his stay.

In order to convince Robins that he deserves to be a part of Coventry's plans for the future, Shipley simply has to impress in the club's upcoming clashes with Blackburn Rovers, Nottingham Forest and Fulham.

Blackburn and Forest are both pushing for a place in the play-offs whilst the Cottagers will provide Shipley with a tough test as they are flying at the top of the Championship standings.

A failure to deliver the goods in these fixtures may mark the beginning of the end in terms of the midfielder's spell with the Sky Blues.

If Shipley does depart, he will unquestionably look back on his time at Coventry with fond memories as he has helped them achieve two separate promotions since graduating from the club's academy in 2017.