Coventry manager Steven Pressley insisted yesterday Coventry’s homecoming will be as big as their FA Cup triumph.

The Sky Blues will return to the Ricoh Arena tonight to host Gillingham, after over a year of playing in Northampton.

The club ended a rent dispute with the stadium’s owners Arena Coventry Limited last month to make the switch possible.

And Pressley believes it is one of the most monumental days in the club’s history since they won the FA Cup in 1987.

“With the emotions, without doubt. It’s maybe the most emotional day since winning FA Cup,” he said.

“It’s a night when we have responsibility to entice supporters back on a regular basis.

“It’s a big club starved of success for too long.

Around the ground there are lots of subliminal messages and references to the cup-winning team and a return to the Ricoh is a major step in our history.

“Everything surrounding the club at the moment typifies how important the club is to the city. We’ve had two or three thousand camping out to get tickets. It will be a fantastic atmosphere and we can show everyone the potential of this football club.”

The players spent time at the stadium yesterday afternoon to reacquaint themselves with it and Pressley admitted they cannot let the occasion affect them.

He said: “We must focus on our gameplan. We’ll arrive on Friday night and feel the occasion. That’s what big games are. It’s a contrast to last year’s arrival at Sixfields where there wasn’t really an atmosphere.”