Cup o' coffee and the Swans (Sunday Catch-up - 25th Jan 2015)

Hungover? Good - it serves you right for drinking that final beer last night.

Anyway, it's Sunday morning so grab a cup of coffee and settle your stomach by catching-up with some of the Swansea City news from the last week.


Blackburn Rovers 3 - 1 Swansea City

As always we'll start with the most recent game, which was an FA Cup fourth round tie against Championship side Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.

Unfortunately after just six minutes every Swans fan was shouting 'are you f****** joking?!' as Kyle Bartley was shown an early red card - not so much for the referee's decision, which seemed correct, but because it was another red card for Swansea, leading to yet another uphill climb from the off.

Gylfi Sigurdsson uncorked a beautiful shot in the 20th minute to give Swansea the lead, but that was quickly cancelled out by an equaliser from Chris Taylor, who capitalised on poor defending in the box.

In the second half, the home side extinguished any suggestion of a Liberty Stadium replay with a second and third goal (from Rudy Gestede and Craig Conway respectively). Then Sigurdsson was sent off for a stupid foul, leaving nine man Swans side to see out the final few minutes. Makes for grim reading doesn't it?

Garry Monk had called for a reaction from the players after the Chelsea hammering, but that clearly didn't help. Everything looked sloppy and a couple of players didn't seem like they wanted to be there, which brings me on to my next section...


Bafetimbi Gomis vs Swansea

It's been a while since Swans fans have been this riled up at a player. Yes Itay Shechter was dreadful and Michu was moody, but no player has been quite as full of themselves as Mr Gomis.

Sort it out Gomis

And it seems to be unjustified arrogance from the striker who hasn't particularly shone in a Swansea shirt, scoring just four goals in 23 appearances. He's 29-years-old, an infrequent international and - although capable of being good - he's not backing up his talk with any action.

Gomis wanted to be the starting striker but, due to Bony's great form and the fact Swansea only ever play one striker, it wasn't going to happen. Of course, no-one knows what promises were made to him originally, but now - with Bony gone - the Frenchman has his chance to impress.

Regardless of his disdain for the club, it seems that Monk has seemingly warned Gomis that he won't be leaving Swansea this month anyway, so he might as well settle in, keep his head down and try to score some bloody goals!


Hello Kyle

Kyle Naughton is now officially a Swansea City player. The surprise move resulted in a £5million bill from Spurs, and a right-back who hasn't particularly wowed during his time at the Premier League top six side, leaving a few Swans fans scratching their heads.

However, he will provide a new option at the tricky right-back position. And he's competition - not just cover - for the likes of Rangel and Richards, which can only be a good thing. Naughton didn't feature in the FA Cup match at Ewood Park (lucky him), but no doubt we'll see him on Sunday against Southampton.


We're in the money!

Earlier in the week it was reported that Swansea City are now in the top 30 wealthiest football clubs in the world. The Swans ranked an impressive 29th in the list, with a revenue of £98.7m during the 2013/14 season, making them the first Welsh club to make it into the top 30. It's nice to end this article on a positive!

Swansea City vs Blackburn Rovers: five in a row?

Before a quick look forward to the Blackburn game, let's rewind to that one against QPR.

I've been relatively quiet about the farce on Wednesday evening. Many others have been very vocal. Some fans seem to be panicking, some seem to be angry and some seem to be angry that others are angry. It's all very confusing. What is pretty straightforward however, is that Swansea were very, very poor (compared to recent standards) and must get, at the very least, a point on Saturday. A loss will not do.

Before I start complaining about the drought of wins (or even goals) to celebrate, let's remember that this is still the debut Premier League season. Perhaps most of us (the team included) have jumped ahead of ourselves - enjoying the 'Swanselona' nicknames and superb passing/possession stats a little too much.

It's great to see, but Swansea are not Barcelona. The Swans are still a smallish club and even finishing 17th this season will be a good achievement (albeit a little damp considering the club had graced the top ten a few weeks ago).

