Gylfi Sigurdsson - King of Iceland

Josh Kilmister on how our man was very much the star of this week’s European Qualifiers (just in case you've been living in a cave for the last week)

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Gylfi Sigurdsson in action for the Swans

Iceland vs Netherlands had been billed as a match with only one possible outcome. It wasn't to be though - 2012 Champions League winner Arjen Robben and the ever-aging Robin van Persie were left frustrated by the acts of a man who goes by the name of Gylfi Sigurdsson - the king of Iceland! Okay, perhaps he’s not king just yet, but he certainly ruled over the Dutch boys the other night. The Iceland number ten slotted past Ajax shot-stopper Jasper Cillessen twice, leading his team to a 2-0 victory. 

His first goal was a pin-point accurate penalty into the right-hand side of the net. His second was, lets just say ‘Sigurdsson-esque’. A volley into the roof of the net saw my Twitter feed explode with Vines of the goal, (and rather funny Vines of Kevin Phillips failing miserably to pronounce ‘Gylfi Sigurdsson’ last season!) and what a goal it was! Unsurprisingly, Gylfi received the man of the match award and was even praised by the Swans’ Dutch director John van Zweden! His tweet reads: “Gylfy Sigurdsson #SWANSEACITY Man of the Match today- #Holland 2-0 and 2 goals... Proud moment for a Proud Jack!” Okay maybe he spelt his name wrong, but it’s the thought that counts!

Sigurdsson goal vs Holland https://t.co/SguVi3pVb3
— Dean (@dialtedone) October 13, 2014

For me, there’s positives and negatives from our players performing on such a big stage. The positives are perhaps more obvious but on a more selfish level, Gylfi’s performance last night is only going to attract more interest from clubs elsewhere. It will definitely add a few quid onto his price tag too, and if he carries on replicating his international form for the Swans, he has my permission to score as many goals for Iceland as he wants.

Not only do players like Gylfi attract interest to themselves, but to the club. There wasn’t one post-match report I read that didn’t contain something along the lines of‘Swansea City midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson’, and with Huw looking for investment from abroad, this does us no harm whatsoever! 

The goals he scored for Iceland this international break were Sigurdsson’s third and fourth in three games for his country, which along with his Premier League form has Spurs fans wondering why on earth they let him go in a deal for Ben Davies, who rarely makes their Starting XI, and Michel Vorm who struggles to even make the bench. It beats me but hey, I’m not complaining!

Neither am I Josh, and I don't think any Swansea fans will be either! Thanks to Josh for this, his latest piece - give him a follow on Twitter @JoshKilmister

Why Swansea City should send more players out on loan

Of late we've seen quite a few of our players heading out to other clubs on a temporary basis. Huw Richards is a fan...

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Alan Tate during a previous loan spell at Leeds

These past weeks, we have seen Scott Tancock and James Loveridge both joining Justin Edinburgh's Newport County. Now, I understand that our Under-21 team needs to be as strong as possible, but surely sending players out on loan is more beneficial than having them pining for first-team action?

Let's take a look at the players we have out on loan right now:-

Alan Tate - Tatey is at Crewe until 24th December, but this is purely case of getting the 32-year-old some game time to help him in his future endeavours. Expect him to be here for a while to come.

Michu - The Spaniard wanted a move, and the loan move to Napoli was the best we could do in the circumstances. Will he be back? It seems doubtful.

Daniel Alfei - Ah yes, Alfei. This is an interesting case as he is 22 years old now, but has a contract here until 2016. He is at Northampton Town until the end of the season, and unless he sets the world alight there it's hard to see him forcing his way into the first team picture.

James Loveridge and Scott Tancock - Both at Newport County and look to have been brought in to be starters. This is something we should do more with our youngsters in my opinion, as it gets them some competitive football under their belts.

If you look at those players the only worthwhile loans are James Loveridge and Scott Tancock, as they are the only ones who still have time to develop. Some youngsters that I would look to loan out are: Josh Sheehan, James Demetriou, Kenji Gorre and Gregor Zabret.

Now, like I earlier said, this would damage the strength of our Under-21 team, but all of the players stated above would be snapped up in a heartbeat by League 1 and 2 teams I would suspect, and it would enable them to gain invaluable experience, despite it being in the lower tiers of English football.

Also, when you look at other Premier League teams, they do this more than us it seems, so why don't we? It certainly seems like a formula for success.

Monk is clearly open to the idea of sending youngsters on loan, so let's hope it's something we see more of in the near future.

