South Wales club rumoured to be back in for Jeff
We do now have some excellent names kicking around in the Swansea squad, don't we? We've a Wilf, a Dwight, Roland, Leon, Wayne, Jordi, Michel, Marvin...the list goes on. I am a fan of a player with a good name (or good hair), and that's why back in June when we were first linked with the man who wears Jeff on the back of his shirt a childish smile crept across my lips.
I was looking at some odds on the football section at 888sport.com when it got me thinking - aside from Montero (assuming there's an element of truth to the speculation) who else would we like to see brought in this summer? Montero is a flying winger - when I mentioned his name on Twitter some Swansea fans came forward with memories of his performance against us for Betis in a pre-season friendly, saying he was absolutely lightning quick. I have also heard his end product isn't the best, and do we really need another winger? It's possible - Lamah is off in the summer (likely) while Pablo doesn't seem to be able to stay fit for any prolonged period, so it could be prudent to add another wide player to our squad.
I'd say a young physical striker with a good first touch would be top of my shopping list if I was in charge of our transfer dealings. With Michu out, any time Bony hasn't been on the field we've looked very blunt and if we'd have had another option we could well have picked up more points - even if if was that option arriving off the bench against tired legs. We simply haven't had a second effective option up top this season, and that's something that should be addressed.
With De Guzman's loan expiring (and like Lamah it's unlikely he'll be here next year) bringing Ki back will be central to our transfer dealings this summer. If he wants to stick around that should give us enough cover in the middle, but if he doesn't he'll be sold early doors and we'll have to bring someone else in. You never know - we might even use that cash to try and sign De Guzman permanently? Who knows. Either way, if Ki & De Guzman aren't here next year we'll need another midfielder to go with Jose Canas, Leon, Jonjo & Michu.
In defence it could be argued we need another right-back, but that really depends on how much faith Monk and the Swans hierarchy have in Jazz Richards & Dwight Tiendalli. The latter was bemusingly given a three year deal after trying to get a better deal elsewhere last summer, while for many the jury remains out on both our reserve right-backs. Personally I think Jazz is more than capable of developing into a replacement for Rangel, but whether he'll be able to get the game-time needed to do that is another thing. If either of these two isn't regarded as a good option when Rangel is unavailable (and what's more the Spaniard isn't getting any younger), then it's possible we'll see someone else brought in.
There is always the possibility of Taylor playing at right-back, but it doesn't seem to be a favoured option for the Swans and I can't remember us operating like that ever if I'm honest. Given Taylor's agent was pushing for a move to Fulham in January it's again possible he could be the subject of interest from other Premiership clubs, but I'd be surprised if he moved on now. He's likely to get more action under Monk I feel, and I think more rotation at left-back can only be a good thing.
That's about it for me. I think a young striker who can learn off Bony, plus Ki to replace De Guzman (or another player to replace both if the Korean ups sticks), as well as possibly a right-back depending on how the rest of the season goes and we should be absolutely fine. Who would you want to see brought in? Should we sign another striker or will should we be concentrating on wingers and a midfielder? Sign up and get involved in the comment section below.