Wet weather can't dampen Ash's enthusiasm

Skipper claims 2013/14 is his best pre-season yet as squad look to carry good form into league opener

Some of Swansea's new signings could have been forgiven for thinking the whole "Welsh weather" thing was perhaps something of a cruel in-joke, given the balmy conditions we've enjoyed over the last few weeks. With the temperatures nudging 30 degrees and a plethora of beaches to choose from post-training, players arriving from Spain must have thought they'd discovered a home from home, while the sun will no doubt have helped endear SA1 to Jonjo Shelvey and Wilfried Bony too. 

As any seasoned South Walian knew though, the glorious sunshine couldn't last. The last few days have seen the kind of weather we're more accustomed to in these parts, but it clearly hasn't dampened spirits in the Swansea camp as evidenced by Ashley Williams' positive take on the club's pre-season campaign:

"I am excited. I think pre-season's gone really well and you're almost scared to admit that you think we're going to be good this season. We've progressed every year and I've never had a pre-season this good before. We've scored a lot of goals and haven't conceded many. Things are going well so I am excited — but I don't want to say that and jinx it." 

"It was really good. We're proud to be in European competition and in a way it was the perfect night for us. It is something we can celebrate, four goals scored, a clean sheet, and on top of that a good performance. We want to go as far as we can in the competition, we've said that all along. 

"Maybe in the season it's going to catch up with us. I've never been involved in Europe before, but sometimes it looks that way with other teams. We planned for that game, we wanted to win it and we did. 

"It's nice to come into the Liberty and see the Europa League signs on the door. I never thought we'd make a Euro competition so it's something to be proud of. 

"I thought they played really well. Jordi next to me had a good game and I'm a big fan of Jonjo's. You can also see what Wilfried brings to the team. He's a great focal point for us attacking-wise. I'm sure that when he gets up to speed and knows Michu's game, those two are going to be a threat.  

"Not since Jason Scotland in the Championship have we had a physical presence up there, someone we can play the ball to and it sticks. He can certainly do that. But also he's got great feet and can play."  

When asked what he thought new Manchester United manager David Moyes would have made of the performance (he was in attendance for the Malmo game), Williams was quick to point out the squad are only concerned with how they feel they've played:

"I hope he's impressed with the performance we put on. I know we feel that we played well and that's all we can worry about. I felt like we dominated the game so we didn't really give them a chance to impose themselves on the game. 

"I haven't seen this sort of competition before at Swansea. There's a lot of players looking for places, but I'm sure we're going to need them as the season goes on." Ashley Williams

Early signs have been positive indeed, but the litmus test will surely come when Manchester United roll into town. A positive result against the champions will go a long way in instilling confidence throughout the side, and could well see us build up a head of steam as we take on what is, without doubt, a daunting opening set of fixtures that includes Man Utd, Spurs, Liverpool & Arsenal before the end of September.

Britton claims current crop of players best Swansea squad he's seen

I think anyone who has only seen the Swans post-1983 would agree with you in a flash there, Leon.

"This is the best Swansea squad I have ever seen. We now have genuine depth with two players for every position. That means everybody has to be at the top of their game or they will be out of the side. It was a great performance against Malmo. 

"It's so exciting to be playing [Man Utd] with a new manager after so long. That's going to make it some occasion." Leon Britton

Laudrup pleased with squad depth

Last but not least on a day when it seems everyone is in the press talking about how happy they are, our esteemed manager has been chatting with the Evening Post, saying that while he's not immediately concerned about tired legs, squad rotation will definitely be a factor when games start piling up in the middle of the season:

"I don't look at resting players, we have only played one game. But if I am talking about the depth of the squad, we have to use all the players. I showed last season I would do that, I changed a lot of players in December and January - I have a lot of possibilities so even if I change four or five we will still have a very competitive team. 