Thanks to Huw for his latest piece - you can follow him on Twitter @HuwRichards21. Would you like to see more youngsters sent out on loan? Get in touch!

Ex-Swan: "Replacing Laudrup with Monk Swansea's best decision"

In an amazingly candid piece on his website, Andrea Orlandi has spoken about training at the club this summer whilst without a club, and his take on the recent goings on in SA1

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Andrea Orlandi always came across as someone whose main attribute was either his technique or his reading of the game. Clearly a cultured player - he spent time at Barcelona during his development - it's perhaps no surprise then that he's capable of stringing a few words together in a more than organised fashion.

His column on am14.net (which until now I was completely unaware of) is absolutely excellent, and the whole thing is worth a read (link) but I'm sure most people will be interested to see what he had to say about Swansea in particular. The words "glowing reference" spring to mind...

I started to train on my own in July waiting for an offer to arrive. When I saw that time was ticking on I decided to text my friend Gary Monk, Swansea’s coach to see if he would let me train with the under 21s team, and he immediately agreed. So I spoke with him in the morning and in the afternoon I was on the plane on my way to London. I went to Brighton, picked up my car and drove to Swansea. 

The people who know me will know what my opinion is about the club, the fans and all the employees. They treated me like I had never left, I was able to use all the facilities, I ate with the first team, the physios treated me… Everybody welcomed me with open arms. From the kit man (woman in this case) to the gardener, they all made me feel like I was at home. If the second team wasn’t training, the physical trainer Sam Huggins would work with me one to one on hard physical sessions. It is a very special club. I spent 5 years there that will never be forgotten. 

During those days I saw myself all over the world. I was very close to sign for the MLS team Vancouver Whitecaps, I had an offer from Turkey and one from Greece, a couple of Championship teams… And suddenly Jose Riga rang me and said that he wanted to talk to me face to face. Talking to the coach in person is unusual. I didn’t think twice, I got in the car and drove up to Blackpool to have a meeting with him, and here I am! 

I wrote earlier about Monk. He was my team mate in Swansea and I believe that sacking Laudrup and getting Monk to replace him was the best decision the club has made. I was very excited about Laudrup. I admired him as a footballer and I liked everything about him. But I got very disappointed. Sometimes you get a shock when you meet people who are your idols. It happened to me with Gullit and also with Jordi Lardin, a very good winger who played for Espanyol. 

I cannot say much about Laudrup as a person, always correct and diplomatic, as I never got to know him enough to be able to judge him at that level. But as a coach he was a great disappointment and I promise I am not saying that with resentment, that is a word that doesn’t exist in my vocabulary. On the other hand, I think he did me well by showing me the door from Swansea because my time there was over and I am convinced of that given the experience of that pre-season in 2012.  

Now the team is in the hands of someone who loves the club, who really works hard and who studies the opposition and tries to become better. You can be sure I know what I am talking about.

Firstly, how nice is that? He clearly has a serious level of affection for the club, and it's nice that we look after ex-players. We've seen (with players like Bodde) in the past that the club are willing to support players through difficult times, and I'm glad we helped Orlandi out. 

As to the stuff about Laudrup, Orlandi really doesn't mind saying what's on his mind! I don't think there would be any malice on his part as Orlandi can have had no complaints (and evidently didn't) about being moved on, and given he'd have grown up at a time when Laudrup was an absolute megastar in his corner of Spain it is surprising that he hasn't got entirely positive things to say about the Dane.

Despite a couple of iffy results of late, I'd agree wholeheartedly with Orlandi. I feel a lot more confident about the direction of the club long-term than I did at this stage last year, even though we were involved in European competition. At that point, our football (in general) was deteriorating, and there didn't seem to be any answer to our poor form. With Monk in charge, we've seen a return to a snappy, pressing game and it's hard to see how it won't benefit us in the long term.

It's a long old season, but if Orlandi is right (and I think he is) we'll be just fine. And hey - he knows what he's talking about!

Garry Monk In Three Quotes

Eric Imhof of AustinJackArmy's weekly segment looks at three occasions where Monk's message has come through loud and clear

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It’s been a slow weekend without any Premier League action (although the international games were at least somewhat entertaining, and I’m currently occupying myself by worrying about Wilfried Bony traveling around Africa, but I don’t really know what more to write about that), so what is a poor Swans fan to do? 

