Alfie Mawson Making a Name for Himself

Three things are certain in life; death, taxes and England losing a penalty shootout to Germany. England U21s crashed out of the European Championships this week having lost 4-3 on penalties to Germany following a hard fought 2-2 draw in the semi-final.

Despite crashing out of the competition, the England youngsters certainly delivered a string of performances that they can proud of. Swans’ starlet Alfie Mawson wore the captain’s armband for the Three Lion’s youngsters and did an excellent job in doing so. In the group stages, the U21s conceded just one goal in three games, Mawson part of the defence that helped to keep clean sheets against Sweden and Poland.

Embed from Getty Images

The 23-year-old, who has recently stated his desire to captain both club and country, even scored the equaliser against Slovakia. However, unfortunately for the Swans, Mawson’s form is attracting the Premier League big boys and Tottenham are said to be considering a £15million offer. Though, surely if Mauricio Pochettino does believe Mawson has the potential to captain both his club and country then Spurs should go ahead and submit that £15million offer?

Mawson is already a fine defender and leader but at 23, still has bags of potential waiting to be unlocked. The former Barnsley man may have only experienced one season in the top flight but he has clearly made a big impression, but will it be lasting? There is no doubt that Mawson will continue his fine form of last season and help to form part of a solid back line at the Liberty Stadium.

Embed from Getty Images

And should the 23-year-old continue to develop at a rapid rate, that £15million is likely to rise even further and even more so given the fact he is English. Virgil van Djik is being flouted at a staggering £60million and it’s not impossible that Mawson will one day be deemed worth that much.

With over a decade left to play at the top level, if Spurs were to acquire Mawson for just £15million, it would certainly be a steal for the potential super star. However, the Jacks should certainly knock any bid back as if Mawson is to leave South Wales, getting another year or two out of the defender would be great on the pitch and it may also see his price tag rocket which of course is great news for transfer funds.

Swans stand firm over star man Sigurdsson

Everton’s £30million bid for Gylfi Sigurdsson will come as a surprise to few, however, the boarding reject that bid will come as a relief to many.

The Icelandic star was always going to be the recipient of a host of attention during the transfer window and unfortunately, aside from reject any bid, there is little the club can do about it. That said, Sigurdsson’s own comments do bring a sense of commitment from the 27-year-old. Sigurdsson stated that he is currently happy in South Wales and is not actively seeking an exit, thus it is “down to the club” if they wish to cash-in on his talent, following a brilliant season.

Embed from Getty Images

If the Jacks’ relegation battle proved anything it was that Sigurdsson’s creative flair is hard to come by these days and it’s refreshing to see Steve Kaplan, Jason Levien and Paul Clement stand firm over their wishes to keep the midfielder. Kaplan and Levien have made it clear that they want to keep old of last season’s Player of the Year and have already fended off previous interest in the former Spurs man.

Of the Swans’ 45 league goals last season, Sigurdsson was directly involved in almost 49%, just short of half. He scored nine and assisted 13 and was personally responsible for helping Clement’s men accumulate 14 points. Without Sigurdsson, the Swans would have finished on just 27 points in 19^th place. Only Jermain Defoe with 58% of Sunderland’s goals and Romelu Lukaku with 50% of Everton’s tally rivalled Sigurdsson to such a feat.

Though, even with the board rejecting the bid from Everton, that is unlikely to deter Ronald Koeman. The Dutchman has already splashed out on Jordan Pickford and Davy Klaassen as the Toffees’ new owners look to go huge summer spending spree. However, it remains whether to be seen if the club will increase their bid of £30million.

In more positive news for the Swans, Everton have agreed a £5.2million deal for Malaga striker Sandro Ramirez. The 21-year-old will officially sign at Goodison Park following the conclusion of the European U21 Championship, though the player wishes to focus on tomorrow’s semi-final as Spain take on Poland.

Embed from Getty Images

And how is this good news for the Swans? Well, Ramirez’s replacement at Malaga is none other than Borja Baston. Negotiations are said to be progressing going well for the £15million record buy so the club should hopefully be able to at least recoup some of their transfer fee whilst offloading the former Atletico Madrid man from the wage bill.

Swans eye Bayern Munich's Holger Badstuber

Earlier this week we reported that Tammy Abraham was being linked with a move to the Liberty Stadium. Several other names have been mentioned with the Swans since, and a rumour regarding Bayern Munich defender Holger Badstuber looks to be picking up pace.

What makes the rumour even more interesting is that the 28-year-old has worked with Paul Clement previously between June 2016 and January 2017 at the Allianz Arena. Their working relationship only ended when the Swans made their move for Clement.

The defender has made some 178 appearances for Bayern but after a number of niggling injuries, Bastuber’s time at the Bundesliga giants has very much been blighted in recent years. Still, the defender has been capped for Germany 31-times and should he stay fit, would be an excellent acquisition for the Swans backline.

Embed from Getty Images

The 28-year-old spent the last half of the 2016/17 campaign on loan to Schalke 04 and with his contract expiring next month, a host of clubs are said to be interested in his signature. He made ten appearances for the Bundesliga side, recording an impressive pass success percentage of 91.2%. However, passing is the only aspect of the game that Badstuber seems to excel at, but he is also pretty handy when it comes to retaining possession. Should he be bound for the Liberty Stadium, he will of course offer some excellent competition for Aflie Mawson and Federico Fernandez who have recently cemented themselves as first-choice centre back pairing under Clement. 