"Even without the Europa League, we need that depth. In August you can play the same team more or less in every game, but then suddenly you need the others. You get to the middle of the season and there are a lot of cup games; and that's without the Europa League." Michael Laudrup

As I showed in a recent blog (here) the strength in depth we've acquired in the last few years is rather remarkable. We've gone from plucky team-ethic newcomers to, it would seem, a team brimming with Premier League quality in just over two years, and most of it has been done fairly under the radar. Kudos must go again to our board, as well as the managers (and other movers and shakers behind the scenes - a begrudging not in the direction of Bayram Tutumlu included) who made some of the transfers happen.

One thing is for sure; we're venturing into unknown waters for Swansea City football club, and it seems everyone is intent on enjoying it. Long may it continue. 

All Time Swans XI - Right Forward - Lee Trundle

"Magic daps" completes the triumvirate of Swansea forwards

Now, I know there have been question marks over the formation of my All Time XI so far, but think about it. If you had Trundle, in his pomp-laden heyday, cutting inside from the right in the Swans' current formation, with two other quality forwards (such as Latchford and Curtis) causing havoc with the defence elsewhere, you'd have a seriously tasty forward line. 

Trundle joined from Wrexham and was thereafter never far from the headlines, be it for his trickery on the field or his choice of t-shirts in the wake of Football League Trophy wins, but his place in the hearts of Swans fans is assured for bringing a touch of finesse to a side who had, for a good few years prior to his arrival, had a philosophy not dissimilar to that of the England rugby union team. Under John Hollins we'd been adept at sneaking a goal and then defending for 90 minutes, but the arrival of Trundle quickly put paid to any lingering remnants of dreary football, as fans started to expect the unexpected from their flashy new frontman. After all, it wasn't so long before that that we had such luminaries as Dave O'Gorman, Aidan Newhouse and Tommy Mutton vying for a first-team berth - Trundle was quite the departure indeed. 

Starting his career at a series of clubs in the North West, Trundle played for Burscough, Chorley, Staylbridge Celtic, Southport and the nattily named Bamber Bridge FC before finally drawing the attention of Wrexham whilst playing for Rhyl in the Welsh Premier League. He'd started to score goals for fun at that level, so a step up to professional football was the natural progression and he didn't disappoint - going on to perform well enough in his three seasons there to earn a move south to a Swansea City side now under the command of Brian Flynn - the man who'd signed him for Wrexham. 

Trundle immediately endeared himself to the Jack Army with a debut-day goal against Bury, and a hat-trick in his next outing against Cheltenham. His preference for the extraordinary quickly saw him shoot to fame - in part due to his willingness to send in footage of his trickery to Soccer AM, as they had/have a feature called "The Showboat" which is tailor-made for Trundle's brand of football. There was one match, which I had the pleasure of attending, where Trundle pulled off so many flicks, tricks and dragbacks that he was awarded his own Showboat "Special". Apologies for the quality of the video, but it's still a good watch; as a starry eyed teenager whose favourite player was once Ryan Casey, you can imagine how jaw-droppingly awesome it was to see this kind of thing going on right in front of the North Bank:

All in all, Trundle went on to make 194 appearances for the Swans in all competitions scoring 91 goals, making him one of Swansea's most successful goalscorers - and some of them were absolute peaches. I vividly remember one in front of the old East Stand/Terrace, where he had his back to goal before spinning on a sixpence, beating his man all ends up, and dispatching a cool composed finish into the far corner, but the goal that always sticks out in your memory is probably the same one that sticks out in mine; the opener in the Football League Trophy final against Carlisle United.

