Exclusive Sunderland POV: "Ki has been a revelation"

The transfer window is open and Swansea City are desperate for something to freshen up a tired squad. But who exactly are we looking for?

Apart from a goalscoring striker to take the pressure off Bony, we are after someone strong, someone with good feet and someone who can pass the ball. But who?

The answer is actually pretty obvious - Ki Sung Yeung! He's already a Swansea City player, but he's currently on a season-long loan to Sunderland (with a mid-season re-call option, which may prove to be important).

So how has Ki been doing up north? By all accounts very well. But who wants to hear all accounts? We want a concrete answer! So I've recruited David Boyle from the popular Sunderland website The Roker Report to give us the Sunderland perspective on Ki and how effective he's been for the Black Cats:

Ki has, quite simply, been a revelation on Wearside, especially under Gus Poyet. That may that sound like a ridiculous thing to say given Sunderland’s current predicament but Poyet has pretty much set his side up around your man and has given Ki licence to dictate play from the middle of the park with basically every attacking move we make going through the South Korean’s feet first.

It is no secret how Gus Poyet likes his teams to play - very much a style which is especially reminiscent to that of your own which won Swansea many plaudits over recent seasons and given the freedom to play in a central midfield of three, Ki has flourished.

Obviously transfers are a hot topic up and down the country at this time of year and I would not be exaggerating when I say that Ki would be top of my shopping list such is his importance to the side.

Quite whether or not a deal can be agreed either now or in the summer remains to be seen and would ultimately hinge on whether or not the club can beat the drop come May, but either way, we look incapable of playing possession football without Ki in the middle of the park.

Ultimately I fear the Ki situation on Wearside may well play out just like Danny Rose’s loan stint last year where he too caught the eye and won the admiration of the home fans for his superb performances at left-back only to play his way back into contention at White Hart Lane.

Selfishly, I’m desperate to see Ki make his spell with Sunderland a more permanent arrangement, although I could perfectly understand if Swansea were to give their man a second chance given the level of performance he has put in of late.

That's some praise! Perhaps we at Swansea didn't see the potential of Ki when he was sent out on loan, but it seems he's one loan player who would be in our best interests to get back as soon as we can.

A big thanks to David for taking the time to give us his opinions on Ki. You can follow David on Twitter.

Swansea City vs Sunderland: A lovely little preview

We're only in October, but we've already arrived at a crucial game for Swansea City. A win in the match against Sunderland on Saturday is very important!

Why? Firstly, despite an array of top players, Sunderland are rock-bottom of the league with just a single point. I have compassion, but Swansea need to take advantage of Sunderland's confidence and kick them when they're down, so to speak. They also have a new manager in Gus Poyet, so it's a great time to take all three points before he settles in.

And finally it's at the Liberty Stadium! The Swans' home form hasn't been that impressive this season, but understandable with Man United, Arsenal and Liverpool the opposition. This is the first of the "should-wins" at home, and the Swans must do exactly that.

Swansea should have a full squad, with Ben Davies, Pablo Hernandez and Garry Monk all back from injury. However it seems Ashley Williams will be out a little longer so expect Amat to replace him again. I'd like to see a middle three of Shelvey, Canas and Michu, with Hernandez and Routledge outside them - very attacking. And up front is obviously Bony. With a team like that, goals shouldn't be a problem.

Sunderland have surprised me this year as there are some quality players in their squad, including two with big Swansea connections - Fabio Borini and the on-loan Ki Sung Yeung. However, it's clear to see Paolo Di Canio didn't help things and is probably the reason they have done so poorly. With Gus Poyet I think they'll be much more solid. But now is a great time for Swansea to make sure they start his reign off with a lose!

I've asked David Boyle from top Sunderland website The Roker Report to give me his thoughts and a prediction ahead of Saturday's match, which he kindly agreed to:

Sunderland fans will anticipate yet another new dawn this weekend, something we have become accustomed to given the rate we've been going through managers recently!

Kevin Ball acted quickly to reinvigorate a squad left downtrodden and demoralised by Paolo Di Canio’s regime and Gus Poyet will be hopeful he can carry on the improved performances which Ball was able to produce during his spell as caretaker manager.

Poyet may well be keen to instil his preferred football philosophy of possession football and methodically looking after the football - something that Swansea fans are well accustomed to, but quite whether it is possible to implement yet another new tactical approach in such a short space of time remains to be seen. However, if we’re being honest, putting points on the board is much more important than easy-on-the-eye football at this stage for a side rooted to the foot of the table.

I wouldn’t expect Poyet to tinker too much or change from the 4-3-3 formation which Kevin Ball employed in the last two games. Obviously he will have to find somebody else to pull the strings in the middle of the park rather than your very own Ki who is unavailable due to the restrictions of the loan deal. I must say I’ve been impressed with the Korean; very tidy on the ball and a good eye for a pass, he has certainly added something to our middling midfield at the very least.

Steven Fletcher is also reportedly ahead of schedule in his bid to returning to action following a shoulder injury sustained against West Brom but if he is to feature it is likely to come from the bench.

