Swansea City v Everton, PL, Match Report

Nobody said it was easy.............

Very recently, Guillem Balague, one of my and many people's favourite Sky Sports pundit, spent some time with our estimable Manager Michael Laudrup, in South Wales.

The interview confirmed, for us Jacks, that ML is both aware of our Club's history, and it's need to develop without selling out its past. Don'cha just love it ??

Given that, and our encouraging start, despite last week's set back at Villa Park, the bulk of us Jacks were looking forward to an intriguing meeting with one of the Division's stronger sides - namely- Everton FC.

I guess they were feeling much the same, given their concrete start, and a 2-2 draw at Home to Newcastle that they could, and should, have won, only to be denied by some bad officiating on pitch.

On another sunlit early Autumn day, the sold out Liberty rocked. Our visitors had done their part, and the remaining Home Tickets had proved to be as hard to get as ever.

Reports throughout the week had suggested that several Swansea City players were struggling, so it was no surprise to see the teams announced.

Everton replaced the injured Jelavic with Anichebe, and Heitinga stood in for Distin. Coleman slotted in at RB for Hibbert.

As for City, without Chico, Tate again filled in, and in MF the flu stricken Britton was consigned to the bench, so Ki stepped in, and Hernandez wide sent Dyer to the bench. The teams looked like this.......

Swansea City
01 Vorm, 05 Tate (Britton - 55' ), 06 Williams Booked, 22 Rangel Booked, 33 Davies, 09 Michu Booked, 11 Pablo (Dyer - 46' Dismissed after an earlier booking ), 15 Routledge, 20 De Guzman, 24 Ki Sung-Yeung Booked, 10 Graham (Shechter - 71' )

Substitutes
25 Tremmel, 16 Monk, 21 Tiendalli, 07 Britton, 12 Dyer, 17 Shechter, 19 Moore

Everton
24 Howard, 03 Baines, 05 Heitinga, 06 Jagielka, 18 Neville, 23 Coleman, 21 Osman Booked, 22 Pienaar (Gueye - 85' ), 25 Fellaini (Oviedo - 85' ), 11 Mirallas (Naismith - 71' ), 28 Anichebe

Substitutes
01 Mucha, 15 Distin, 34 Duffy, 08 Oviedo, 14 Naismith, 19 Gueye, 27 Vellios

Ref: Taylor
Att: 20,464
We Swans had been fearful prior to the kick off given that Everton were one of the few sides to truly out class and outplay us last year, both at Goodison and even here at the Liberty. After last week's mugging at Lambert's Villa, this week, cruelly, turned out to be another salutary lesson.

From the very first minute, the Toffees were first to the ball, pressing us high and fast (again), and our languid tempo saw our goal come under threat time and again, with Anichebe, Mirallas and Pienaar all drawing good saves from Vorm, and we lived on our nerves with an inability to get out of our own half even.

Even this early it appeared that Hernandez on the right was not offering defensive support to Rangel, and Baines and Pienaar were pouring forward at every opportunity.

On the right, Mirallas, Coleman and Osman were doing similar, and Ben Davies did well to cope with the overload.

However, up and through the middle,it was worse - our CB's were getting bullied.

Anichebe speared, and was making muscular runs, but the outstanding threat was who we'd guessed - the dominant Marouane Fellaini was not only bashing the struggling Tate and Williams, but bringing all of Everton's myriad threats into the game by making the ball stick and then laying it off cleverly. We were truly knocking and rocking, and I lost count of the times a last gasp desperate block just kept them out.

Truly, the first time at the Lib in the last 5 or 6 years where I thought we might concede 1 and more from the very start, and the fact that we got to the 21st minute before a breach was down to luck as much as judgement.

At that time, however, our luck ran out.

David Moyes is both practical and clever. This 20m assault had contained not just a hard fast press and balls fed into the box on foot, but an aerial bombardment that lent muscular threat to their possession. Alan Tate, loyal servant, conceded a free kick near to the half way line just from trying to get in front of Fellaini, but I have to say he was not helped by any MF interjection getting in font of the jumper.

From the resulting FK, we didn't learn again, and from a ball driven into the area from L to R, Ash Williams again tried to get in front of the Belgian behemoth, only to see him chest it down, and from a brave second follow up, move it on to Anichebe, six yards from goal, who volleyed it left footed into the net for the opening goal. Despite a suspicion of hand ball from Fellaini in his onward movement of the ball, the goal stood. 1-0, and it had been coming.

It felt like a boxer must feel after being pummelled for the first 5 of 15 rounds, wow, a way behind and things would have to change.

To be fair to City they did, although the next period of the game was as crazy as the first, as Swansea threw even more men forward in trying to get into the game when it might have been more profitable to have sat back and consolidated.

What it led to of course was not only Swansea almost getting back in the game from frenetic attack, but looking, if possible, even more vulnerable to any Everton counter atack- and there were lots of those.

The killer blow came on 43m , just before half time, when from a Swansea attack repelled down in the RB corner, Coleman, Neville and Fellaini played out with skill, leaving the big MidFielder free to play Pienaar free on the right past a despairing and exposed Ben Davies.

South Africa's captain, who has enjoyed a stellar return to the club of his choice, played a blessed ball across the desperate back 4 in retreat, and the fast marauding Kevin Mirallas, who had stayed ahead of a tardy Rangel, met it with a first time clip from 12yds out and central.

The resilient Michel Vorm almost got Swansea out of jail, his classic part parry sending the ball to ricochet onto the crossbar and down, but before the scrambling Vorm could recover, the eager Mirallas dived forward to head home.

2-0, and it was a dagger blow to the heart, but no less deserved for that.

Swansea's pride was stung, and in this fantastic PL encounter, despite a shot ratio of some 17-7 in the first half to the visitors (which should tell you who was on top), the home side contrived to carve two great chances that could have sent them in equal at the break.

From the first of the two decent Swansea moves, de Guzman's ball set Rangel free inside Baines, in almost a carbon copy of his goal against West Ham. This time though, instead of Jaaskelainen's pushing the shot in, Tim Howard produced the first of a series of top class saves and pushed the chance wide.

Just a minute later, Routledge out on the left produced a super ball that cleared everyone and saw Rangel, again, breaking forward, completely mis-time his connection when it looked easier to score. The ball dribbled harmlessly wide, and despite taking a pounding, on another day the 2-0 half time scoreline for the visitors could have been a bizarre 2-2.

Let's have a brief consideration of what had gone on in this half.

Swansea had been bossed and out-thought from a vibrant Everton all the way, but had summoned enough sufficient gumption to almost claw their way (surprisingly) back into the game. The second half promised as much, and didn't fail to deliver, although Scoucers will be happier than us West Walians. Still, sh*t happens.

ML had obviously seen some deficiencies in our performance, and Nathan Dyer replaced the shell shocked Pablo Hernandez at HT (hey - this is the PL, give him some time please), and on 55m he took a gamble further, replacing Alan Tate with Leon Britton, Ki Seung Yung slotting in at CB.

Whilst Everton continued to pour forward, further great Swansea chances came and went, Tim Howard producing another two world class saves from Ki and Michu, either of which efforts would have beaten most GK's.

The game clinching incident came in the 57th minute. Nathan Dyer, just 2m previously, had earned his first yellow card, when, after a foul, he was called by the Ref to come hither for a bollocking. Whilst Dyer, with his hands outstretched, continued to back away, the Ref insisted more. Dyer resisted, and Mr Taylor lost patience, producing a yellow card which most will argue was needless.You can't always get what you want.
It goes without saying that when, 2m later, a clumsy Dyer challenge (possibly pumped?) brought down Baines, out came a second yellow and off went Dyer.

My heart sank, as I realised without doubt this was a day to just take our medicine, hopefully learn, and move on.

Most modern Clubs nowadays practise 10 v 11 on a regular basis, but we forget that when they do so it's usually against their fellow club pros and youth team graduates. Against a top class side like Everton, it's a little different.

They were content from now on to keep the ball, rotate it it regularly to stretch the Swans, and close out the game all the time seeking to add a third. There were several near misses, from both Anichebe and Fellaini, but when a Baines FK from the left left Williams one on one with Fellaini, the big Belgian nodded home a deserved third. Ouch, 3-0, and we really couldn't complain.

