View from a Jack
In the buildup to the beginning of the new season, we've seen fans of every other team giving their verdict on Swansea City's chances this season, and how they see the Swans from afar. It seemed only fair if I got in on the act and answered them too, so without further ado...
Q1. Who are you and what do you do? How did you become attached to your club?
I'm Scott Mackay - founder/editor/blogger for The Swansea Way. Let's get to the better questions...
Q2. What is your favourite memory of a match involving your team and the Swans?
Q3. Ahead of this season, what are your thoughts on the Swans? Do you think we'll be a better team than last season?
For me, it entirely depends on what formation we go with. In a 4-5-1/4-2-3-1 system I'd be confident of an improved showing, but unless that weird 4-4-2 system we saw against Villarreal improves dramatically (and it's employed in-match) I'm pretty worried at this stage. I'm sure it'll be fine... [This was written prior to the Man Utd match!]
Q4. What do you make of our transfer activity thus far? Do you think we need to make any more signings?
So far so good to be honest! Jeff looks like an excellent acquisition for £4million, while Gomis looks a much better player than I'd originally given him credit for. Emnes is a tidy arrival, as is Stephen Kingsley, so hopefully both can impress. I'm confident Fabianski is an improvement on Vorm, and look forward to seeing him prove it.
As for further signings - I'd say we need a winger, a defensive midfielder and a right-back. Depending on which formation we adopt as our "standard" another winger could perhaps be slightly unnecessary, but the other two are necessities.
Q5. Have you visited the Liberty Staidum before? If so, what did you think? Are you planning on visiting this year?
Yep! I still miss the Vetch, but I'm slowly coming to terms with the fact that it's unlikely I'll ever watch the Swans at home on a terrace again. Modern football eh? I've made my feelings clear on the bar situation in the East Stand and the club have assured me they're addressing - I'm expecting to hear about new measures they've taken in the very near future so stay tuned for that.
Q6. If you had to pick, who would be your favourite Swansea player? And your least favourite?
Easy. LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEOOOON!
If we didn't have Leon it'd definitely be Wilf, but I do like Wayne Routledge. The guy keeps kicking on, and hopefully this season Jeff's arrival will give him a further boost.
Q7. Which Swansea manager (in the Premier League era - Rodgers, Laudrup or Monk) have you been most impressed with? What do you think of Garry Monk's chances with a full pre-season behind him?
Definitely Rodgers, though that isn't a slight on Monk who still has more than enough time to prove himself. Buck's good work continued after promotion to the top flight, and he's since gone on to show that (like Martinez) he truly is an excellent manager. I appreciate the good things that Laudrup did for the club, but I doubt he has it in him to be as good a manager as either of the aforementioned former Swansea bosses.
As for Monk, he'd already been doing his coaching qualifications so the step up would have come at some point, so I'm glad it was with the Swans. Hopefully he can prove himself as canny a manager as he was a competitor at the centre of our defence.
Q8. Finally, at this moment in time how confident would you be if your "first eleven" went up against ours, and how do you think your team will do in general this season?
The first part of this doesn't apply, but the second obviously does. I'm confident of an improved league showing on last season, even if that is largely due to the lack of European football this season. We've got more than enough good players to make a statement this season, and I look forward to seeing how we set up week in week out.
In Monk we trust.