Kaine Kesler-Hayden interview: ‘Frank Lampard was a massive reason why I joined Coventry'
Initiations are a common part of any new player's integration process at a club. Often, that means standing on a chair in front of their team-mates and belting out a song.
'They wouldn't want to hear me sing,' Kesler-Hayden says, laughing. 'I just decided to accept the fine (for not singing) and put it in the kitty.'
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Fortunately for Coventry City, Kesler-Hayden's start to life under head coach Frank Lampard has set the right tone on the pitch.
A pre-season camp in Portugal was physically tough — 'one of the hardest I've had' — but enabled Kesler-Hayden to gel with his colleague as, for the first time, he finds permanent residency away from Aston Villa.
Following five loans and interest from several clubs in the second-tier Championship, including Coventry, enamoured by his successful spell in that division with Preston North End last season, the 22-year-old decided to make the short move to Villa's Midlands neighbours.
'It's been perfect,' he says. 'The deal happened quickly, but I did come in for analysis meetings about where I'd fit tactically. The manager (Chelsea great and England caps centurion Lampard) showed clips of me and his team. He said my style would fit perfectly with how he wanted to play. I love playing in a possession-based team, so that was a big draw. I knew from the first time I spoke to the gaffer that it was the club I wanted to join.'
Kesler-Hayden joined Coventry at the end of June for a fee of £5million ($6.7m).
The former England Under-20 international wanted his future resolved early this summer. Loans to opposite ends of the country — from Plymouth Argyle in the far southwest to Preston in the northwest, with spells at Milton Keynes Dons, Swindon Town and Huddersfield Town in between — while at Villa meant Kesler-Hayden was ready for a less nomadic existence. His next move had to feel more long-lasting.
He was living in Salford, just outside Manchester, while on loan at nearby Preston but bought a house last year close to where he grew up in the Birmingham district of Solihull. He is a Midlands boy with a gentle Brummie accent and is a product of Villa's academy, captaining their under-18s to FA Youth Cup final victory in 2021.
'Going to Coventry and living nearby was a massive bonus,' he says. 'But there are also differences between a manager who has experienced the game and one who hasn't. When I walked back to the car after meeting Frank, I said to my agent, 'I really like him'.
'How he was as a person and how he spoke to me — he was a massive reason I came.'
As a boyhood Villa supporter and a player at the club since he was eight years old, a Premier League debut seemed aspirational, though not outlandish, for Kesler-Hayden. It seemed within touching distance when he made his senior debut in the Covid-19-affected FA Cup fixture against Liverpool in January 2021.
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Over the next three years, Kesler-Hayden would remain in a cycle of returning to Villa from one of his many loans for pre-season before being sent back out on loan or lingering around the first-team squad, without ever playing in the Premier League.
So when the moment finally arrived, in March last year, as a late substitute in the 2-0 home victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers, it would not be overly cliched to describe it as Kesler-Hayden realising a dream.
The moments of pride did not detract from his acceptance that he was unlikely to ever establish himself at Villa. He signed a contract extension after that 2023-24 season, but only to protect his market value, ensuring he did not enter the final 12 months of his prior deal.
'Leaving was difficult, because I'd been there for 14 years,' he admits. 'I had a chat about this summer with (sporting director) Monchi and (director of football operations) Damian Vidagany when I signed my new deal and then midway through last season. They were really nice about me leaving and were happy for me to speak to other teams.
'They (Villa) are on an upward trajectory and it's tough competition. I would have wanted the opportunity, but my pathway wasn't clear there.'
Kesler-Hayden spent six intense months working under manager Unai Emery after returning to Villa in January 2024 from his loan to Plymouth, then in the Championship. The academy graduate had opted to stay with his parent club until the end of that season, rejecting offers from top-end League One sides, and was justified with that Premier League debut two months later.
'Emery is one of the best managers I've ever seen,' he says. 'There were massive amounts of detail, and analysis meetings that lasted two hours-plus. The first one, I struggled with… there were a few coffees! But going into games, there were no questions to ask — you knew everything about the opposition.'
Looking back, half a year with Emery laid the foundations for a coming-of-age period at Preston when he was sent there on loan last August.
'Those six months were good for my development,' Kesler-Hayden says. 'Leon Bailey and Morgan Rogers — you are training with top players. I improved, it filled me with confidence that I could be an established Championship player on my next loan.'
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The year at Preston hardened Kesler-Hayden's mentality and inspired a new level of performance, as he started all of their Championship fixtures from October until the end of the season. He became more tactically erudite and consistent displays followed, leading to Kesler-Hayden sweeping up the individual prizes at Preston's annual awards.
🏆 Sir Tom Finney Player of the Year🏆 Players' Player of the Year🏆 Young Player of the Year
Fully deserved, @KaineKeslerHayd. 👏#pnefc pic.twitter.com/LLOfTCNgfJ
— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) April 29, 2025
'We would love to keep him, but maybe we have done too good a job with him,' Preston's manager, Paul Heckingbottom, told The Athletic in March.
'At previous loans, I had not completed the season,' says Kesler-Hayden. 'I was always coming back in January, either staying at Villa or going on another loan, which didn't allow me to settle.
'Positionally, I became much better at Preston. I was playing centre-half, both sides of full-back and wing-back, even winger — I was all over the place, and that allowed me to see the game from different places. Now, when I play right-back or centre-back, I understand what my player in front or the player in the opposite position needs from me.'
Even at 22, Kesler-Hayden is aware of the considerable bank of experience he has amassed. He knows exactly how many senior games he has played (136) and is striving to reach more landmarks.
This chimes with his personality off the field: he is viewed as a conscientious, serious worker who enjoys scrutinising his own game. Match footage has played a crucial role in his development, with Kesler-Hayden scouring clips for specific details, such as how he reacts to turnovers in possession or when he does not move into a covering position quickly enough.
While at Preston, he regularly discussed his performances with Villa's loan manager, Tony Carss.
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'We spoke every week regarding how I played,' Kesler-Hayden says. 'I respect him for that — he gave me honest opinions on my matches. Honesty is the best policy: you don't want someone to tell you you're doing well when you're not. He came to a lot of the games, which was massive. It showed he cared.
'We would use (analysis website) Wyscout, and Tony would make clips, annotating them with comments where I could see what I did right or wrong in an exact moment. The comments would be mostly questions to ask myself, not necessarily answers.'
Carss offered a point of connection to Villa, but Kesler-Hayden considered himself a Preston player. This crystallised when the teams were drawn to face each other in the FA Cup quarter-finals, with Kesler-Hayden ineligible to play against his parent club.
'I was gutted,' he says. 'I was sitting in front of the TV, watching the draw. I messaged someone at Preston and said, 'I can definitely play, can't I?'. They said no. I couldn't believe it.
'It was weird. I wanted Preston to win, so I could play at Wembley (in the semi-finals) but my friends from Villa were playing and I was chatting to them before the game, so it was bittersweet.'
Kesler-Hayden will always feel affection for Villa — he's spent more than half his life with them, after all — yet he knew he needed stability, and Coventry are providing that.
After making the play-offs last season and losing to eventually-promoted Sunderland in a semi-final that went to extra time, Lampard's side are considered among the contenders to win a Premier League place in the campaign that kicks off at home against Hull City on Saturday. So, for Kesler-Hayden, this move marks the next step up the ladder.
Like his singing, a polite reluctance appears when asked about personal goals for the campaign ahead. Nonetheless, Kesler-Hayden is confident the time will come when he is back in the top flight.
'I can do a lot at Coventry and get where we want to get to, which is the Premier League,' he says. 'It's just about getting over that edge.'
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