Now I'm not one to whinge against circumstance, but I do want to make a comment on the Referee. With a foul count of 16-2 at HT, and 23-7 at FT, either Swansea were significantly dirtier than we've ever been, or the officiating was a little one eyed. I suspect most Evertonians would believe he leaned somewhat their way, for whatever reason.

Who knows, perhaps he just had a bad day - I certainly believe so.

Nonetheless, let's not detract from a fantastic side who reflected their good form so far- they certainly deserved to win comfortably on the day. If I'm allowed to quote the foul stats, then it's only fair I offer the shots stats........18 to 30 and 11 to 19 (total and on target) which reinforces that they had the better of the game.

So, two days later, what do we make of the game?

Well, the first thing is to admit we were outplayed on the day. No shame in that, since we've been outplayed previously, but have equally shown that we've learned from a chastening experience. If you doubt this, compare last year's dismal 3-0 loss at QPR, and our somewhat more successful sojourn there this year.

Secondly, we were playing Everton- as I've said previously - this is a serious, serial, PL member of the better order. Again, we must learn, hopeully.

Finally, to all of the keyboard warriors who are predicting doom and gloom from this one result - here's a message - DO ONE.

I'm a Swansea City fan, and like the majority of fellow Jacks, I'm hurting from an embarrassing loss. Do any of you fools who are denigrating us think our team feels any different.

Tomorrow starts at Crawley.

Keep the faith..........

Onward, Swansea City.

Swansea City v Everton, PL, Match Preview

Time to "Man up" ?

Last season, Everton were one of the few teams to do the League double against us, and in neither game could we realistically complain.

After a 1-0 defeat at Goodison Park, where, apart from Leon Britton, the shortest man on the pitch scored a bullet header from a corner (it was Leon Osman), in the return at the Liberty we were mugged by David Moyes' evolving and committed team - they always start slowly, and then get better as the year goes on.

Well, at least they used to! This year, they've started strongly, and this weekend's fixture promises to set us one of our harder tests.

The reasons for their better start are not hard to discern - this year, for once, Moyes got his incomings and outgoings done early, to good effect, and this most competent of PL Managers was able to drill and train his squad such that they were ready for the off from the get-go.

Their most recent fixture, a fizz bang cracker of a game last Monday against Newcastle Utd in a classic advertisement for Sky Monday Night Football saw most commentators concur that in a 2-2 outcome they were slightly unfortunate, having had two justifiable "goals" ruled out by poor officiating decisions.

For that game, they went with this line up...............

24 Howard, 02 Hibbert, 03 Baines, 06 Jagielka, 15 Distin, 18 Neville Booked, 21 Osman, 22 Pienaar Booked, 25 Fellaini Booked, 07 Jelavic (Anichebe - 44' ), 11 Mirallas (Naismith - 83' )
Substitutes
01 Mucha, 05 Heitinga, 23 Coleman, 34 Duffy, 14 Naismith, 19 Gueye, 28 Anichebe

They lined up in a distinctive 4-1-3-1-1 with Howard in goal, Hibbert, Jagielka, Distin and Baines across the back, Phil Neville holding, allowing a 3 of Mirallas, Osman and Pienaar to support the rampaging Marouane Fellaini, just behind Nikica Jelavic. It worked,once again, too.

Those players were chosen from this full squad.........

1 Jan Mucha GK, 2 Tony Hibbert Def, 3 Leighton Baines Def, 4 Darron Gibson MF, 5 John Heitinga Def, 6 Phil Jagielka Def, 7 Nikica Jelavic Fwd, 8 Bryan Oviedo MF, 11 Kevin Mirallas Fwd, 14 Steven Naismith Fwd, 15 Sylvain Distin Def, 18 Phil Neville Def, 19 Magaye Gueye Fwd, 20 Ross Barkley MF, 21 Leon Osman MF, 22 Steven Pienaar MF, 23 Seamus Coleman Def, 24 Tim Howard GK, 25 Marouane Fellaini MF, 27 Apostolos Vellios Fwd, 28 Victor Anichebe Fwd, 30 Francisco Junior MF, 34Shane Duffy Def, 42 Luke Garbutt Def, 43 Conor McAlenny Fwd

Let's look initially at the most recently chosen first team.

The American keeper Tim Howard is nowadays a PL veteran, and must be rated as one of the PL's best. Gone are the days of his Man U period doubts, and he continues to make excellent stops when times are tight.  Covered by Jan Mucha.

Hibbert, at RB, Jags and Distin at CB are all solid defenders. All have PL experience in spades and all are classy and reliable footballers.

Baines, at LB, is all of these things and then some. Many Swans will remember his last year FK goal, a thing of beauty to all but us Swans. This marauding LB is on the cusp of overtaking Ashley Cole as the best LB in England, and his combination with South Africa's captain at left MF (Pienaar) is one of the things this side relies on to give them attacking momentum.

Pienaar, for his part as well, is no lightweight. Back at Everton from a rocky sojourn at Tottenham, he has proved that his talent and class endures, and he always influences games.

The rock solid Phil Neville, the Club Captain, has of late played as the holding MF'er, but has the flexibility to fill in at either FB. A top class, classy professional footballer, he is Everton's Gary Monk/Alan Tate in spades. Never, ever, lets his side down. Btw, if you don't follow him on Twitter, @fizzer18 is always a good read. One of the few modern footballers who are real.

Leon Osman, just like our Leon, is influential. Always underrated, but trusted by Moyes, he has a habit of changing passages of play with key goals.

On the right last week was one of the Merseysiders' new acquisitions, Kevin Mirallas, who came from Olympiakos as a Belgian International ( and we all know how good they are). Able to play as an out and out forward or in midfield, centrally or wide, he was a fine addition.

The front 2 last week are special.

This is the PL, and Marouane Fellaini is thus far the one of the most impressive players in the League. We remember him well. Apart from bullying Ash Williams and Neil Taylor before squaring a ball that Jelavic tapped in, he's this season embarrassed Man Utd and other luminaries. We will do well to keep him in check. He of the Shock-Peter hair and 6ft plus stature is a handful in every game.

Last week, up front, they started Nikica Jelavic, signed last year from Glasgow Rangers, and the best stat I'm aware of about him is this - in his first games for Everton, from his first 12 touches of the ball, 9 were goals. Wow. First touch and in. Impressive. Reports suggest that he may be injured and thus we may get to miss him, and his replacement is likely to be the in-form Victor Anichebe, the young Nigerian who has started the season well, too, although both Fellaini and Mirallas can lead lead the line on occasion.

The thing to remember about Everton is this. This is a physically imposing, energetic and intimidating, tactically astute, serial Premier League member. This is a side that has been in the PL since its inception - and comfortably, too, apart from one wobbly season. Coupled with that, they are managed by the impressive David Moyes, and as I've said before, he's a PL Manager you really wouldn't want to start a fight with. He strikes me as if he'd win, and his players and team reflect this.

So, you can bet your life we're in for a hard, hard game.

There is, nowadays, a greater depth within their squad.

Jan Mucha is the reserve GK, and cover at the back is provided by Dutch World Cup finalist CB John Heitinga, last year's Club player of the year, but currently kept out by the evergreen Sylvain Distin and current England CB "Jags".

Again on the bench against the Toon were Seamus Coleman, RoI International and ostensibly a RB but who often plays as a Maicon style Wing Back or MF'er.

Shane Duffy is the County Derry born CB who emerged from the Club's fabled Academy along with the class of Ross Barkley (currently out on loan) and Jack Rodwell, sold to Man City for £15m plus. Forward cover came from Steven Naismith, the Scottish Int'l striker picked up cutely from Rangers on a free, and Magaye Gueye, the French born youngster who represented Senegal at the Olympic games.

Mf'er Darron Gibson, ex Man Utd, is out with a thigh injury, so we're unlikely to see him.

Squad depth runs from Forwards Conor McAlenny, a Liverpool born further Academy grad, Apstostolos Vellios, a Greek U 21 Int'l central Striker. Mf'ers Fransisco Junior, a young box to box runner born in Guinea-Bissau, Bryan Oviedo, a Costa Rican Int'l left sider with 13 caps both give middle of the park cover. Another young Defender, Luke Garbutt, became an Everton scholar from Leeds Utd, and is progressing well.

