The midfielder is currently plying his trade at League One side MK Dons on a six-month loan deal, having joined in January following an underwhelming spell at Peterborough United in the first half of this season.
Coventry has established himself as a key player for the promotion chasing Dons and he could earn a place under David Moyes at the London Stadium next season with Mark Noble retiring at the end of this term and the club unlikely to sign Spartak Moscow loanee Alex Kral on a permanent basis.
And Coventry has revealed that seeing his close friend and fellow West Ham academy graduate Johnson doing well in Moyes’ first team set-up gives him hope that he could do the same next season.
The 22-year-old stressed that he has more self-belief, experience and knowledge about the game than what he had at the start of this campaign and insisted he is in a better state of mind to challenge for first team football next term.
“I think last season I was a good enough player”, Coventry told The Athletic.
“From pre-season, you could probably see that.
“I’ve experienced a lot within the year and on the pitch my mental state is a lot more developed than it would’ve been at the first of the season.
“So, I feel in a much better place to challenge next season.
“I see Ben Johnson’s progress and it gives me hope — we’ve been very friends since we were 10.
“It shows you young players from the academy are good enough to play.
“I have more belief in myself, more experience, knowledge of the game, and I’m hungrier.
“It’s my club, I’ve been there since I was 10 and it’s where I want to play.”
Although Coventry aspires to make it at his parent club West Ham, his immediate focus will be on helping MK Dons seal automatic promotion from League One, where they are currently third in standings, level on points with second placed Rotherham United.