Jordi Amat has been linked with a move away from South Wales and a transfer for Badstuber may all but seal the Spaniard’s fate. Whilst Amat was once ranked in the top ten best defenders in the world, Badstuber has received a similar accolade in the past and was previously regarded as one of the most talented centre backs in Europe. Should the German international have stayed injury-free, it would certainly have been interesting to see how his career panned out. Also capable of perating at left-back, Badstuber would certainly offer Clement some versatility and should Martin Olsson get injured, he could step in and do a competent job we’re sure. Former Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal once described Badstuber as the best left-footed defender in Germany, quite the reference.

Embed from Getty Images

Manchester City have been linked with a move for Badstuber in the past, however, it’s unlikely that the 28-year-old will interest Guardiola now.

Chelsea Youngster Tammy Abraham Set to Join Jacks on Loan

It was announced earlier that the Swans have agreed to sign Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham on loan for the entirety of the 2017-2018 season.

The Jacks managed to beat the likes of Newcastle and Brighton to the 19-year-old’s signature, with Paul Clement proving a huge swaying factor. Abraham has worked under Clement previously during his coaching spell at Stamford Bridge.

Embed from Getty Images

Abraham is a great acquisition for the Swans and we have no doubt he’ll become a fan favourite at the Liberty. The striker scored 23 goals in 40 appearances last season during a loan spell at Championship side Bristol City. Paperwork for the deal is expected to be completed today and the striker will join the Swans for the US Pre-season Tour.

The Camberwell born striker joined Chelsea at U8 level and progressed through the club’s academy system. He was a crucial part of the Chelsea side which recorded consecutive triumphs in both the UEFA Youth League and FA Youth Cup back in 2015 and 2016. In the 2016 UEFA Youth League, Abraham netted eight goals in nine matches, a haul which made him the tournament’s second highest top scorer.

Embed from Getty Images

In the FA Youth Cup, Abraham pitched in the winning goal in the club’s 2-1 victory over Manchester City in April. Across the 2014/15 and 2015/16 seasons, the striker netted an impressive 74 goals in just 98 matches in all competitions for various Chelsea youth sides. His remarkable form at youth level did not go unnoticed and interim manager Guus Hiddink invited him to train with the first-team towards the end of the 2015/16 season. Hiddink then handed the youngster his Premier League debut in a 1-1 draw with Liverpool. The following week, Abraham made his home debut in a 1-1 draw against Premier League Champions Leicester City.

Embed from Getty Images

Unsurprisingly, Abraham’s youth form and Chelsea debut caught the attention of several Championship clubs, all vying for the 19-year-old’s signature for a season. Bristol City eventually won the race and Abraham showed his ability in the second tier, finishing as the second top scorer in the league behind Chris Wood of Leeds United. His efforts for Bristol City saw him win Player of the Year, Young player of the Year and Top Goal scorer, becoming the first ever player to earn all three awards in the same season.

With Bafetimbi Gomis likely to be off following a loan season with Marseille, Swansea are looking for additions in both central midfield and attack and Abraham will certainly fit the bill for the latter perfectly.

Fernando Llorente: Our Jack in Attack

Following our two-part blog on the players the Swans should retain, you may have noticed one player in particular that was missing. We’ve raved about Gylfi Sigurdsson’s influence last season but paid little to no attention to Fernando Llorente’s assertion. The Spaniard is the subject from a number of clubs including Chelsea and Manchester City but the Swans should only sell for silly money.

Llorente’s influence cannot go unnoticed and was just as important to the campaign Sigurdsson. The 32-year-old scored 15-goals and grabbed one assist as the Jacks fought to the end for their Premier League lives. The striker was one of the stand out performers under Paul Clement and has duly earned his plaudits.

Arriving from Sevilla for an undisclosed fee, Llorente was under pressure to prove his worth in the top flight and whilst he could have gone the same way as Borja Baston, he staked his claim as Swansea’s mains striker. One of Llorente’s best games came during Bob Bradley’s first win as Swans’ manager.

Llorente ran riot against a hapless Sunderland, bagging a brace and picking up the man of the match award. That said, Llorente’s best game came against Liverpool, the turning point of the Swans’ season following Clement’s appointment.

Embed from Getty Images

The former Barcelona man put the Swans 2-0 ahead at Anfield and helped to run Jurgen Klopp’s defence ragged as the Jacks eventually went on to win 3-2. Another win in which Llorente shined in was that 3-2 win over Burnley. A crunch tie for the Jacks having loomed at the bottom of the table for far too long, the Spaniard came through.

Our star man opened the scoring early in the game but just after the hour mark, the Swans were 2-1 one down. Still, Clement’s men stayed resilient and Martin Olsson was able to make it 2-2 no more than eight minutes later. Heading into injury time, the game looked set for a 2-2 draw but the Jacks weren’t prepared to give up that easily and who other than Llorente to smash home the winner? The Spaniard left the game with yet another brace and another man of the match accolade, scooping four of each in total across the course of the season.

Chelsea tried to sign Llorente in January but fortunately, the Spaniard stayed in South Wales. The main concern is losing Llorente on a free, the striker is only contracted to the summer of 2018, though if he does depart this summer, finding an adequate replacement could prove tricky. A move to Chelsea is more likely than a move to the Etihad, there has been concrete interest from the London club in the past and Llorente has played under Antonio Conte previously during his time at Juventus.

Embed from Getty Images

His 15 goals in 33 Premier League games (28 starts) averages at a goal almost every two games, thus it’s no surprise Chelsea want him on their books. With Diego Costa China bound, Llorente may be one of the players Conte eyes to fill the void left by his fellow countryman.