David Moyes, as you know, is one of the PL's best and most experienced Managers, and in assembling his squad for this season, has shown his ability to attract decent talent to the Club by all the various routes, both Internal and External, and coupled with that the Toffees have started the season in good form.

We know to our cost how effective they were against us last year.

As for our own form, we will want to put behind us the disappointing showing at Villa Park last week, and return to more profitable ways, although from a personal point of view I feel there were instances in that previous fixture that had things gone our way - I'm thinking of the Guzan double save and Danny G and Luke M's misses- things just might have been different. Ah well, " If my Granny etc......".

ML may well, I feel, make some slight changes.

Against a physical side like Everton, Ki's prowess, both on and off the ball, and even Kemy Agustien for similar reasons, may be considered. The options at the back are limited, and I don't see any change there.

Lastly, Pablo's encouraging cameo in the last 15m may see him give a spell to either of the wide men.

Whatever line up ML chooses, this will be a difficult encounter, but in this Division, when was it any different?

And that's what makes this journey all the more rewarding. I, along with all my fellow Jacks  will be there to give my unstinting support; because that's what we fans do.

Enjoy the game.

Onward, Swansea City.

Aston Villa v Swansea City, Match report, PL

A Grey Away Day.

A visit to Villa Park is anything but grey - as one of the PL's more pleasing grounds, it's a riot of Technicholor mixed in with Villa's claret and blue, and the aesthetic harmony of old and new at this traditional PL home is perhaps a lesson for all who would go their way as a long term and serious Club.

Add to that a brilliantly sunny early Autumn day and after our encouraging start what could possibly go wrong??

As it happens, on the playing front, quite a lot -  it turned out to be a slap in the face and a reminder of "know your place" etiquette for any of us Jacks who were getting ahead of ourselves, and, as ML hinted in his post Match interview, that may turn out to be no bad thing.

Given our superlative performance in our last year's PL Season - our first, don't forget - I suspect we've all been privy to the premature crowing of a minority of our Fanbase (Newbies, perhaps?) in thinking that we'd just roll over teams who, like Villa, have suffered relatively lean times in comparison to their illustrious past.

Hey, Quelle surprise  - this is Football in  the Premier league and it just doesn't happen that way.

Both I and my three fellow JackArmy travellers had arrived in good time and had space to take in a pleasant lunch and light refreshment in close proximity to the ground, and our front row seats in the Lower Doug Ellis stand meant we had a first class view of an enthralling PL matchup.

As for the teams, they lined up as follows...........

Aston Villa
22 Guzan, 04 Vlaar, 06 Clark Booked, 30 Lichaj Booked, 34 Lowton Booked, 07 Ireland (Westwood - 70' ), 08 El Ahmadi, 25 Bannan, 09 Bent, 14 Holman (N'Zogbia - 79' ), 26 Weimann (Benteke - 71' )
Substitutes
01 Given, 29 Bennett, 10 N'Zogbia, 15 Westwood, 11 Agbonlahor, 20 Benteke, 21 Bowery

Swansea City
01 Vorm, 05 Tate, 06 Williams, 22 Rangel, 33 Davies, 07 Britton (Shechter - 79' ), 09 Michu Booked, 12 Dyer, 15 Routledge (Pablo - 57' ), 20 De Guzman, 10 Graham (Moore - 71' )
Substitutes
25 Tremmel, 11 Pablo, 24 Ki Sung-Yeung, 26 Agustien, 29 Richards, 17 Shechter, 19 Moore

Ref: Mason
Att: 34,005
The Jack selecion from ML showed just one change, with the long serving Alan Tate stepping in for the suspended Chico Flores, and both Ki and Pablo (the Club's record signings) started on the bench.

Lambert's Villains reflected the change within the Club, with several members graduating from their deservedly acclaimed Youth Academy, supplemented by key and influential senior acquisitions - in sharp contrast to the previous defensive and negative McLeish regime they had last season.

Paul Lambert has always proved against us that his tactical acumen often sets us a puzzle, and so it proved.

It's widely known within football nowadays that ML has set us up in in a structure that's a variation on our previous 4-3-3 Manque with wingers hugging the touchline. Nowadays, we're more like a 4-2-3-1 with both Routledge and Dyer as the wide men in the three playing a lot narrower, and Michu as the middle of that three both supporting and changing with  Danny Graham.

Villa's response was to compete in both formation and commitment, and their constant harrying and closing meant that it took Swansea a lot more effort to get into the rhythm and tempo of their normal game.

The first 15m saw Swansea press forward neatly and tidily, but the swarming nature of Villa's MF contribution made it hard to make an impression. Coupled with that, Villa too were prepared to break and threaten, and both Wegmann and Holman were influential, and Lowton at RB was prepared to maraud as Rangel does for us, with extra pace.

For all the perceived pressure, Swansea created two great early chances, both of which were to confirm the wisdom of starting Brad Guzan ahead of the benched and senior Shay Given.

From a corner won on the right, Jonathan de Guzman sent in a cross that was headed bullet hard goal ward by Ash Williams , only to be denied by a fabulous parry that sent the ball out to the left wing, where Wayne Routledge picked it up. He cut in and rolled it square to Nathan Dyer, who sent a terrific curling shot to the top left corner, only for Guzan again to palm it over at full length. Saves, sometimes, win games. These two certainly had an influence.

The scale of the interventions became evident soon afterward.

After this early period of fairly even football, with a leaning toward Swansea dominance even, the next phase of the game became different.

Villa began to swarm at Swansea, pressing hard and fast, designedly structured to stop City playing out from the back, and it worked. Moreover, when in possession, Lowton was playing the Maicon role as a marauding wing back, and his runs forward, both inside and out, began to cause problems for Swansea.

On 16m, Ben Davies was forced into conceding a corner on the right, and from Barry Bannan's driven cross, Ash Williams headed clear outside the box, only to see the confident Lowton not only chest the ball for control, but then to follow up with a left foot volley that skimmed Alan Tate's hair but then swerved two ways on its way to defeating the despairing dive of Michel Vorm who had gone to the right hand post only to see the viciously hit volley scream into the middle of the goal.

1-0 to the Villa, and it was a blow to the solar plexus as the home fans came alive after a nervous start.

The goal came, as I've said, in the 16th minute, and presaged the applause in the 19th minute (in honour of his number) to support the stricken but recovering Villa skipper Stiliyan Petrov, generously and classily supported by the large JackArmy. Respect, all round.

The rest of the half remained a cut and thrust encounter, with both sides showing promise - Vorm saved well from both Wegmann and Ciaran Clark, but the end to end nature of the game cost Swansea dear just before half time.

A super move on the right allowed Rangel to play Dyer free, and from his fine cut back across the box, Danny Graham, just 6yds out and clear, was unable to get a touch on the ball and the gaping chance ran free and safe.

I suspect the psychological damage of the miss went on to hurt the side, since just two minutes later they went off for the half time break with Villa still 1-0 up, instead of being level at 1-1.

Did this cost us? I think so, but find myself unable to castigate DG, who had continued to run his heart out for the cause throughout the half. Sometimes, often even, football is a cruel game.

In the second period, City did their darndest to get back on the front foot, but Villa, with the crowd's backing, were generally coming out on top. We've seen the same at our place, where we begin to grind the opposition down just from relentless pressure, and now Villa were doing it to us.

Don't be misled though, - despite being on the ropes, the Swans were content to soak up the pressure and seek to break for an equaliser. Hey - this is the Premier League, not some vague awayday at Cheltenham (no disrespect), so it was a source of pride to at least stay in the game.

Villa's pressure led to a series of corners, the last of which saw Leon Britton heroically clear off the line from a Weimann strike to maintain the status quo.

Pablo Hernandez came on for his Swansea debut for Wayne Routledge to be followed by Luke Moore for Danny Graham on 70m.

Almost immediately for Villa, Lambert countered by introducing Westwood for Stephen Ireland and Benteke for Weimann, coincidentally switching their formation to a 4-4-2, with Bent and Benteke foraging at the front.

