Coventry tried to buy Rushworth - King

Coventry City owner Doug King has said the club tried to buy on-loan goalkeeper Carl Rushworth but a deal could not be agreed with Brighton at the time.

The 24-year-old has has kept 13 clean sheets in an outstanding spell with the Sky Blues that has helped them surge eight points clear at the top of the Championship, and into pole position to win the title and Premier League promotion, with nine games remaining.

"We did try to buy him but that wasn't able to be done at the time," King told BBC CWR.

"He's shown himself to be a high quality goalkeeper and when we lost Olvier Dovin [to a knee injury] we recognised we needed a goalkeeper that adds that assuredness.

"It pervades out through the team and defence if you're very sure of someone behind you and we've all seen him grow into a fantastic goalkeeper."

King did not say whether the club would try again to sign him but Rushworth may well have given them hope by telling BBC Sport he is "happy to weigh up the option" of leaving the Seagulls if necessary.

Rushworth's loan at Coventry is the sixth of his career and King says the move has benefited everyone.

"We've given him that platform and given it to Brighton as well to showcase their goalkeeper in the Championship and they should be pretty pleased with the way it's gone for us and them," King said.

"He's done great and hopefully he'll continue to do great over the next nine games."

In a wide-ranging interview with BBC CWR, King also said if Coventry do end their 25-year wait to return to the top flight, they would approach the task of staying there "the Cov way".

"Burnley have been up and down a couple of times. Sunderland have changed the whole 11 which was quite radical," he said.

"We'll do it the Cov way - the way we think is the right way to achieve what we want to.

"You definitely would like to try to stay there - certainly for one year - that allows you to bed in a little but it's not straightforward.

"We're looking at lots of different things."