With the game only three minutes old, Leon Britton snatched up a loose ball on the right hand side and proceeded to loft a ball diagonally towards Trundle. What happened next was, in all honesty, plain ridiculous as Trundle, a striker playing for a League One club, chested the ball beautifully down and volleyed it across goal into the far corner in the next movement - an absolutely stunning finish which would have gone down as one of the great cup final goals had it been scored by Didier Drogba or Cristiano Ronaldo in more celebrated circumstances. See for yourself:





Great isn't it? Trundle ended up moving on to Bristol City for a cool £1million, but it never really happened for him there and, short loan spells at Leeds & the Swans exempt, he went on to play for Neath Athletic as well as Marine AFC back on Merseyside. Excellent bloggers Lostboyos went to see him in action - read about their exploits here: http://lostboyos.wordpress.com/2013/04/10/lost-in-marine/

In more recent times Trundle has returned to the Swans, and has been appointed an ambassador and youth coach - the youngsters coming through the system will do well to learn a few of Trundle's tricks but it seems his role is largely to do with maintaining good relationships with the community and fanbase - hell, he's even agreed to do an interview for The Swansea Way! Hopefully we'll get that sorted soon...

Trundle was someone who was always going to make the grade for my All Time Swans XI, as for me he helped to shrug off negative hangups on the field much like the current regime shrugged off years of malpractice behind the scenes. While the board had to scrutinise accounts, bills, wage budgets and the like, it was Trundle's job to produce goals, and to make the fans believe that there was something better around the corner. He did just that, and boy were they right...

Don't forget to check out the other inductees into my All Time Swans XI:

GK - Roger Freestone - http://www.theswanseaway.co.uk/2013/04/all-time-swansea-xi-goalkeeper-roger.html

LB - Wilfred Milne - http://www.theswanseaway.co.uk/2013/04/all-time-swansea-xi-left-back-wilfred.html

CB - Mel Charles - http://www.theswanseaway.co.uk/2013/04/all-time-swansea-xi-centre-back-mel.html

CM - Leon Britton - http://www.theswanseaway.co.uk/2013/04/all-time-swansea-xi-central-midfield.html

LF   - Alan Curtis   - http://www.theswanseaway.co.uk/2013/06/all-time-swansea-xi-left-forward-alan.html

CF - Bob Latchford - http://www.theswanseaway.co.uk/2013/04/all-time-swansea-xi-centre-forward-bob.html

The Swansea Way on Talksport!

Listen again to my inaugural appearance on Talksport's Sports Bar

At the second attempt, last night I made my debut on Talksport talking about my beloved Swansea City. To listen to the whole thing (all three minutes of it! Ha) click here: http://www.talksport.co.uk/radio/andy-goldsteins-sports-bar/130803/mackay-impressed-swansea%E2%80%99s-transfer-business-202989

When asked if I thought the Swans would be able to continue their trend of ever-improving league finishes, I responded by saying I thought it was set up for it - after all, as a recent blog shows the the competition for places is fierce in SA1 now and there isn't one player who can rest on his laurels, safe in the knowledge that he's a cert for selection. Except perhaps Ashley Williams, that is.

Another topic covered was the ongoing issue with the ticketing system. Now, I think I came across as unduly negative when talking about the ticketing situation, but it does appear that numerous fans have been left frustrated by what appears to be an outdated system. The club have tried to combat this, but as alluded to if you grow as fast as the Swans have there will inevitably be certain aspects (generally behind the scenes) of the club which lag behind others in terms of their development. 

Before signing off I was pressed to give my prediction of where the Swans would finish this season. I went for eighth. What do you think?

Rory Donnelly - Will he get a chance this season?

Young Northern Irishman has been in prolific form during pre-season; will it be enough to see him progress to the senior side?

Young striker Rory Donnelly can consider himself unlucky not to have been included in the first-team squad for Thursday's game against Malmo FF. After enjoying what can only be described as a prolific pre-season, he found himself back with the development squad for a friendly with Port Talbot last Tuesday, and I for one could forgive him if he felt a little hard done by.

Signed from Cliftonville for an undisclosed fee, he'd made his name after scoring 22 goals in his first two seasons with the club. He'd attracted attention from the two Liverpool-based clubs, but in the end Swansea got their man and it was likely this goal which really endeared him to the decision-makers in SA1:

Detractors would be quick to point out that his goals in this season's friendlies came against "lesser" opposition, but as has been said a million times you can only play what's put in front of you, and Donnelly did just that. He featured in almost all of the club's pre-season friendlies - he only missed out on the final Dutch tour game against Den Haag & the final friendly with Reading - and what's more he banged in more goals than anyone else over the close season - six in five appearances.