Whilst Pablo gave a promising cameo of his ultimate worth to the Swansea team, consistently and pleasingly both dribbling and feeding his classy control of the ball, and almost creating a breakthrough, Villa by obdurate defence were able to resist.

The best City chances fell to a Luke Moore header from a great move and cross from Rangel - unfortunately not up to his Man City standard goal from last year and comfortably taken by Guzan, - and a Ben Davies drive and shot which Moore, again, was unable to touch in. Both, unsurprisingly, were celebrated by the Villa fans, coming, as they did from an ex Villa player. Ah well.

As I've hinted, the dual threat of Bent and Benteke ultimately put the game to bed.

On 89m, Guzan sent a hit and hope ball forward. Bizzarely, in a vague echo of the Sunderland game, the ball skimmed off Ben Davies' head and Darren Bent outjumped the solid Alan Tate to send it forward again.

Ash Williams, some 25yds out, made to head it back to Vorm and safety, but miscalculated, and his diffident touch allowed Benteke to get to the ball before Vorm, flick it up and over the keeper, and run it into the net.

2-0, a horrible mistake, but these things do happen - even to a player as good as Williams. ML was decent in his approbation, and I feel that it would be unfair to criticise a player who has almost NEVER missed a game and will know only too well what went on. If it's hurtful for us fans, just think how both he and the team feel. Ouch and bloody ouch.

Schechter's late replacement of Britton had given us nothing, and we fell to our first defeat of the season, 2-0.

So, in retrospect, what do we take from the game?

Well, the first point to be made is this, - by all means read Internet blogs and the like, and weed out the fatuous and foolish. I've read lots that have been both critical and all but defamatory in their criticism of City as if the team didn't bloody care.

There's only one response to that sort of analysis - ignore it and move on - it's probably posted by some sad sack of 15 or 50, seeking in his (it's always a him) bedroom loneliness some sort of response. DANGER - " TROLLS FISHING HERE ". Move on.

ML provided a dignified and sensible response, and both Managers interviews are again  here........               

My generalisations are these.........

1) City didn't perform to the level that they had in the previous 3 games. This may seem simplistic, and may well have been influenced by Lambert's cute setting up of his side - after all, he has won 5 of his last 6 games against us.

2) Our squad has talent in breadth but is somewhat lightweight on depth. Witness the trouble we're in at CB, where, with Flores suspended and Bartley and Monk injured, we're down to exhausted Ash Williams and the stalwart Alan Tate.

3) We have cover wide and MF - Ki, Agustien, Pablo..............but, but, when Danny G goes off (for whatever reason), Luke Moore and Schechter don't seem to cut the mustard. I am NOT knocking our players, Moore particularly who has played his part in getting us to where we are, but I feel in January it might be something that we ought to look at.

Anyway, enough of the negative perceptions and emotions.

Let's be realistic. Even after the defeat I was proud and pleased to come away from Villa Park as a Swansea City supporter. I shall be at our next home game against Everton, both hoping and believing that we can get back on track. We really are good enough to do that.

I'll also be travelling to Stoke away, where, hopefully, this year we can show the rest of the division that it's more pleasing to play football in the Swansea City way. (Btw- no more viruses Michel V, please.........).

See you later in the week for an Everton preview and........

Onward, Swansea City.

Swansea City v Sunderland, PL, Match Report

Strength through Adversity.

Laudrup learns lessons in rip roaring Sunderland skirmish.

In our short PL tenure, I've learned quickly that there are games, and then there are games. This was one such Game. Packed into it's eventual 100 minutes, it had almost everything the modern Premier League has come to mean - goals, thrills, excitement, hurtful and disappointing injury, elation, controversy, quality......... I could go on and on, but if you've been lucky enough to have seen it you'll know exactly what I mean. Wish you were here.

The fixture had promised much pre match, with Swansea buoyant on their two game winning start, and Sunderland boosted by their signing two quality upgrades in Steven Fletcher and Adam Johnson .

Before the kick off as well, City paraded their deadline day new Club record signing, the impossibly cool looking Pablo Hernandez from Valencia, who exuded the confidence of a man recently stepped off a private Spanish beach (somewhere around Marbella, eh?) as he took in the applause of another upbeat record City crowd in his saunter to the centre circle and back. Born slippy. 

Whilst Pablo H was not in the Matchday squad, ML went with the team unchanged, but the bench contained both Ki Sung Yeung, the extravagantly talented S Korean, and Itay Scheckter, the Israeli International. Sunderland meanwhile stayed with both Gardener and Colback at FB, and a full strength team from all those available.

This is how they lined up...........

Swansea City
01 Vorm, 03 Taylor (Davies - 20' ), 04 Chico Dismissed, 06 Williams Booked, 22 Rangel, 07 Britton, 09 Michu (Ki Sung-Yeung - 78' ), 12 Dyer, 15 Routledge (Tate - 73' ), 20 De Guzman, 10 Graham
Substitutes
25 Tremmel, 05 Tate, 33 Davies, 24 Ki Sung-Yeung, 26 Agustien, 17 Shechter, 19 Moore

Sunderland
22 Mignolet, 16 O'Shea, 24 Cuellar, 06 Cattermole (Meyler - 38' ), 07 Larsson, 08 Gardner Booked, 14 Colback, 21 Johnson, 23 McClean, 28 Sessegnon (Campbell - 84' ), 26 Fletcher (Saha - 67' )
Substitutes
20 Westwood, 12 Kilgallon, 19 Bramble, 18 Meyler, 09 Campbell, 17 Ji Dong-Won, 25 Saha

Ref: East
Att: 20,350

The Referee was Mr Roger East, a Premier League debutant, and, given the eventual rumbustious nature of the ensuing  game, more of that later.

Both teams started strongly, with City bringing their usual flair, and a strong Sunderland side matching their competitive endeavour. Early, Seb Larsson sent in a free kick, which reminded how dangerous both he and it could be - it would come back to haunt us later.

Swansea's best early chance, over and above a couple of corners, came from a Dyer chip/cum shot, which saw the confident Mignolet clasp it comfortably high having read its flight.

On 15m came the incident that saw Neil Taylor suffer an awful injury.

From a ball worked to the right toward the overlapping Craig Gardener, Taylor put in a challenge that was slightly late and was undoubtedly a foul. He was really unlucky in that whilst making the challenge he fell backwards, exacerbated by Gardener's momentum forcing him hard down toward the turf. His left ankle, studs having taken a grip, was bent backwards horribly, and one could see from his beating of the ground in pain and his and other players signals toward the bench that it was a bad one. The game stopped immediately, and the bad news was confirmed by the Swansea Physio's crossed armed signal to the bench to indicate a break.

All this happened just 15yds in front of where I sit, and the almost 7m delay passed uncomfortably for everyone as the Medics strapped on the inflatable stabilisers to his stricken leg, and he was eventually taken off to hospital under oxygen administered stabilisation.

The first point to be made is that despite understandable Home fury from some, Gardiner was in no way to blame - it had been unfortunate that his weight going forward drove Taylor into the turf, but it was no more than happenstance.

I want to make two more points about this incident.

Whilst Taylor was receiving attention, John O'Shea, Sunderland's CB did himself no favours in getting involved in a demeaning slanging match with some Home supporters in the Lower West. Neither party did themselves proud.

Secondly, the bulk of the Sunderland support joined in with the sympathetic applause as Taylor was carried off, but a shameful few visitors saw fit to boo. Shameful, as I say, but every club has its attendant fools, ourselves included.

ML and the OS later confirmed that Neil had suffered a triple break plus dislocation and will be out for the season - it goes without saying that ALL football fans will wish him well in his recovery, and this terrific player deserves nothing other than our complete support and encouragement. Huge respect.

Young Ben Davies came on to replace Taylor after the necessary delay of some 7 to 8 minutes.

The game went through a quietish 10m period, unsurprisingly, but was brought back to life by the impressive Wayne Routledge going outside Gardener, only to see the FB bring him down and be the first into the book. De Guzman's FK was punched bravely clear by Mignolet, only for Rangel's follow up cross to be cleared by O'Shea.

On the half hour, the dangerous Routledge burst clear of Cattermole in MF, only to be brought down by the Black Cats' combative MF'er, and he , Cattermole, was not only booked but took a blow to the inside of his right knee, a knock which forced his substitution by David Meyler just 8m later. Both teams had now lost an influential player, and on 40m the first break came.

