I mean it never really left us, but... football is back!
And this could be the best season to date for Swansea City. Every year it seems to get better and better. Naturally it will plateau at some point, but I feel this season is another that will top the previous one.
Think about it: a European tour, the best squad ever, the South Wales derby... it's already panning out to be the most eventful one yet and we haven't even started!
There is no denying that the Swans third season in the top flight will begin with a tough test, but it's the perfect way to set the bar high - a win against the champions (KO Saturday, 5:30pm)!
Maybe a win is optimistic, but confidence is high among the squad and fans alike. Honestly, this is the best chance the new Swansea have ever had for a victory against Man United. Combine the fact that United aren't fully settled under their new manager, with the superb pre-season that Swansea have enjoyed and there is no better time to play them.
Swansea should start with pretty much the same eleven we saw line-up at the Malmo home game. Despite Gerhard Tremmel's near-perfect performances last season, it will be Michel Vorm in goal. In defence we should see Angel Rangel and Ben Davies alongside Ashley Williams and Chico Flores, who has a tough pre-season of injury and personal loss to put behind him.
There is no way Jonjo Shelvey will miss out as he was superb in the Malmo tie, so it will be him and Michu in the centre, along with Leon Britton to clean things up behind them. On the wings Wayne Routledge is now first choice with Nathan Dyer likely to start. And up front...? Thankfully there is no Itay Shechter anymore - we have Wilfried Bony to smash them in now!
Apart from the recruitment of David Moyes, not too much has changed with United, who won 2-0 against Wigan in the Community Shield match last weekend. The champions will certainly be less predictable at the start of this season.
I've asked Scott from one of the biggest Man United websites, The Republik of Mancunia, to give us his thoughts on the potential United line-up and that all important score prediction. Take it away Scott!
Predicting our line-up and formation was difficult enough last season with a manager we'd had for almost three decades picking the team. Trying to guess with a new manager is even more difficult!
Our starting team for the Community Shield is probably a good starting point though. It's a toss up between Zaha and Valencia on the right wing, although we did see a lot of the former in the pre-season. It's likely that Welbeck and Van Persie will start up front with Carrick and Cleverley in midfield. Rafael is ruled out for the first month of the season so it will be interesting to see whether Moyes fancies Jones or Smalling at right back. Jones was mainly used in midfield in the pre-season.
Last year we drew 1-1 at your place and I would have preferred an easier start to the season for Moyes. Maybe someone could buy Michu before the weekend to do us a favour!
I'll go 2-1 to United, but that's just because I tend to be fairly optimistic. Wouldn't be too surprised (or disappointed) with a draw.
So a cautious but optimistic prediction from Scott. Like most Swans fans, I am confident of at least a point for Swansea and maybe a win, providing the defence are as solid as they have been in pre-season and the attack keep linking up well. It's just a case of putting the chances they have been making into the back of the net (or at least across the line)!
My money would be on 1-1, but 2-1 to Swansea isn't too far fetched this year.
See you there!
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