His technique and finishing ability are there for all to see, and he appears to have bulked up a bit too which will be of great benefit if he does make it into the first team this season. A great example of his prowess in front of goal came against Yeovil - skip to the 5:00 mark to see what I mean:

Laudrup has repeatedly stated his desire for another striker, but do we have the answer lurking under our nose? Last season, Itay Shechter was routinely preferred to Donnelly - even at the end of the season when it was clear that a) the Israeli striker wasn't very good, b) Donnelly was banging in goals for the U21 side and c) Shechter would be returning to his parent club at the end of the season, whereas Donnelly was our player for the foreseeable future. Couple that with what can only be described as a highly impressive pre-season for the young Northern Irishman and I think he can legitimately feel a little hard done by as he appears to be set to watch from the sidelines for the time being at least.

Now, don't mistake this as a criticism of Laudrup's selection policy; you simply cannot argue with the results thus far and who am I to question the great Dane? All I'm saying (and I'm sure I'm not alone) is that I'd like to see Donnelly on the bench for a few Premier League games soon. All you can do as a player is hope to perform to the best of your ability and, if you're a striker, to hit the back of the net when selected. Donnelly has done just that whenever he's been called upon to date, but so far his only appearance for the senior side came in a Carling Cup match against Crawley Town where he replaced Michu for the final 25 minutes or so.

With a long season ahead, and a potentially hectic fixture list on the horizon, it could well be that we see Donnelly playing for the first team sooner rather than later. Will 2013/14 be the season Rory Donnelly shows the world what he can do? I wouldn't bet against it...

Augustien joins Brighton

Dutch midfielder switches South Wales for the south coast of England in attempt to revive career

In the midst of all the Europa League buildup, you could have been forgiven for missing Kemy Augustien bidding the club farewell, as he, I assume, was driven from Swansea to Brighton to start a new chapter in his career. He's signed a two-year contract with the Seagulls, and hopefully he can finally show what he's capable of. The problem with Kemy is that he's blatantly got loads of ability; it's staying fit long enough to show it. He hasn't helped himself with a few off-field issues, and he does lean a touch towards the Hollywood when perhaps a simple pass would be the more sensible option, but I always enjoyed watching him play and he amassed 47 appearances for the Swans in his three years with us. 

He'll link up with ex-Swan Andrea Orlandi and clearly leaves SA1 with no lack of affection for the Jack Army:

I think it was worth leaving the little rant in about missing his check-in time at the airport... 

All the best Kemy! You're remembered fondly by a lot of us here, and I honestly hope you do well at Brighton. I'll leave you with a ropey video I found on Youtube, of a game which appears to be a friendly, but I'd be lying if I said I had any idea what or when it was. Decent finish though...

Laudrup lauds "perfect night"

Manager hails his team after opening-day victory over Swedish counterparts

Now that the dust has settled after last night's fabulous 4-0 win over Malmo, we've all had a chance to assess how good the performance was. I've watched a succession of highlights until I found the entire match available on ITVPlayer (click here), and now that I've had a chance to watch it all back I've come to the conclusion the performance was actually better than I thought first time around. Malmo's chances really were few and far between, and any time they got anywhere near the goal Ashley Williams popped up to smash the ball and/or the player out of the way. There was a nice moment at the beginning of the second half when, after prolonged chanting of "Ashley Williams...he's captain of Wales" he turned and acknowledged the crowd, which served to turn the volume in that corner of the stadium up to eleven - for a few moments at least.

