St Gallen 1 - 0 Swansea - More of the same

Swans slip up in Swiss fog

I've based this on the limited patches of the game I caught on the ITV website, plus comments and match reports from fans and pundits. For highlights, you can click the link below to watch them on the ITV website.

http://www.itv.com/sport/football/article/2013-12-12/europa-league-report-and-highlights-st-gallen-1-0-swansea-city-swans-qualify-for-last-32-despite-defeat/?

For the first time in what seems like a very long time, I wasn't able to watch the entire Swans match due to my working hours. Stupid Europa League kickoff times. Apparently though, I didn't miss much - media reports gave us credit for being the better team in the first half, but the overall reaction seems to be very negative, with fans seemingly unhappy with the level of performance.

Gerhard Tremmel is reported to have enjoyed a fine evening, and there was nothing he could do about the goal, or the disallowed one which preceded it. The one that wasn't ruled out was worrying in that there were two St Gallen players unmarked waiting to tap the cross into the net, and as for the disallowed one...I thought the decision was very soft. It seemed Taylor played the ball into the net long enough before the attacker came in that the goal could well have stood, but that's not a point I've got any interest arguing if I'm honest.

Why aren't we performing to the best of our abilities on a regular basis? I've (as any readers of the blog can attest to) debated that on many on occasion, but I still feel the problem lies in our inability to maintain possession in the centre of the park, and (crucially) that possession actually being used to create through the middle - as opposed to passing the buck and playing it once again out to the full-back. Against Newcastle, our central midfielders enjoyed a higher pass-count than either of the full-backs and, surprise surprise, we won 3-0. On many other occasions this season, however, our full-backs have seen more of the ball than anyone else, and therein lies the problem. Controlling possession means nothing if you don't also control the game.

I've just remembered I couldn't find a stream for the Birmingham game away in the League Cup - so it hasn't actually been that long since I wasn't able to watch a match. That aside, we'll all obviously be hoping for a better result against Norwich this coming Sunday. A loss there won't be tempered by advancement in the league like tonight's result, and Norwich - despite the differing media perceptions surrounding their level of success so far this season compared to ours - can go above us if they win. For the morale of the team as well as the fans, an upturn in form is needed at the moment. 

Onwards and upwards, I suppose.

St Gallen v Swansea - Match preview, team news, statistics & analysis

The Match

St Gallen have had some up and down results of late, but come into the game still capable of affecting the final standings in Group A. Valencia are already through, but a St Gallen win coupled with Kuban Krasnodar beating Valencia by three goals at the Mastella would see the Russian outfit go through at the expense of the Swans. Domestically the Swiss side are up to fourth in the table and seem to be in better form than when they travelled to SA1 for the counterpart fixture, though whether they can reproduce the commitment and tenacity they displayed at the Liberty remains to be seen. It's a long old season.

Swansea have been flattering to deceive for a while now and a flat display against Hull won't have filled fans with confidence before the trip to Switzerland. That was preceded by an encouraging win over Newcastle, but unless there are other good results off the back of that it risks becoming a blip in an otherwise poor run of form. With Michu & Bony both seemingly coming back to fitness, hopefully it won't be long before the goals (and the wins) start to flow again.

Prior Form (Most recent at top)

Team News

For St Gallen, strikers Daniel Sikorski and Dzengis Cavusevic remain long-term injury absentees with knee injuries. Mario Mutsch must serve a one-match suspension.

Swansea welcomed Michu back to the starting lineup against Hull, but he was obviously way short on match fitness and it's massively unlikely he'll play any part in Switzerland. Wilfried Bony has been declared fit which seems a stretch of the word "fit" to me - but then again I thought the same about Michu on Monday and Laudrup kept him on for 90 minutes. Michel Vorm seems set to travel despite the club confirming he's likely to need knee surgery, while Rangel will travel despite being unlikely to start after suffering a calf injury a few weeks ago. Leon Britton (broken toe) & Garry Monk (knee) haven't travelled as they continue their recuperation.

Completely guessed lineups

Statistics & Trivia

• St Gallen have won only one of their group matches in the Europa League - the first game at home to Kuban Krasnodar.
• Wilfried Bony has previously finished the Europa League's top scorer, and with 5 goals is three off the top of the scoring chart.
• Jose Canas has completed 308 of 322 passes in the Europa League so far, giving him a 92.8% pass completion rate - better than Leon Britton's 91.3%.
• Swansea's pass completion rate is 87%, compared to St Gallen's 76%.
• Swansea have 13 shots per game and concede 12 - St Gallen average 9 shots per game, but allow their opponents a whopping 19. 

Straight from the horse's mouth

Gerhard Tremmel has pointed out the Swans fate is still very much in their hands:

"Qualification is in our hands and that's very important. Of course, it also depends on how Kuban do in Valencia but we will only be concentrating on our match.

"We want to qualify for the next round by getting a good result in St Gallen. Of course, it won't be easy, as proved when we played them at the Liberty but the whole squad is determined to go to Switzerland and get the result we need to get through."

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/match/122727/sankt-gallen-vs-swansea-city/preview?ICID=OP

Ben Davies has stated the focus is very much on St Gallen, despite the need for an upturn in domestic form:

"We are going to go into it ready for anything they throw at us. We've got to go out there and put a good performance in. I'm sure if we do that we'll be able to come away with the result. 

"They put a good performance in [at the Liberty] and they were a very well organised side and made it difficult for us. I don't think they've got anything to play for now which may dampen their spirits a bit, but we can't afford to look at it that way."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/25335852?

Analysis

As I type I've just read that due to severe fog the Swans departure for Switzerland was delayed. Hardly ideal preparation for a game we ideally need to be winning to secure our passage into the next phase of the competition.

As with the counterpart fixture a while back, I have very limited knowledge of the opposition, but at least I've seen them play now and I was quite impressed with their performance when they came to SA1. I thought we were extremely lucky to win the game, and they displayed a vigour and commitment we've rarely seen from our own side so far this season.

The stat about "shots conceded" could be telling. Conceding 19 shots per game seems a bit sloppy, and the Swans must surely capitalise on that. A loss and a three goal win for Kuban in Valencia (unlikely as it may be) would still put us out and if we're serious about enjoying a run in the competition we should be beating sides like St Gallen.

Overall, the Swans level of performance has improved of late, even if (in my opinion) we're still far short of the level we should expect to be operating at. The return to fitness of Bony and Michu will really help, though I have my reservations about the recovery time they've been allowed. I really, really hope they haven't been rushed back, as we can't afford for either of them to be out for any length of time.

With some enforced changes adding to the rotation element of team selection, it's difficult to say who will line up, but they'll need to play with the bit between their teeth if we're to overcome what's surely to be a combative St Gallen side. We need a draw to guarantee safe passage, but we should be winning this.

As long as we put in a shift, we'll win this. I'm confident of a win, but I think it'll be a tight game. 1-0 Swansea.