With Amat awaiting results of a knee scan and Montero pushing for a start we could see first league starts for two more of our summer signings
You have to feel for Jordi Amat. After impressing towards the tail end of last season he's started the season in fine form, and he's justified his continued inclusion in the lineup at the expense of summer signing Federico Fernandez.
When Amat first arrived I wasn't alone in thinking he was a little lightweight for the rigours of the Premier League. What is obvious though is that Amat has hit the gym hard in order to bulk up, and to give himself an extra ten or twenty percent in the shoulder-to-shoulder shoving stakes. He also switched his style visibly - when he first came he in he was prone to Chico-esque moments of flair at inopportune moments, but that quickly disappeared once he figured out Ashley Williams was a much better teammate to model himself on.
Whenever you saw videos of the Swans in training last season Amat was always with Ash, and he seemed to have made more of an effort to integrate himself into the squad than some of the other Spaniards. You could argue that there's further evidence of this in that he's the only Spaniard (bar Rangel) to have survived the "Spanish eviction" of this summer, though perhaps I'm reading too much into that.
That's why it's such a shame he tweaked his knee in the first half at Chelsea. Originally I thought his withdrawal at half-time was due to the yellow card he'd picked up for taking out Eden Hazard, but it turned out injury had curtailed his day and he left Stamford Bridge in a knee brace. Hopefully that was just precautionary and he pulls through ok.
What is encouraging though is that with Federico Fernandez (or "Freddy" as I've decided I'm going to refer to him), we've potentially got a player of a higher standard coming in. He's only twenty-five too, so he's got plenty of time with which to improve, so for eight million I think we've got ourselves an absolute bargain.
Another positive thing this season is with the exception of Gylfi & Fabianski (both of whom have been selected owing to a lack of other options in their position, though in Gylfi's case he'd be an automatic pick anyway), our new signings have had to force their way into the team. Gomis only started for the first time this weekend past because Wilf had been away on international duty, while Fernandez & Jeff are both still waiting for their first league starts.
It's a good message to new players - that they have to earn the right to be in the eleven on the training field - and if the players we've brought in are happy to do it I consider that a massive positive, as it surely guarantees you're bringing in the "right kind of player", in terms of their personalities at least.
If Jordi had to leave Stamford Bridge in a knee brace it's surely unlikely that he'll be fit to play this weekend, whatever the results of the scan say. Surely Fernandez will get his full league debut at home against Southampton? Coming on at half time away at Chelsea just after they've equalised, with Diego Costa rampaging about is hardly the ideal introduction to the league (though in a way I suppose you could argue the opposite - that it is the perfect introduction), so a home game against Saints would seem a much better game with which to acclimatise himself.
Jefferson Montero is also a player pushing hard for a start. The Ecuador winger, impressively, asked not to be included for his national side's recent friendly in order that he can get his head down and earn a place in the team for the Swans, so I was surprised he didn't get the nod against Chelsea. I've expected him to get a start for a while now and surely that will come against Southampton? He'll be keen to impress in front of a home crowd and the glimpses of him we've seen so far are very encouraging.
Whatever team Monk selects this weekend against Southampton, I'm confident it'll be the best team to get the job done. Whether that team includes Fernandez & Montero remains to be seen, but I definitely wouldn't bet against it.
Do you think Montero & Fernandez should start this weekend against Southampton? Get involved using the comment section below.