Jonjo Shelvey, too, was excellent and in truth you could single any number of players out for individual praise but I thought Wayne Routledge was excellent. His work-rate is better than anyone's and he seems to be gaining more and more confidence - he's starting to play with an arrogance that I love to see from technical players, and is using skills to beat his man more and more often. Last night he got himself two assists, with the second being an impudent cross with the outside of his boot. He also looked lively in front of goal, breaking through after three minutes before being crowded out, as well as seeing a shot blocked just short of half time, when it seemed to be heading into the top corner. A player like Routledge is probably the most likely to benefit from training with someone like Michael Laudrup; Wayne has all the technique in the world - it's about when and where to use it and to what effect. 

The Dane seems to be having a positive effect on the entire Swansea squad at the moment, and was in effusive mood directly after the match:

“I’m very pleased. It’s very difficult not to be satisfied with that and no goals conceded as well, which was very important. Perfect isn’t often used in football, but that was about as close as you can get tonight. Two goals from our new striker, Michu is back scoring and no injuries either. 

“If we win 4-0, despite them not knowing each other that well, it can’t be a bad night. There are so many different games. You play home and away, against different styles, but we have a lot of alternatives right now. 

“Even without the Europa League, you still need that depth. From game to game, you get phases in November and December where there are a lot of cup games, but first we have to finish this tie in Malmo, and then we maybe have another round before we can even think about the group stages. 

“I’m very confident in my players and there was no way that they were going to underestimate Malmo. A lot of the squad haven’t played in Europe, so we want to go as far as we can.” Michael Laudrup

His opposite number Rikard Norling wasn't as full of beans, but he remained diplomatic and was complimentary about the Swans, before stating simply that "it will be very difficult next week, but we will try".





It's got to suck being asked loads of questions in the aftermath of a big loss, when all you want to do is get on a plane and fly back to a country where everyone is probably going to be a bit nicer to you, but that's the lot of a football manager.

All in all, a thoroughly impressive opening display from the Swans, and one they'll hoping they can repeat in a week's time.

I'd love to hear from anyone making the trip, and if anyone takes a load of photos and fancies sending them in via email or twitter I can include them in upcoming blogs about the game. Fan power and all that...

Swansea 4 - 0 Malmo - It's just like pre-season (Inc. highlights)

Swansea outclass Swedish counterparts in first competitive action of 2013/14

Today was a good day. I've got tomorrow booked off work (I'm spending the weekend in a Carmarthenshire field hawking the wares of my friend's company Retrosexual Clothing), and with work done and dusted at 6pm, I started the short walk along the river to the stadium. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and with some proper footie to look forward after what seems like a protracted break I most definitely had a spring in my step. After some beers were acquired and I had a quick read of the programme on the grass verge outside, I found my seat (corner of North and East row C - nice) and proceeded to settle in for what promised to be a nervy ninety minutes.

Early signs were extremely positive. While we didn't actually manage a shot until the 27th minute, the first 15 minutes were, I thought, excellent and the Swans showed time and time again how one-touch football can be used to create space in and around the opposition area. The full-backs were bombing on with relish (Davies having been preferred to Neil Taylor at left-back) and they regularly broke down the flank beyond their more advanced team-mates. As mentioned, just shy of half an hour gone and we were rewarded with the first effort of note; a Shelvey shot which he dragged wide after finding space when the ball broke loose just outside the Malmo area.

A feature of the game tonight was Jonjo Shelvey spraying the ball around, and while there were times tonight when he showed he's still rough around the edges, he's clearly got bags of talent and found his man out wide more often than not, as well as doing a decent enough job of retaining possession in the centre of the field. It was his long passing, coupled with his vision, that stood out tonight though, and time and time again he looked to free one of Wayne Routledge or Nathan Dyer as they looked to sprint beyond the last defender. 

We rarely, rarely saw that last year and it's noticeable how often they were looking for that move - if it works, crack on boys. As early as the 3rd minute Routledge was on the receiving end of one such pass over the top, but while his first touch was excellent he was subsequently crowded out by the Swedish defence. One comment I did make is that I can envisage Leon Britton bailing Shelvey out of more than one sticky situation this season, when the younger midfielder has colluded to get himself into a tight spot. At first glance though, I'd say it's almost definitely going to be worth the odd inadvisable dribble if he spends the rest of his time playing outrageous 60 yard passes.