So, looking ahead to Saturday and that single point needed to thrust Swansea into supposed mathematical safety is still at large. Unfortunately, playing a team like Blackburn, currently in the relegation zone, proves harder at this stage as they have so much to play for. Blackburn, too, have lost four in a row and know another loss will just increase the pressure.

That point we crave will not come easily. Lest we forget, Blackburn did a number on the Swans back in December (4-2) with Yakubu smashing them in from anywhere he chose. While I doubt it'll be the same scoreline this time around, even a team facing relegation can be a big threat (need I refer to QPR again?).

Who will start then? Rodgers has a full strength team (minus Kemy Agustien) to chose from, but it's the same eleven we are likely to see again in the Liberty Stadium this Saturday, as the quality of the reserves is not that inspiring at the moment. I do think Nathan Dyer needs to start after Wayne Routledge has shown some inconsistency recently after a few very good games, and looks to be lacking confidence.

Generally, the team need to keep on going about what they've been doing so well for the last few months, but with more confidence and a little enjoyment. Yes, it's hard to play with confidence and a smile when you're out of form, but if you dwell on it, it could become the start of a downwards fall that may see Cardiff welcome us back to the Championship next season.

Okay, that is an extreme example. If Swansea win on Saturday, safety is technically guaranteed. This should have happened a few weeks back, but it wouldn't be Swansea City without some unpredictable results and some nervous moments, would it!

It's hard to predict a score for this one. Swansea are favourites with the bookies (at evens or thereabouts), despite poor form, though the Liberty Stadium crowd will play a big part in lifting the team. I think Swansea will win, and will say 2-0 (at 9/1).

Bite-size Blog: Swansea City vs Blackburn Rovers

The bite-size blog returns! A short, swift kick of opinion, for those who don't have the time to read pages of endless drivel.

This Saturday Swansea City take on Blackburn Rovers: a team at the very bottom of the Premier League.

The opposition:

With just seven points to their name so far, things are not looking too hot for Steve Kean and his men. They've won just one game this season (a frenetic 4-3 win against Arsenal), and have 16 games separating them from their last clean sheet.

Their last match was against Cardiff in the Carling Cup on Tuesday, where they lost 2-0. Steve Kean admits he essentially forfeited the game, keeping players fresh for Swansea – a game Kean believes will “kick-start” Blackburn's season.

There aren't too many players to fear, though Nigerian international Ayegbeni Yakubu will keep Ashley Williams busy enough (probably).

Swansea focus

So is this a must-win game for the Swans? Yes, I think so.

A loss to Blackburn, who are suffering a terrible run, will not make for happy fans. If a draw at Liverpool seemed like points thrown away, a draw or less on Saturday will be an incredible waste!

I would have put my savings (all £94) on Swansea winning on Saturday, but injuries are standing in the way of pure confidence. Jazz Richards will fill in for the injured Angel Rangel, but his finesse and confidence is off the mark.

Danny Graham is also likely to miss the match, which is worrying as he has stepped up in recent games, even though the goals are still not consistently flowing. Leroy Lita is likely to stand in, though I'd be happier seeing Sinclair take the lone striker role, with Routledge and Dyer on the wings. It won't happen, but it's an idea that hasn't been explored enough.

What results mean:

Currently 13th, a win could technically see Swansea move to 8th in the table, providing the five teams above all lose, but it's unlikely (isn't it?). Let's say a good win should see Swansea back in the top ten.

Betting on the game?

Despite me, and most other fans, feeling the away win, the bookmakers are looking to Blackburn to take the points. Swansea aren't likely to score many away from home, but if their Rangel-less defence stays solid and Lita can muster up more than a few nice attempts, I think Swansea to win 1-0 (at 9/1 on PaddyPower) is a realistic bet!

A 'scorecast' on Swansea to win 1-0 with Sinclair scoring the only goal is a generous 45/1. That's worth a pound!