The Swans struggled to penetrate Southampton throughout the match. The first 15 minutes from the Swans saw them retain possession at ease, however the final ball was consistently missing. Southampton deserve massive credit for lining up with three forwards, and for pressing the Swans high up the pitch for the majority of the match. Once it became apparent the Swans were going to struggle to find a way through the Saints' defence the visitors gained confidence, and for a good 25 minutes at the end of the first half they were the better side. The Swans even seemed to resort to playing long balls; although whether this was the result of tactical instruction or opposition pressure we can't say.
Right at the death of the first half came the game's first real talking point. A pretty dodgy-looking free-kick was awarded on the edge of the Swans' box and Rickie Lambert was surely already celebrating when Vorm managed to claw the ball away from the top corner and out for a corner. From the resulting corner Lallana had the ball in the net, but it was disallowed for a foul on Vorm - in all honesty it looked pretty soft but the Swans keeper did seem to have two hands on the ball - whether that was me imagining things though I can't say, and MOTD will no doubt see me right or wrong later on.
Luke Moore was replaced by Routledge at half time, and while the forward had hardly touched the ball
in the first half I felt replacing Hernandez would have made more sense. Given the scarcity of ball the forward had received, he can hardly have been blamed for not creating more, however the switch almost led to a goal as Routledge broke free down the right before finding Michu with a great cross, only to see the Spaniard head over when well placed in the centre of the box.
Hernandez was eventually withdrawn for Ki on the hour mark, and I felt the Korean had an instant impact in that the Swans actually started to retain possession through the centre of the field. I'd like to see him operate further forward, as by giving him a defensive role it seems to give him doubts about shooting, and he always seems to look for the pass. As any number of Youtube videos show, he loves a shot and I think his willingness to pass must be due to tactical instruction to "keep it ticking over" a lá Leon. Hopefully he'll break his duck soon and we'll see the best of him.
Both Pablo and Dyer haven't been playing well for a while now and Routledge must wonder what he'd done wrong to find himself on the bench today. I thought the Spaniard in particular was atrocious, and I felt pretty relieved when he left the field. Time and time again he gave the ball away and he really needs to find some form if he's to justify his price tag. Dyer also looked bereft of ideas for the most part, and his day was summed up when he was fed in by Michu following a bit of a goalmouth scramble, and found himself beyond the keeper with only a defender on the line to beat. His shot across goal was straight at the one man it was possible to find and was cleared away, and while Michu could and possibly should have shot himself, Dyer's effort was tame and he should have done better.
In truth that was probably the Swans best chance - the afternoon was summed up when Chico decided to shoot from about 45 yards - his shot was blocked and the rebound almost led to a Southampton breakaway. The Southampton defence held tight and they almost nicked it late on; Mayuka forcing a good save from Vorm from close range.
The Swans lacked bite in the centre of the field, but more importantly they looked short of a spark in the final third. Routledge seemed to massively help the cause when he came on, and surely he must start the next game. The same can be said of Ki. De Guzman has been impressive this season but he doesn't have the discipline to maintain the shape of the Swansea midfield, and often finds himself dragging others out of position. If Laudrup is going to insist on playing Michu at attacking midfield (and I really hope that stops soon) then I'd much rather see Ki & Leon behind him, as I feel this gives a lot more structure to the side.
On to next week then. The Swans have now only picked up four wins in their last fourteen games - this isn't how Laudrup would have wanted to enter the closing straight and with Man City and Chelsea on the horizon he'll be hoping we can spring a surprise result in one of those games. I know you can't always be on top of your game, but no doubt there's work to be done on the training ground ahead of the first of those fixtures - away at Chelsea next Sunday.
Still, ninth in the Premier League isn't bad...