Well, since I’ve been giving Garry Monk a hard time lately (tough love?), I thought I’d take a look back at some notable quotes from his short tenure as manager - quotes that I think indicate where his football philosophy is taking the club. Just what kind of coach is Garry Monk?

1. "It's not a meaningless game to me, I want to win every game — I have told you that.”

This is what Monk told reporters after the Southampton loss at the end of last season, which came just after the Swans secured safety and just before he was officially appointed manager. It remains my favorite quote of his, because it shows a real clarity of vision and sends a direct message to any current and future players under his guidance. It also shows deference to his Swansea forerunners; after the arduous (and now well-documented) climb to the Premier-League heights, could a new manager, leading a team only in its third season in the league, really afford to treat any game as extraneous? Of course not. And of course, he didn’t. 

2. "Everywhere we've gone, from the training pitches, the cities of Chicago, Milwaukee and Minnesota, we have been spreading the name... We have grown in popularity and awareness and as the two weeks have gone on we've seen more and more Swans shirts about. It is definitely something the club should build on over here.”

Obviously this quote delights me as a good ol’ American, and I only ask that the next time the Swans come stateside they consider the soccer-loving state of Texas [we'll put in a good word! - Ed]. Austin would be an ideal place to train, since the 100-degree heat would forge them into game shape in no time. Plus, it would make any Spanish or African players feel right at home. 

All jokes aside, I think the American tour was a great investment, since there are so many fans here in the US who are fence-sitters, and nobody’s going to buy a jersey if they don’t even know the team exists. 

I of course can only tweet so much about the Swans (or yell so much at the pub), so building a network of supporters here by bringing the mountain to Mohammed is very wise. One of the dividends it may eventually pay is the obsolescence - although hopefully it never even gets off the ground - of the need to explore such money-making schemes as "Game 39". 

3. “I made a decision that I only wanted players who really wanted to be here so I let them go. It’s important here that players want to be part of this group.”

This was Monk’s response to “losing” Chico, Pablo, and Michu this past summer. Contrast this statement with the more recent ones about unfair refs and the grass being too long, and you can see why my eyes need a rest from all the rolling they’ve been doing lately. But this quote really sums up why I root for Swansea in the first place. It must mean something to play for Swansea, or how could it mean something to support them?

Thanks to Eric as usual - give Austin Jack Army a follow on Twitter! Monk certainly has had no qualms about saying it as it is in the press so far - what's been your favourite comment of his so far? Get in touch via the comment section below.

Gylfi vs Ozil, Silva, Mata & Fabregas - Statistical comparison

How does Gylfi compare to players playing for the nation's biggest clubs?

With the international break seeing a dearth of Swansea-related news, what better time to have a look at some stats? Everybody loves stats - right? With the incredible form we've seen Gylfi Sigurdsson enjoy so far this season I thought an interesting exercise would be to see how he stacked up against players who play in a similar position, or who have a similar role in the team, for the league's biggest and best. 

Firstly, let's look at the obvious. Assists. Gylfi & Cesc are both currently joint top of the assist charts, having created an incredible six goals apiece. As you can see, in terms of "per ninety minutes" (as most of these stats are, for further reference), Cesc just nudges him having played a game less. Still, not bad for a player we didn't actually pay any money for!

Next up, let's have a look at key passes. David Silva is way out in front, and when you look at the amount of total passes played per ninety minutes, it's no surprise the players who play the most passes play the most key passes. That said, 1.75 key passes per ninety is no mean effort from Gylfi, and if he keeps that up for the entire season he'll break all kinds of club records.

Staying with passing, let's turn to accuracy. I was surprised Gylfi's is so low compared to the others to be honest, but given the Icelander is charged almost exclusively with creating all of our goal threat it's perhaps no surprise that his numbers are slightly below the other players featured here. Silva, Fabregas et al can rely on others to create and score goals - with the Swans that still rings true...just not quite so loudly.

More passing! I thought I'd include the image below as it links well with what I was just talking about, in that the more dominant a team is in possession, and the more another team has to worry about multiple threats, the easier it becomes to knock the ball around. Chelsea have been rampant and

unsurprisingly this has resulted in huge passing statistics for Cesc. In Gylfi's case, he's obviously the focal point for our attack, so opponents look to close him down, doubling up on him. 

Moving on from passing now, let's look at fouls and duels. Firstly, fouls committed - and as you can see Gylfi fares well, not being penalised too often. Less than a foul a game is an outstanding effort from someone who spends the entire match charging around selflessly trying to get the ball back.