A Sunderland clearance carried into the Swans half along City's LB side and Ben Davies' aerial challenge saw the ball skim off his head and run 10 yds further where the covering Ash Williams, under pressure from Fletcher attempted to turn the ball back to Vorm in goal, only to see his mis hit pass dribble toward the GK.

The ever alert CF drove toward the Swansea goal with the ball. Williams desperate attempt to make up ground on Fletcher, and Flores' attempt to cut him off came to naught as the striker cleverly manoeuvred the ball onto his preferred left foot, and he curled a sublime shot past the advancing Vorm to nestle into the only corner, bottom right, that he could have scored. 1-0 to the visitors, and a horrible mistake had been converted by a finish of the highest quality.

This second major blow could have knocked the City team sideways, but, to be fair, they set about retrieving the deficit in fine style.

Swansea attacked strongly, but suffered a scare when a delicious Sessegnon cross from a break right to left saw the powerful James McLean volley just over the bar, with Vorm scrambling - a dive that told us that it was really close.

However, just as the 4th official signalled an extra 6m on 45m, Swansea attacked on the right.

A neat passing move saw Michu central play to Dyer on the right edge of the box, and the winger's wonderfully delivered dink sent the ball past the square defense and into WR's path, the other winger having made a wonderfully timed run to beat the flat back 4. Some 10yds out and just wide of the keeper's L Hand post he volleyed a spectacular screamer past Mignolet into the cenral roof of the net.

1-1, and a wonderfully uplifting equaliser. The noise in the Stadium, which had been constant throughout, just went up another notch. 11 on the scale of 10, as it were.

The remaining 6m and 04 seconds of the half saw two other threats on the Swansea goal from SAFC, one repelled, one not.

Another dangerous Sessegnon cross, again from the right, saw the visitors scream for a penalty as Rangel's clearing header seemed to involve a slight push on Fletcher prior to his clearing the ball, but in this instance the debutant Mr East sided with us. At the very death of the half, he did the opposite.

Adam Johnson, their other high profile signing, hit a cross field pass that the rampant McLean touched first time inside Rangel, and the Referee's deeming of a handball from the Spaniard led to a last gasp free kick.

It was taken by the technically excellent Seb Larsson, who has a habit of making these count. His in-swinging ball from the left cleared the Swansea defence by a skimming head that seemed to freeze Michel Vorm as he came for the ball, and that delay allowed the wide running Fletcher to mug Chico at the back post and to poke a low finish into the net. 2-1, and whilst the visitors danced, we slumped into the break. I use the word mugged deliberately - it just felt like that.

No matter, there was another 45m to come - time enough to get back at them I thought.

The consensus around me was that whilst the winning of our first 2 games 5-0 and 3-0 had been reasonably straightforward, the upcoming half half would truly test the mettle of the team, and, as it turned out, as I've suggested in the title and intro, it was to be a half that told us a lot of good things.

Whilst the first 5m or so were even, with both teams testing each other, Swansea began to exert more and more pressure, particularly by retaining possession, but more effectively, by expanding their game to test Sunderland deeper and deeper.

A word here for both Dyer and Routledge. Each was by now consistently seeking space, and finding it, between the lines, and their ability to receive the ball and turn toward the Sunderland goal left Graham and Michu to employ crossing and dangerous runs, and the marauding FB's Rangel and Davies to get further and further forward.

Similarly, de Guzman was having his best game in a Swans shirt, regularly finding the key pass and putting people free. Sunderland were rocking, and a period of heavy pressure led to the equaliser on 66m.

Just 4m before, an in-swinging de Guzman cross from the left had seen Michu head down and goal ward, only to see the ball bounce just over the crossbar.

So when James McLean lashed a deep ball clear from almost his goal line, de Guzman had time to deliver a curling head height ball in from the right. As the CB's came to meet it, a superb run by Miguel Michu across them allowed him to get in a terrific header that used the pace on the ball to send it in. 2-2, and the Liberty rocked.

The goal saw Sunderland replace the 2 goal Fletcher with Louis Saha, and a crunching and disputatious Chico Flores tackle on McLean (no foul awarded) left MoN to have his Kevin the Teenager moment............he was throwing water bottles and whatever else was to hand down in his frustration at not being awarded the foul. In all honesty, I could see what he was getting at, and on 70m, the fabulously committed Chico committed an aberration too far.

From a ball knocked down the left hand touchline, as Chico and Saha went for it, the Frenchman headed it forward down the line. It was obvious that Flores was late, but his 6ft high stretch for the ball whistled closely past Saha's ear, and he fell to the ground as if shot.

Hey, listen, I ain't here to defend my own player (but I will offer this) - Chico's challenge had been foolish in the extreme, and he deserved to be sent off for dangerous play, but I can't help feeling that if Louis Saha hadn't milked it quite so much, it might, just might, have been a Yellow rather than Red. It looked, on all the replays I've seen, as if there wasn't any contact. Whatever.

Down to 10 men with 20m to go, the Swans were now up against it, but, to my eternal pride this was the period when the team, crowd and particularly Manager showed their street smarts, coming up with a period of football of which we can all be proud.

Each on field player seemed to double their efforts, and the crowd got progressively and proudly louder and louder, in total accord and in support of the team.

ML, meanwhile showed his tactical acumen, his immediate replacing of Routledge with Alan Tate to shore up the backline given proof by Tate's excellent performance and brave block late on : this was trumped by his introduction of Ki Sung Yeung for Michu, allowing the Swans to dictate the possession in the last 16m almost 80% to 20% despite being down to 10 men.

Ki, the young South Korean, gave a cameo Masterclass in how to get and keep possesion, never once giving it away in a 100% pass completion rate, and driving Sunderland into acceptance of a point long before the end.

As the clock ran down nearer to the finish, I too was beginning to accept that at 2-2, given the circumstances that had enfolded, was equally as happy with a point.

I came away from the ground quite proud of our performance, and with each progressive watching of the game, and each progressing day, I can honestly say that that pride is equally as strong.

It was a typical PL encounter against a strong and well performing Sunderland side that had just about everything in a hugely exciting match.

Given those circumstances, although it would be tempting to criticise the debutant Referee for a leaning toward our opponents, I find I really can't. I didn't think his performance was good - but then I didn't think it was awful, either. Somewhere in between really.

A word, too, for the competing Managers.

Whilst we are justifiably proud of ML for his rational and sensible demeanour, don't let my description of MoN's frustration earlier blind you to the fact that he is one of the few PL Managers to have come here and given us nothing other than decent and honest praise. Respect, and both interviews can be found here.      

All in all, Unbelievable.

Wow, I'm tempted to say we need an International break. See you soon,

Onward, Swansea City.

Q + A for Salut Sunderland

I was asked this week to do a Question and Answer session by the website Salut Sunderland which is a Wearsiders Supporters site.

These were the Questions posed, and my Swansea City centric answers.

Hope you enjoy. The Questions were posed by Colin Randell, a true Mackem, and a Webmaster on that site.  Many thanks to him.

A riproaring start at QPR. Can you honestly say you saw that one coming?

As I've written on my blog- I could not. My feelings were that we would do well to come away from there with a point. After all, our record at Loftus Rd stretches back some years, almost always unsuccessfully, and last season saw us turn in what was generally considered by ALL Swansea City fans as our worst performance of the season (we lost 3-0) and I've many unhappy memories of the 80's , when we were regularly spat upon there - not a nice place in my memory. So, when the team performed so well, the 5-0 win was a real treat. Needless to say, I've engaged in some worthwhile banter with some R's fans who were pre-match baiting us . I'm a believer in the concept of Football Karma - what goes around often comes around - often, to HAUNT you. Woohoo.

I imagine one or two pundits marked you down as relegation candidates but after a very bright first season back in the top flight, you must be feeling confident that you can now establish yourselves.

