Swansea undone by moment of madness
There are times when it's easy keeping this blog profanity free (though I'll admit to using asterisks on numerous occasions), and then there are times where it is very, very hard. This is one of the latter. After seemingly having done enough to claim a point against a very professional Southampton side, we managed to concede what would obviously be the winning goal in even more bizarre and outlandish circumstances than those which saw us take the lead against Aston Villa last time out. While Jonjo's strike was pure class though, the only goal of this game was pure calamity.
Yesterday Amat was preferred to Chico, available once again after suspension, while Tiendalli came in for the injured Rangel. Elsewhere it was as expected, though if I'm honest I struggled to get a grip on our formation for large periods of the match. I thought at first we'd started with a diamond midfield, but then by twenty minutes in we seemed to be playing the standard 4-2-3-1. Whether this was a failure on my part in terms of my interpretation of our tactics, or Monk (and Pep) responding to some early Southampton pressure I honestly can't say.
I'd like to point out at this point in the blog I lost the use of my girlfriend's laptop (down wildest West Wales for the weekend once again), so if I've forgotten anything you'll have to forgive me. I'm now writing this on Monday evening so events aren't so fresh in my memory.
The first half was a game in the true end of season spirit. Nothing really happened, and while Southampton seemed to enjoy the lion's share of possession I'd say there were only three great chances in the first half - none of which were taken and two of which fell to the Swans. First, Jonjo brilliantly pressed high up the field and won the ball back - the ball came free at the feet of Wilfried Bony and remarkably, he didn't try to bury it (as we'd have expected) instead opting to utilise a cute bit of skill, flicking it into the path of Pablo, who did have a clearer sight of goal.
Sadly, our Spaniard wasn't able to beat Artur Boruc in the Saints goal, and the same could be said of Jonathan De Guzman, running onto Hernandez's parried shot. He skied his (albeit more difficult) effort, and i'd say that was out best chance of the game gone.
Next, a flicked header from Pablo (I know!) freed Bony running into the box on the left hand side, but the ball was bouncing and he elected for a driven left footed finish, which he couldn't keep down. As for Southampton's chance, Sam Gallagher headed over after Nathaniel Clyne had easily drifted past Ben Davies before producing a lovely cross which, had Jay Rodriguez been on the end of it instead of young Gallagher, would probably have produced the game's only goal. For a long period of the match I thought that would prove to be crucial in securing the Swans a point - turns out I spoke about a minute of injury time too soon.
The second half… well to be honest I don't remember much about it. I'd had a few beers, it was the last home game of the season and I was determined to enjoy myself, and I can't remember much good football of note being played to be honest. The game seemed set to end up being a bore draw, and then…then…well. How the hell did we concede that goal? A nothing ball was inadvertently flicked on by Jordi Amat (that's him out of the team), before Ashley Williams cleared but only succeeded in diverting the ball's trajectory upwards - not, however, away from the goal.
The ball was coming down with snow on it, ok I'll give them that, but Ashley Williams and Michel Vorm BOTH tracked the ball back, and succeeded in making no challenge on Rickie Lambert, who'd basically wandered along following the flight of the ball. He didn't even have to make a challenge, simple seeing the ball hit the post and deflect in off his side - a truly weak goal to concede, and a very poor one at that.
It raises questions I don't like asking; should we be looking for a new goalkeeper? Are our current centre-backs up to scratch? I rate Ashley Williams, I think Amat is going to be a very good defender and I think Bartley could be a good player, but given the small amount of game time he's seen I can't claim I'm overly confident in his abilities as a Swansea City player.
As for Vorm…well…he's been better than Tremmel this season - and that's about the best accolade I can give him. He seems permanently rooted to his line at the moment, and his reluctance to deal with high balls/crosses into the box makes me panic every time the ball is in the air. He's the best we've got though, so as long we don't sign anyone else he's got my backing. I'd say it's now more obvious why he was available for £1.5mil than it was when he first signed, and went about producing a string of excellent saves, but that's football I guess.
