Late call-ups for ex-Swans means squad has a decidedly South West Walian feel to it...
Wales have been underperforming for a while. Since being appointed, Chris Coleman has struggled to get his team producing results - or even decent performances. The football they've played has, on occasion, made them look like a poor man's Swansea and it's understandable they're trying to put in place a style of play which can be carried on by the next manager, in a bid to benefit from continued continuity much like the Swans have.
Without a crop of star players for every position, the best way to assemble an international team must surely be to pick a young squad and stick with it. The players will learn each other's games, and over time you'll develop a tasty looking team. Toshack started this but was hounded out by the vendetta-fuelled Robbie Savage and chums, and I thought that was pretty harsh. He had the right idea, and I'm convinced if he'd have had more time we'd have seen him produce results.
This brings me neatly to the announcement that Chris Coleman has called up nine players to cover injury victims, one of whom (Daniel Alfei) is currently a Swansea player and another five of whom used to play for Swansea (or are out on loan in Jazz Richards' case). The full list of replacements called up was as follows: Lloyd Isgrove, Owain Tudur Jones, Daniel Alfei, James Wilson, Rhoys Wiggins, Jermaine Easter, Shaun MacDonald, David Cotterill and Jazz Richards.
With so many players in the squad having experienced life in SA1, it seems Wales could benefit from adopting the "pass and move" style we've become so used to in these parts. Wales have tried to operate in this manner for a while with limited success, so hopefully having a lot of people singing from the same hymn sheet will stand the squad in good stead and they can adjust to each others games' quickly.
Why Coleman called up Bale when Madrid had said he wasn't fit we don't know - he withdrew from the squad only hours after being called up. It was a very strange move which doesn't help Coleman at all - it smacks of desparation and he's surely not long in a job if results don't go his way in the next two matches, despite FAW protestations otherwise.
As for current Swansea players, Ben Davies, Neil Taylor & Ashley Williams were due to travel to meet up with the rest of the squad, despite all recently having their own injury worries. Davies has been ruled out of both games after picking up a hamstring injury against Southampton while Ash is continuing his comeback from an ankle injury which has kept him out of the last few Swans' matches. If Coleman plays Ash when he's not 100% fit, he can expect a frosty relationship with Huw & Co for the rest of his tenure. Taylor, however, should be fully recovered from a bruised thigh.
With Macedonia up first, the lads will be keen to secure a result ahead of a seriously testing trip to Belgium. With eight ex or current Swansea players in the squad, at least we should be able to make a decent fist of a possession game.
That'll be the idea, anyway...