I honestly think that we have a realistic chance of  retaining or status as a PL Club. That would be a magnificent achievement, and it ties in with our realistic Board's attempt to make our PL adventure long-term sustainable. Already, work is underway to develop an Academy facility at Landore, and a Club Training Facility/ Sports Science centre at Fairwood in conjunction with Swansea University. This, coupled with phased Stadium Development is surely what the PL fruits should be used for, so that we have some sort of that cute word "Legacy" . I'm not foolish enough  though to forget that NONE of this comes without retension of PL status, so the team must also develop. Thus far, it has, and is. As far as pundits go, we Swans have a lot of time for Lee Dixon and the MoTD2 team last year, and less for Mark Lawrenson, but I have to say that Lawro's constant predictions of a 2-0 loss for the Swans spurred us on some. I think the only time he was right was at your place last year! Ouch!

How big a blow was the loss of Brendan Rodgers and do you feel he will become a god manager at Liverpool?

Losing BR was a blow, no argument, not least because it wasn't the first time it had happened to us. Whelan sucked Martinez to Wigan, Sousa's flit to Leicester was less of a shock and may have suited us, but BR had got us into the Division, so it was initially perceived as a body shot. However, our fantastic Chairman and Board, Huw Jenkins and colleagues pulled another rabbit from the hat, and Michael Laudrup's appointment was really well received by the fan base. I honestly think that BR needs to be given at least 3 years at Liverpool - if the fans and Board have enough patience, he will undoubtedly succeed, and pull their Club nearer to where they believe they belong.

Who will be your key players this season and where do you still need strengthening?

Laudrup's initial signings have been stellar. Chico Flores for the impressive Steven Caulker at CB promises to match SC's achievements and turn into a "Cult" player- one who gives his all and we fans love it. JdG for Sigurdsson is again a quality replacement- less goals but more skill- and this week we signed S Korea's Ki Siung Yeung from Celtic- and he is a terrifically gifted and highly rated player. In the background , we've also got in several low key but developmental youngsters - Proctor, Bartley, Scheckter. And then there's Michu - Miguel Perez Cuesta was last season's 17 goal scoring MF'er from Rayo Vallecano and he has been a delight to watch- when you get a realistcally quality MF'er with style, who scores the sort of goal that you saw in his second at QPR, it's a real buzz. We stand to lose SSinclair to Citeh, but since his replacement is likely to be Pablo Hernandez from Valencia at less than Scott's fee, I'll settle for that. We've been linked also with Miku at Getafe, and Alvaro Vasquez at Espagnol, but I suspect that you're in that game too, and may out-trump us there. Whatever, I'm happy.

Is there anyone in the SAFC squad you'd like to see in your team?

I'm hugely impressed by Stephane Sessegnon, I'd take him in a heartbeat, and Mignolet is a quality keeper. I think Fletcher is a quality signing - he and Jarvis for Wolves last year terrorised us in the crazy 4-4 draw at the LIB. Since you're offering, I suppose we'd take Adam Johnson and Sebastian Larsson off your hands- they show a lot of promise I feel. ( sic- please take that comment tongue in cheek)

Any good, bad amusing memories of games involving our two clubs?

My over-riding memory is of last year's defeat at the Stadium of Light - late in the second half, already 1-0 down to Sessegnon's worldy - the crisp papers and tissues swirled around on the pitch as the wind whipped in off the North Sea - and Craig Gardener lashed in ANOTHER WORLDY. It's true to say my chin hit my chest.

Did the success of the Olympics leave you a little blase about the return of football or were you raring to go?

I thought the Olympics were fantastic.I was always a sceptic - cost, location etc..........but got really caught up in the feel-good fever that seemed to reach all of the nation. (God bless Danny Boyle, btw, for starting it off right.) But,but, we've ALL got only one true love, so when Football came back I was itching for it. Olympics = Good. Football= Better.

Will we ever stamp out cheating or must we accept it as part of the game? Who are the worst culprits, individuals or teams?

We'll never ever stamp it out, but we can try. We must NEVER just accept it. Think back to the 80's, when Leeds, and Revie, encouraged players to stay down to "kill the attack". It was ever thus. Divers nowadays? - Ashley Young, Christiano Ronaldo and Didier Drogba was the cutest of the recent variety. Teams? I'd never, ever, trust Man Utd whilst SAF is there, he has more faces than the Town Hall Clock.

Best player/s you've ever seen in Swansea colours and any who should have been allowed nowhere near them.

Ivor Allchurch, Alan Curtis, Robbie James, Leon Britton, Ferrie Bodde, and I suspect I'll get to adore Michu, Miguel Perez Cuesta. ALL players who've played for us have my admiration. I just don't believe in bad-mouthing people who've tried on our behalf. Some are better than others, but they've all worn the shirt with pride. Respect.

Club vs country, in your case Wales of course. Who wins for you and why?

It's Club for me.I guess it's because I have a weekly and enduring connection with the Club. Whilst the National Side have been better of late, it's the distance between National Games - by the time Wales play next, I'll have suffered the lows and highs of a weekly fixture in the "best League in the world". Whether you agree, or disagree, you must concede that it's fun in the extreme, and beats the "blank weekends" thrown up by the FIFA fixture list.

Name this season's top four in order and the bottom three.

Chelsea, Man City, Arsenal, Everton at the Top.
QPR, Wigan, Southampton to drop.

Where, if not in either list, will our clubs finish?

You will be 10th and maybe upwards. We will be 11th to 14th and hopefully settling into the Division. We are having a ball.

WIll you be at the game? What will be the score?

I will indeed be at the game. I sit in G120, Lower West Stand, and I'm looking for a Swansea City win, and 2-1's my prediction.

And finally, a paragraph about you, what you do, your history of supporting Swansea and your site.

I'm a 62 yr old retired Teacher, who saw his first Swansea City game in 1963 at the Vetch Field against Ipswich Town. I write a weekly Swansea - centric blog at http://pierre91.blogspot.co.uk/ that both Previews Matches and reports on the subsequent game. I also write for two of the best Swansea City fansites - http://scfc2.co.uk/ , which is run by Jim White, the Vice Chairman of the Swansea City Supporters Trust, http://www.swanstrust.co.uk/ , and Planet Swans , a site run by Phil Sumbler, the Chair of that very same Swansea City Supporters Trust . As a 20% owner of our current club, this was the organisation that saw us 10yrs ago almost to the day, help in the rescue the Club from the blink of oblivion.

I have always admired your Club, from it's "Bank of England " history through to it's current situation, with your admirable ex -Chairman Niall Quinn, the current combative Manager Martin O'Neil and your wonderful top-class Working Class support. We will never be as big a Club, but if we can work toward it I'll be delighted.

All the best for Saturday - enjoy the game, and may the best team win.

Swansea City v Sunderland, PL, Match Preview

The North East comes South West - hopefully to better weather.

In this our second season in the Premier League, it does well to cast our minds back just a year ago, when, early in the Season, the Geordie Martyr (as they know Steve Bruce up in Wearside), brought his team to work out a 0-0 draw, early in our nascent season. Not long after, they'd had enough, and Bruce left the Club.

By the time it came round for our return visit, SB's departure had seen him replaced by Martin O'Neil, and his experienced stewardship saw the Black Cats dominate the return fixture, despite our sweet possession for much of the game, and on a wild and windy afternoon beside the North Sea, two Worldys by Sessegnon and Gardener were good enough to see us off. Ouch.

So now we welcome back the marauders from the North East, and we welcome a Club that's in as much of a process of change as we are, albeit in a slightly more advanced and moneyed stage. I've written previously of SAFC's benevolent ownership structure under the Yank Billionaire Ellis Short, but that shouldn't detract from the basic truth - this is still a hugely (justifiably) proud Club that still connects and resonates with it's essentially proud working class support. In that sense, if that alone, we are not so very different.

MoN has been busy (when was he ever otherwise?) and the playing staff have been added to and trimmed, much as has our own, and the current squad list reads thus........

