The Sky Blues have already made two signings so far this summer

Coventry City have been linked with a Brazilian defender.

The Sky Blues have already made two signings so far this summer, both in defence.

Frank Lampard has brought Spanish left-back Miguel Angel Brau and right-back Kaine Kesler-Hayden to the CBS Arena, landing Brau on a free transfer after his contract at Granada expired and paying Premier League Aston Villa an undisclosed fee for Kesler-Hayden.

Coventry are now said to be targeting another player to bolster their backline in RWD Molenbeek defender David Sousa.

Football League World claim the Sky Blues have joined a five-club race for the 23-year-old centre-back, battling with Championship rivals Derby County, Middlesbrough, QPR and Swansea City.

Swansea are said to have seen a €1m bid rejected by the Belgian club for the player, who has also played for Botafogo and Cercle Brugge and was once described as “one of the greatest young Brazilian talents”.

Lampard has made it clear he is already happy with the club’s summer transfer business so far.

Addressing the Kesler-Hayden signing, he said: “I’m delighted to welcome Kaine to the football club, I’m very excited to work with him. Having met Kaine I was really impressed with his ambition and desire to play for Coventry City.

“His qualities will fit in with the way we want to play, he is a young player and his defensive and attacking attributes will help to strengthen the squad.”

Frank Lampard transfer claim as Coventry City battle for one of Brazil’s ‘greatest young talents’The Sky Blues have already made two signings so far this summer

Coventry City transfer news and analysis from CoventryLive as we take a look at whether Frank Lampard’s first two signings signal the departures of existing players

Frank Lampard has been quick to address Coventry City’s full-back issues with the arrival of Spaniard Miguel Angel Brau last week and Aston Villa’s Kaine Kelser-Hayden, who completed his move to the CBS Arena on Tuesday.

But their arrivals pose the question as to whether something has got to give in terms of prompting the departures of one or two existing players to make way for them.

In the case of the left-back situation, the Sky Blues now have three specialists with Brau competing with Jay Dasilva and Jake Bidwell.

On the opposite side, Kesler-Hayden’s arrival addresses a gap in City’s squad where Milan van Ewijk had been the club’s only recognised right-back last season, albeit versatile centre-back Joel Latibeaudiere is able to fill in.

Most coaches like to have two players for each position and the prospect of Van Ewijk and Kesler-Hayden at Lampard’s disposal is a mouth-watering one. However, the reality is that the sought-after Dutchman, who was this week linked with renewed interest from Fulham amid summer speculation about Everton and Galatasaray, may well be sold.

Kesler-Hayden’s transfer fee – believed to be anywhere between £3.5m and £5m – is another factor, and a move for Van Ewijk would clearly fund the Villa player’s arrival.

If City were in the Premier League they may well be able to afford the luxury of two such quality signings vying for the same spot, and fans will remain hopeful that is the case for the forthcoming campaign. After all, as good as Van Ewijk was last season, his fluctuating form would clearly have benefited from the occasional rest and being pushed by another player offering fresh legs in games.

Kesler-Hayden, meanwhile, played most of Preston’s matches during his season-long loan last term and won’t be coming to Coventry to sit on the bench.

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