Again, apologies about the tardiness of the blog - I travelled west directly after the game and this is the first chance I've had to get something online. I've got a couple of good posts lined up this week and I'm expecting a few new articles from The Swansea Way team (think Anchorman news team but with more panache), so make sure to stay tuned this week.
What did you think of the win? Should we be looking to bring a new goalkeeper in this summer? Who else should we be looking to sign? Sign up and get involved in the comment section below - debate is king!
I'd like to point out at this point in the blog I lost the use of my girlfriend's laptop (down wildest West Wales for the weekend once again), so if I've forgotten anything you'll have to forgive me. I'm now writing this on Monday evening so events aren't so fresh in my memory.
The first half was a game in the true end of season spirit. Nothing really happened, and while Southampton seemed to enjoy the lion's share of possession I'd say there were only three great chances in the first half - none of which were taken and two of which fell to the Swans. First, Jonjo brilliantly pressed high up the field and won the ball back - the ball came free at the feet of Wilfried Bony and remarkably, he didn't try to bury it (as we'd have expected) instead opting to utilise a cute bit of skill, flicking it into the path of Pablo, who did have a clearer sight of goal.
Sadly, our Spaniard wasn't able to beat Artur Boruc in the Saints goal, and the same could be said of Jonathan De Guzman, running onto Hernandez's parried shot. He skied his (albeit more difficult) effort, and i'd say that was out best chance of the game gone.
Next, a flicked header from Pablo (I know!) freed Bony running into the box on the left hand side, but the ball was bouncing and he elected for a driven left footed finish, which he couldn't keep down. As for Southampton's chance, Sam Gallagher headed over after Nathaniel Clyne had easily drifted past Ben Davies before producing a lovely cross which, had Jay Rodriguez been on the end of it instead of young Gallagher, would probably have produced the game's only goal. For a long period of the match I thought that would prove to be crucial in securing the Swans a point - turns out I spoke about a minute of injury time too soon.
The second half… well to be honest I don't remember much about it. I'd had a few beers, it was the last home game of the season and I was determined to enjoy myself, and I can't remember much good football of note being played to be honest. The game seemed set to end up being a bore draw, and then…then…well. How the hell did we concede that goal? A nothing ball was inadvertently flicked on by Jordi Amat (that's him out of the team), before Ashley Williams cleared but only succeeded in diverting the ball's trajectory upwards - not, however, away from the goal.
The ball was coming down with snow on it, ok I'll give them that, but Ashley Williams and Michel Vorm BOTH tracked the ball back, and succeeded in making no challenge on Rickie Lambert, who'd basically wandered along following the flight of the ball. He didn't even have to make a challenge, simple seeing the ball hit the post and deflect in off his side - a truly weak goal to concede, and a very poor one at that.
It raises questions I don't like asking; should we be looking for a new goalkeeper? Are our current centre-backs up to scratch? I rate Ashley Williams, I think Amat is going to be a very good defender and I think Bartley could be a good player, but given the small amount of game time he's seen I can't claim I'm overly confident in his abilities as a Swansea City player.
As for Vorm…well…he's been better than Tremmel this season - and that's about the best accolade I can give him. He seems permanently rooted to his line at the moment, and his reluctance to deal with high balls/crosses into the box makes me panic every time the ball is in the air. He's the best we've got though, so as long we don't sign anyone else he's got my backing. I'd say it's now more obvious why he was available for £1.5mil than it was when he first signed, and went about producing a string of excellent saves, but that's football I guess.
Again, apologies about the tardiness of the blog - I travelled west directly after the game and this is the first chance I've had to get something online. I've got a couple of good posts lined up this week and I'm expecting a few new articles from The Swansea Way team (think Anchorman news team but with more panache), so make sure to stay tuned this week.
What did you think of the win? Should we be looking to bring a new goalkeeper in this summer? Who else should we be looking to sign? Sign up and get involved in the comment section below - debate is king!