Goalkeepers
22 Simon Mignolet, 20 Keiren Westwood, 13 Jordan Pickford

Defenders
2 Phil Bardsley, 24 Carlos Cuellar, 5 Wes Brown, 11 Kieran Richardson, 12 Matt Kilgallon, 16 John O'Shea, 19 Titus Bramble, 34 Blair Adams, 42 John Egan

Midfielders
6 Lee Cattermole, 7 Sebastian Larsson, 8 Craig Gardner, 14 Jack Colback, 15 David Vaughan, 18 David Meyler, 21 Adam Johnson, 23 James McClean, 27 Ahmed Elmohamady, 28 Stephane Sessegnon

Strikers
26 Steven Fletcher, 9 Fraizer Campbell, 25 Louis Saha, 10 Connor Wickham, 17 Ji Dong-won, 33 Ryan Noble

We'll look at that squad in more detail, but just as we saw a 2 goal victory in this week's COC Tie against Barnsley to come out 3-1 victors, Sunderland, similarly, saw off Morecambe 2-0 too, with the impressive James McClean getting both goals. For that tie they lined up as follows...........

20 Westwood, 16 O'Shea, 19 Bramble, 06 Cattermole Booked (Meyler - 78' ), 07 Larsson, 08 Gardner, 14 Colback, 21 Johnson, 23 McClean Booked (Campbell - 73' ), 28 Sessegnon, 26 Fletcher (Saha - 66' )
Substitutes
22 Mignolet, 12 Kilgallon, 24 Cuellar, 18 Meyler, 27 Elmohamady, 09 Campbell, 25 Saha

For this tie, there are several points to be made.

Keiren Westwood, the reserve keeper, had a comfortable game as the ex-Coventry stopper saw little action. Titus Bramble and John O'Shea, experienced CB's both, held the middle comfortably. At FB, Craig Gardener played on the right and Jack Colback on the left, but both are primarily MF'ers, so to see both there on Saturday would be a surprise.

That back 4 had a protection from Lee Cattermole, the bruising MF'er, but it allowed a flexibility in front from Adam Johnson vaguely right (with license to roam), Seb Larsson and McClean (generally left) supporting Sessegnon and Fletcher up top. An original and attacking set up that showed a degree of fluidity and ensured their lower League opponents were outmatched.

The powerful McClean, nowadays an RoI regular, scored both goals, and Johnson was key twice.

These seem to me to be two of the better signings we've seen in this window. Johnson, the England International winger always has the capability to change games, and we Swans will remember Steven Fletcher well from the crazy 4-4 draw against Wolves at the Lib last season, when he and Matt Jarvis gave us a hard time.

Back to the Squad.

The first choice keeper remains Simon Mignolet, and the young Belgian no 1 is still improving. At FB, Phil Bardsley is the putative RB,and the ex Man U player retains a fearsome shot. Kieran Richardson (again ex Man Utd, there are a lot of them in the squad) has often played at LB. Both are equally capable, and raid forward at will along with their defensive duties.

Centrally at the back, challengers to Tuesday's team are Wes Brown, Matt Killgallon, and the Spaniard acquired from Villa, the reliable Carlos Cuellar. Killgallon is ex Leeds and a fierce competitor, and Brown, if fit, is still a decent defender who gives his all. I've seen some suggestions in the Press that Cuellar was an "odd" signing, but it seems to me that if MoN trusts him, as he obviously does after his days at Villa, then we as spectators can only make that assertion after a Season's viewing. Let's wait and see, shall we? Further depth is provided by youngsters Blair Adams and John Egan, both Academy graduates who cover FB and CB.

Cover in the Middle is provided by Welsh International David Vaughn, as we know a tricky footballer, and Ahmed El Mohamady, the Egyptian International wide man, with both pace and trickery. Not always a home crowd favourite, he remains dangerous.Vaughn in the meantime had a great spell at Blackpool prior to relocating to the North east, and has never let them down, scoring some key goals along the way.

Up front they will choose from the not only recently signed Steven Fletcher, but the equally experienced and again recently signed Louis Saha, and we all know that if he weren't so often "broken", this is a hell of a player. His spells in British Football at Newcastle, Fulham, Man U, Everton, Tottenham et al have always seen his talent thrive when fit, and we shouldn't forget that the French have always rated his innate talent as being on a level with Thierry Henry. You can only wish such a talented footballer blighted by injuries better health - although I wouldn't mind him waiting till next week to find his form. :)

England International Fraizer Campbell, and England youngster Conor Wickham will also challenge for places, and the squad includes South Korea's Ji Dong Wong, scorer of that remarkable winner against Citeh, and the Academy graduate Ryan Noble, who has had spells out on loan at Derby, Watford and Everton, and he's been a prolific scorer at Reserve level. Wickham cost £10m + from Ipswich, and is young enough to kick on from a slightly stalled progression, and Campbell too has had his share of unfortunate injury. He also will want to see a greater contribution this season.

It strikes me that whilst I've named him earlier, I've not described the extraordinary Stephane Sessegnon. This classy footballer, with a dangerous low centre of gravity, (think Eden Hazard, Juan Mata etc ) turned us inside out last year (and a great many others teams beside), and as well as scoring that first worldy against us at the Stadium of Light, had several other half chances, and he remains the one player in the opposition this week I genuinely fear. A top class, usually top performing forward who makes you glad you've paid money to get in. Let's hope we can keep tabs on him.

All in all this is a sound, serious balanced Premier League team. Martin O'Neil, recruited part way through last season, will this year have time to stamp his mark on the Club. His reputation, and record, suggests he's more likely to be successful than not, so despite our rampart start, this is exactly the sort of game that we should heed ML's stipulations that there will be bad days to go along with the good, and thus it would be more than foolish to be complacent and to assume that we only have to perform half decently to win.

MoN has not got, I would suggest, a signature style - he remains flexible about formations, but one thing we can be assured of - he insists on every player contributing. There will be none of the opposition this weekend able to "hide" behind a second rate game - all of his players will contribute one way or another.

We will have to perform a great deal better than that "half decent" suggestion - we will need to be equally as good as we were against both QPR and WHU. Against Barnsley mid week, a slightly rested team was good enough to get us through the tie. This is different - this is the Premier League - and nothing, nothing comes easy.

Having said that, I find it hard to criticise any aspect of our performances to date. We have been both incisive and committed. ML seems to have a handle on keeping the team able to perform to its capabilities, and the squad to its ever expanding depth. Ki, after all, looked a class act Midweek.

Mind you, I'll be bloody glad to see the close of this ridiculous "Transfer Window " this Friday. Whether SS goes, Pablo, Miku, Alvarez and all and sundry we've been linked with come/s in, - Oh for a quiet period when we can get on with what we've got and try to make these players play to their potential and capacity.

That scenario leads me to believe we can do ourselves justice. Starting this Saturday, against the dangerous Sunderland.

Last year, the admirable Salut Sunderland website did a Q+A with our very own Jim White. This year, it's curator, the egregious Colin Miller asked me if I'd do the same, and I was proud to continue to fight the good fight. You should be able to read it in the days before Saturday's game. Please have a look at
the link I've provided, and when it's up I'll post the link again. Thanks.

The Liberty has been rocking for the League games. I've heard a suggestion that the Cup Tie against Barnsley was less frenetic (and I was there), but when you think that we were, unsurprisingly, and like most others, at half capacity, it's really not that surprising, surely.

Be assured that on Saturday it'll be different. We're back to our bread and butter. We're back to the Premier League. WooHoo.

Welcome to the Lib all you visitors. Welcome back to the Lib all you regulars. Whatever.

Onward, Swansea City.

Swansea City v WHU Match Report

Aerial assault fails - Big Sam looking smaller.

I've always had in the back of my mind a puzzlement as to quite how West Ham's Manager, "Big" Sam Allardyce acquired his always used sobriquet. I could understand it when he was at Bolton, with Sammy Lee as his assistant, and the contrast between Big Sam and Little Sam made sense.

However, nowadays, with no side-kick to use as a useful measuring stick, it's always struck me that he's not particularly "Big", in any sense of the word, either physically or, more pertinently after this game, character wise. What was that someone once said about losing with a degree of grace?

I pose this question, as I say, on two levels - one inconsequential, and one a tad more enlightening, I feel. After all, his physical stature when compared to some genuinely "Big" men within Football ( think Yaya Toure, Joe Hart at Citeh, Crouchie at Stoke, or Mertersacker at Arsenal) or "Big" men in Sport (think LeBron James, Yao Ming or Shaquille O'Neil in Basketball), or any number of Rugby Union players, is at least explainable by that early Little Sam contrast.