As the first half wore on, you started to wonder whether the Swans were still in pre-season mode, as despite an impressive opening and a few half chances later on there was a decidedly "walking-pace" feel to the match. It didn't help that Malmo had blatantly come for a draw, but in their defence they had restricted the Swans to speculative efforts and seemed a well organised unit - that is, until one of their centre-backs gifted Miguel Michu the ball for the opener. 

I say gifted, that's perhaps harsh on Routledge who played the pass in to the Spaniard, but the defender should have cleared the ball and, basically, fell over in his attempt to clear it. That saw Michu running in at a preferable angle, and he duly dispatched his finish - in off the far post. The goalkeeper had no chance.

The goal livened the Swans' faithful and the team responded in kind, and Routledge got free in the box but his shot appeared to be deflected away off the face of a Malmo defender. Painful, but effective - the resulting corner was cleared and so it was that, some posturing aside, the first half was played out without further incident and the sides went in with the score Swansea 1 - 0 Malmo.

The second half kicked off and the Swans were keen to ensure they didn't concede what would be (for Malmo) an away goal, and this eagerness saw Jordi Amat pull back Tokelo Rantie and earn himself a booking with only a minute and a half having elapsed since the restart. The Spanish centre-back enjoyed a solid game and will take confidence from this performance, but in all honesty he was lucky to stay on the field after he managed to kick a Malmo player clean in the chops around 10 minutes later. The ref gave a free-kick, but deemed further punishment unnecessary which will have pleased Amat (and everyone else connected with Swansea City) no end. 

That incident came directly after the Swans had scored their second goal - and it was another Routledge assist too. Good work from what seemed like the entire team freed Wayne wide on the left, and his cute flicked cross found £12million man Wilfried Bony, who expertly guided a header across goal into the far corner. An excellent cross, and a great finish to boot. Just after Bony's first Swansea goal Jordi Amat was on the end of another favourable refereeing decision, when it was decided Magnus Eriksson had gone down unjustifiably easily just inside the box, with Amat in very close proximity. From where I was sitting, it looked like there was contact, but I'm not complaining and his appeal was waved away. Never a pen...

A couple of Malmo players then picked up cautions for what the referee deemed were tasty challenges, before the Swans managed to get their third goal - and it was that man Bony again. Rangel showed great persistence to help retrieve the ball, before he received a pass in the centre of the field and wasted no time in sliding a perfect ball through for the onrushing Michu, who'd picked up an almost identical position to the one he scored from in the first half. This time he couldn't repeat the trick, but he came damn close - his shot cannoned back off the far post only to find his Ivorian compadré waiting to tuck the ball home. A true poacher's goal - encouraging stuff indeed given the expectations currently being heaped on him by Swansea fans up and down the country.

The third goal came just about on the hour mark, and really, really killed the game as a contest. There was a good two to three minute period when the clock read seventy-something where I joined my fellow fans in cheering every completed pass the Swans made without surrendering possession. We were cheering for a while. Subs came on; Leon, Michu & Dyer made way for Canas, De Guzman & Pozuelo, and all the replacements looked sharp. Pozuelo in particular stood out; his technique was immaculate and he got a reward for his impressive cameo with an even more impressive goal. More good passing saw Shelvey, De Guzman and Bony involved before Pozuelo collected a high ball on his chest and volleyed low into the bottom corner past the keeper. 4-0 on the night, and another leg to come - if there's a repeat of tonight's performance in Malmo their fans could be forgiven for wondering whether they're to be on the end of their own 9-0 drubbing. 

Verdict? Any cobwebs which were kicking around have just been given a swift clean, and the team looked like an improved unit compared to last year's. 4-0 was fair, and could have been more, but it looked like there's still a bit of work to be done in terms of plugging up gaps at the back when the game gets a bit stretched. I'm in no mood to pick holes though - what a result! Not a bad way to announce yourself on the European stage...