It’s impossible to underestimate the importance of three points for the travelling side this weekend but I have a feeling that the spoils will be shared - score draw.

David believes a score draw is likely, which should be the very least Swansea should expect. However I feel the Swans will be too strong at home (hopefully) and too eager following their 2-0 loss to Southampton, so I'm going for a 2-1 win to Swansea.

See you at the Liberty!

Swansea City round-up at the end of silly season!

As we head towards the closing of the transfer window, most of us will be religiously checking Twitter, NewsNow and Sky Sports simultaneously, even though the rumour-mill is in overdrive and 80% of what we read will turn out to be nothing of any truth!

Example of the general bollocks we have to put up with!

I don't think there will be much more action for Swansea City in the next few hours. In reality, we've already been spoilt quite a bit this summer and anything we get now will surely be surplus.

So, overlooking the rumours, lets look at the confirmed (or 'most probable') comings and goings of South Wales' favourite football team!

Going, going... still going... probably going... GONE.

The first big mention goes to one of the most significant names Swansea have moulded over the past two seasons: Scott Sinclair. That first season was a dream for him and fans alike, punctuated by the hat-trick in the play-off final. However, since that mental day in London, Sinclair never looked happy at the club.

His departure to Man City is actually fine for Swansea - £8million (or £6.2million plus add-ons) for the winger is, yet again, superb business from Huw Jenkins. But I can't help feel that for Sinclair it's a stupid move. A youngster who spent most of his early career moving from one club to another, until he found his feet at Swansea, where he was the first name on the team sheet during that final Championship season.

Now he's off to Man City - clearly a club oozing with world-class talent and with no obvious need for him. Man City is a club where Sinclair will be lucky to make the bench for most games. So, why is he moving? Money? A whiny girlfriend? Probably a mixture of both. One thing I can guarantee: it's not to further his career. Good luck Sinclair. See you when you're loaned out to QPR a year down the line.

Elsewhere, we've recently said our goodbyes to Andrea Orlandi (to Brighton for an undisclosed fee). While it's refreshing to see a player like Orlandi leave with no long, drawn out negotiations, it seemed a little abrupt as there was some sentimental value with Orlandi.

He had been with the club for about five years, across four different managers. However, he's not done much in the grand scheme of things for Swansea City. I feel he had much more potential than some in midfield and showed sparks of brilliance at times (including his diving header which produced one of the fastest Premier League goal's ever!). Realistically though, he's not achieved that potential and is rightly gone.

Fede Bessone has left to Swindon to vast cries of “I didn't even realise he was still part of the squad!?”. Rodgers dived for ex-Swan Bessone in the 2011 summer transfer window as cover for injured Alan Tate. He wasn't used that much apart from one or two games and a substantial amount of bench-warming. He took wages, played a little for the reserves and ultimately did nothing much for the club. Best wishes Bessone, but please don't return a third time!

The ongoing debate of 'is Stephen Dobbie good enough for the Premier League?' has been solved: he's joining Orlandi at Brighton on a three-year contract. One of those players who never made the step-up to the current level. He'll do well at Brighton, I have no doubts about it!

Others likely to leave, but with no confirmations yet are Leroy Lita, who is rumoured to be loaned out to Crystal Palace, while Garry Monk is set to go to Bristol City on loan (though this is to be delayed for a few weeks after a back injury). Meanwhile, Curtis Obeng is likely to head to Fleetwood Town - again, on loan.

Welcome to Swansea City!

I'm not going to re-mention the likes of Michu, de Guzman and Chico Flores as there is plenty written on them and we've already seen them in action two or three times so far this season. All three are superb signings - let's leave it at that.

A player we will talk about is one of the biggest names of the summer and one who has finally signed - Pablo Hernandez. After much speculation and uncertainty, he's come from Valencia for £5.5million on a three-year deal, linking up again with Laudrup, who managed Hernandez during his time at Getafe. What a good replacement for Sinclair, especially with money left over from his sale!

Maybe having Hernandez is a little rough on Wayne Routledge who has been surprisingly brilliant over the first two games, but wing is one area where Swansea are pretty bare and needed beefing up. Anyway, I'm sure we'll see plenty of rotation and plenty of Routledge as the year goes on - we all know Dyer can tire himself out!

Record signing Ki Sung-Yueng has now played one game for the Swans after coming from Celtic for £5.5million, bringing with him big support from Korea. He'll probably immediately replace Jonathan de Guzman in the centre for now. There's a decent article on another Swans blog, summing up Sung-Yueng, including some words from a Celtic supporter, which is worth checking out.

Elsewhere, Kyle Bartley from Arsenal for around £1million on a three-year deal helps beef up the defence, and Itay Shechter on a season-long loan from Kaiserslautern gives some much needed competition to Danny Graham.

All things considered, I'm sure you'll agree that this has probably been the best summer transfer movement for Swansea in a good while!

As we head into autumn (that's right, all that rain and thunder was actually summer in disguise), Swansea are really looking a solid team, almost unstoppable.

Check out my Swansea vs. Sunderland preview, posted earlier!