On the character side, however, the very nature of the man if you like, I've always felt that it's a most inappropriate handle. Over the years, "Big" Sam Allardyce has never, ever done anything resembling praise for the opposition ( or even an admittance of his and his team's shortcomings) in the aftermath of any of the defeats suffered by his team on any occasion.

I'm going on about this at some length because subsequent to Swansea City inflicting a 3-0 defeat on West Ham last Saturday at the Lib, which most pundits nationally described as comprehensive, he was at it again - insisting in the post match interviews that "....we controlled the game". Check those interviews out here .

Now forgive me for pointing this out, and I'm sure that most West Ham fans would back us up on this, - that's just deluded.

The game, especially in its early parts, was competitive, but became progressively easier for the Swans, and that's something we'll get to.

Anyway, the teams lined up as follows.............

Swansea City

01 Vorm, 03 Taylor (Davies - 84' ), 04 Chico, 06 Williams, 22 Rangel, 07 Britton, 09 Michu, 12 Dyer, 15 Routledge (Moore - 81' ), 20 De Guzman (Agustien - 75' ), 10 Graham
Substitutes
25 Tremmel, 05 Tate, 33 Davies, 26 Agustien, 27 Gower, 14 Dobbie, 19 Moore

West Ham United

22 Jaaskelainen, 02 Reid, 03 McCartney, 05 Tomkins (Vaz Te - 46' ), 19 Collins, 20 Demel, 04 Nolan, 07 Jarvis, 16 Noble, 21 Diame (Diarra - 69' ), 09 Cole (Maiga - 62' )
Substitutes
13 Henderson, 17 O'Brien, 14 Taylor, 23 Diarra, 08 Maynard, 11 Maiga, 12 Vaz Te

Ref: Atkinson
Att: 20,424

On another sun kissed but showery afternoon at the Lib, it was no surprise to see ML send out the same team as the previous week's 5-0 beating of QPR, but with SS left out of the squad altogether (adios, and thank you SS) , and WHU made 2 changes, new signing Matt Jarvis replacing Matt Taylor out wide, and James Tomkins, the England U21 Centre Half brought into a holding MF role.  Tactically, I would suggest, that told us a lot.

The early stages saw both teams testing each other out rather tentatively, with the Swans content to keep possession (there's a surprise), whilst the Hammers began by trying to get Jarvis on the ball, and sling in the first of the aerial assaults. The moves from both were negated., including a Jarvis cross that threatened with Nolan challenging and Vorm up to the task of matching, letting the dangerous ball clear all and run out behind.

In this period, West Ham were aided by a couple of misplaced Swansea passes, with both Chico Flores and JdG giving it away, but both players played their part in defending the ensuing attacks.

From 10m forward it was evident that Swansea were getting on top with the predominance of possession, and a pattern was now clear.

Whilst Swansea continued to enjoy the protracted build up, the Hammers were content to play on the break, often via the Bomber Harris route.

The concerted City pressure paid dividends on 19m.

Michu, primarily, drove the ball forward on the the inside right channel, and a swift exchange of passes coupled with a run outside from Angel Rangel allowed Nathan Dyer to play the ball into his path,. The RB took it well, and from some 15yds out on the right drove a fierce cross shot that may have been creeping in at the far post, only to see Jussi Jaaskelainen at the near post attempt to drop on the ball but find it ricocheting off his right elbow into the net. Ouch, 1-0 , and the Liberty rocked. It may be read as a GKing error, but the move had cut West Ham apart.

The shape of both sides was now clear.

Swansea's back 4 always had Britton ahead wth JdG the middle of ND to the right and WR to the left, leaving Miguel Michu to support DG. It was working well, too, particularly as the wingers were playing 10yds infield from last season, leaving both FB's Rangel and Taylor, room to break forward fast.

WHU's back 4 had Tomkins protecting, with Noble right, Diame central and Jarvis left, all pumping balls forward and high to Carlton Cole, supported by the funky chicken Kevin Nolan, who spent the time when he wasn't contesting with either Michu or de Guzman in a repetitive ear-bashing harangue of the ref, Mr Atkinson.

The paucity of the Hammers approach was being frustrated further by the high fast Swansea press, with Hammers given little time on the ball when they had it, and on 28m it led to a deserved second goal.

In possession just short of Halfway on the right, Reid was forced to turn back and play the ball to James Collins, some 10 yds deeper. Michu continued to press Collins, forcing him to attempt to play the ball back to Jaaskelainen, but his right foot pass hit his own left foot and stuttered toward the area and the keeper. Michu increased his pace and just as the ball rolled into the area and the Keeper was diving to collect, he stabbed a strong left leg to poke the ball home into the bottom corner.

As the ball rolled into the net for the second time, you could hear the roar swell, and it burst forth onto the delirious Lib. 2-0, and Miguel Perez Cuesta did his telephone gesture as he ran to the East to celebrate, urging the fans to turn up the noise. We did, even us old geezers in the West.

WHU best chance came on 35m, when a James Collins high ball FK again was only half cleared, and a clever spin and volley by Matt Jarvis drew a breathtaking one handed save from Michel Vorm, with the dropping ball hacked clear by Ash Williams.

Swansea were comfortable till almost half time, but a mis-placed pass led to three further corners after the 44th minute, all of which were dangerous, and the last of which saw Leon Britton hack the ball clear off the line. We drew a breath as Mr Atkinson blew for Half Time, and with a 2-0 lead, things looked promising.

It's interesting after a game to look back and consider what one's experiences were and to how it compares to general tactical analysis.

The consensus around me was that we had only been really threatened by the high ball, and ensuing knock ons, so it was brilliant to hear ML confirm that he's a little cleverer than we fans, since he highlighted that by cutting out the Free Kicks etc that allowed this aerial bombardment, we'd be a little more comfortable, which is exactly the way the second half turned out. Identifying the symptom, as well as the cause. As Morrisey once said, "this charming man".

Style and substance.

Half time saw Allardyce realise that he had to go for more, so Vaz Te replaced Tomkins, though the pattern was little different.

City's greater control was now evident, and from a break on the left, Danny Graham cut in and curled a right footed shot toward the far corner, only to see JJ turn it behind for a corner.

Joy of joys, in the 52nd m Kevin Nolan was at last booked, for one foul too many, this time on Leon Britton, to be followed 6m later by the equally reviled James Collins. There must be a God.

Swansea were by now severely testing the West Ham back line, and whilst Danny G was closely given offside, just 5m later saw him break free from a sublime Dyer ball, and whilst we all got ready to holler from his check back onto his right and his clipped shot (after all, we've seen it before), our cheers choked in our throats as the ball rolled agonisingly an inch wide.

No matter, City were now playing total football, with everyone content to give, and receive the ball, and it was a pleasure to see in the flesh the later 44 pass move that kept the ball for 2 minutes, and the 27 passes leading to the third goal will take some beating.

After recycling the ball around, back and forth, Dyer's deliciously timed ball put Routledge free on the right , and his clever cut back was met by the equally clever Danny Graham, who had held his run some 8 yds out as the defenders careered toward goal, leaving him to side foot home. 3-0, and another quality goal to put the tin hat on it.

By now, West Ham had replaced Carlton Cole with Madiga, and Diarra later came on for Diame. The threat got less and less, and Swansea were cruising home.

For us Swans, Agustien came on for JdG to close the game out, and Luke Moore gave the high performing Routledge a rest.

Perhaps best of all, the supremely confident Neil Taylor came off to give an enlightening cameo PL debut to Ben Davies, and the youngster impressed in his brief time. The conveyor belt rolls on, we hope.

Apart from another Dyer shot which went wide of the upright, there were no further close threats, and it was clear from long spells of Swansea possession that the game was well and truly over. The final whistle blew to a blast of the Levellers - What a Beautiful day, indeed.

You know as well as I do that after that sort of performance and win, it's always going to be a pleasant weekend.

It was indeed comfortable to watch MoTD, Football First, Goals on Sunday and MoTD2, and hear our team being praised with a little less condescension than we sometimes got last year. Hey, I'm not complaining - as it happens I think we get a generally good press - it's just nicer to be offered it in this, our second season.

As our admirably level headed Manager stresses, there will be bad days to go along with this good one, but I suspect we'll settle for that. No deeper tactical analysis today, let's just enjoy the buzz.

Onward, Swansea City.