The same chart, arranged by tackles made per ninety minutes, and again Gylfi is faring well. Remember, these are players playing for clubs who'd hope and expect to compete in the Champions League - for Gylfi to be up near these guys in terms of numbers (even after a short period of time in the long slog that is a Premier League season) really is spectacular.

Another graphic from the same table, this time organised by total duels per ninety. Gylfi again holds up well, while Silva's numbers are incredible.

Defensive actions next, and this is where the Gylf shines. Well, as well as having had six assists in seven games - which is pretty shiny in fairness. I only needed one image for this set of data, because Gylfi is top across the board. Anyone who's watched him play this season will attest that his work-rate is simply phenomenal, and he's come back to us a much better player than during his last stint here.

Last but not least, shots. Firstly, here's the shot accuracy. Boom!

Then I arranged the same table by total shots per ninety. I would have included a goals table but Squawka wouldn't allow it, due to Cesc's lack of a goal! For what it's worth Mata has two, while Gylfi, Ozil & Silva have one each. 

It doesn't surprise me that Gylfi has enjoyed less shots per game than the other players he's compared against - as I've mentioned I think he's liable to be more closely marked due to how obvious a focal point he is for us, and for him to have had the return he's had so far this season is unbelievable. He's also scored in his last two outings for Iceland (both screamers), and he scored against Everton in the League Cup. He really is on fire at the moment, and if the rest of the team around him clicks goals will most certainly not be a problem.

So far, 2014/15 is proving to be a special season for Gylfi Sigurdsson. If he keeps his cool and continues to work at the feverish rate he has so far, the sky is the limit. 

All stats sourced from http://www.squawka.com

Why isn't Jazz Richards in the Wales squad?

Exclusion of defender seems baffling given some of the other players who've made the squad

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Once upon a time, young (and youngish) Welsh players on the fringes of the first team at Premier League clubs were automatic choices for the national squad. I'm not saying that's something I endorse, but it's something which has continued for a long time, and you don't have to look too far back to find examples of this happening. Harry Wilson of Liverpool was capped age 16 in late 2013, and you can't help but feel that if he'd have been plying his trade at another club - indeed any club not considered a "giant" of British football - he wouldn't have even have got a mention.

That's not to knock Wilson, he looks a great prospect and I hope he does wonders for Wales down the years. The reason I mention this is that Jazz Richards - who has four appearances for us already this season - hasn't made the squad, and a quick glance at the Wales squad has left me baffled as to how. Here are the defenders listed in the current Wales squad:

James Chester (Hull City), Declan John (Cardiff City), Joe Walsh (Crawley Town), Ben Davies (Tottenham), Danny Gabbidon (Cardiff City), Chris Gunter (Reading), Samuel Ricketts (Wolves), Neil Taylor (Swansea City), Rhoys Wiggins (Charlton), Ashley Williams (Swansea City).

The first thing that strikes you is that there's a good few players there with Swansea connections, even though only Taylor & Williams are currently on our books. Sam Ricketts was excellent for us in the past, Joe Walsh was a Swans youngster before leaving for Crawley, while Ben Davies is the obvious one, having only recently departed for Spurs. While I'm absolutely made up for young Joe Walsh - who's now amassed almost one hundred appearances for Crawley - as well as young teammate (and fellow ex-Swan) Gwion Edwards, I can't help but feel it's very strange that Jazz hasn't made the squad.

Firstly, he's already got four Welsh caps, and has performed well for his country in the past. Secondly, he's playing for a Premier League club. Ok, Joe Walsh is playing more regularly, but lack of regular game-time hasn't stopped Welsh managers from picking players in the past - indeed Simon Church has featured for the Welsh side of late despite not being able to get into the Charlton team. So why no Jazz?

To me, his exclusion is strange at the very least. One thing is for sure though, if he can keep forcing his way into the first-team picture at the Liberty, it won't be long before he's back in the international fold.

Podcast: The JackCast EP28 - FAW or sweet FA?

This week's installment sees The JackCast team debate all the burning issues of the day...and whether Bony likes rom-coms

On this week's podcast we review the Newcastle match, but really we spend the majority talking about the other issues, such as ways the matchday experience at the Liberty could be improved, whether "Game 39" is a good idea, should the Swans look to leave the FAW, and of course - whether Wilfried Bony likes a good soppy rom-com. With no Swansea action this week what better way to get your footballing fix?

NB: I am aware Wales are playing, and that that's probably a better footballing fix than listening to us three ramble on. Still, you can't take the Wales team on your commute...