Rotherham United v Swansea City
Competition - Sky Bet Championship
Venue - New York Stadium
Date - 30 July 2022
Kick off - 3:00pm
On the 56th anniversary of England winning the FIFA World Cup, the Swans open their 2022/23 campaign with a visit to newly promoted Rotherham United.
During the Summer, the Swans have said goodbye to a number of players, including Flynn Downes, Korey Smith and Yan Dhanda.
Most notable among the new recruits is the return of former Swans favourite Joe Allen. However, injury is expected to prevent Joe from playing this coming Saturday.
With the benefit of a (full) pre-season, Russell Martin will be expecting that his approach will be fully understood and embedded in his squad.
Indeed, there can be no excuses this time around that the lack of a pre-season is the reason for inconsistent performances this season…..
Whilst the hope must be that the Club will be challenging for promotion this season, the very least that the fans will expect is a higher Championship finish, thereby indicating progress.
The Swans have played Rotherham on 80 previous occasions, winning 30, losing 25 and drawing 25.
When the two sides last met in January 2021, the Swans ran out comfortable 3-1 winners:
Visiting a promoted club for the first match of the season usually marks a difficult start - with the new boys on a high with the adrenalin often pushing the new boys to perform above themselves.
As such, Russell Martin’s Swans team will need to be at their best if they are to return to South Wales with any points.
For his part, Rotherham Manager Paul Warne is keeping a positive mindset ahead of his team’s return to the Championship, following promotion from League One last term.
The Millers' last second-tier season in 2020-21 saw them relegated after finishing 23rd.
Warne is aware of the competitiveness of the division, but is purely focused on getting the best of the group.
"We just have to try to attack the league with a smile and an enthusiasm," Warne told BBC Radio Sheffield.
Turning to Saturday, I think that the teams will battle out a 1-1 draw.
Competition - Sky Bet Championship
Venue - New York Stadium
Date - 30 July 2022
Kick off - 3:00pm
On the 56th anniversary of England winning the FIFA World Cup, the Swans open their 2022/23 campaign with a visit to newly promoted Rotherham United.
During the Summer, the Swans have said goodbye to a number of players, including Flynn Downes, Korey Smith and Yan Dhanda.
Most notable among the new recruits is the return of former Swans favourite Joe Allen. However, injury is expected to prevent Joe from playing this coming Saturday.
With the benefit of a (full) pre-season, Russell Martin will be expecting that his approach will be fully understood and embedded in his squad.
Indeed, there can be no excuses this time around that the lack of a pre-season is the reason for inconsistent performances this season…..
Whilst the hope must be that the Club will be challenging for promotion this season, the very least that the fans will expect is a higher Championship finish, thereby indicating progress.
The Swans have played Rotherham on 80 previous occasions, winning 30, losing 25 and drawing 25.
When the two sides last met in January 2021, the Swans ran out comfortable 3-1 winners:
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Visiting a promoted club for the first match of the season usually marks a difficult start - with the new boys on a high with the adrenalin often pushing the new boys to perform above themselves.
As such, Russell Martin’s Swans team will need to be at their best if they are to return to South Wales with any points.
For his part, Rotherham Manager Paul Warne is keeping a positive mindset ahead of his team’s return to the Championship, following promotion from League One last term.
The Millers' last second-tier season in 2020-21 saw them relegated after finishing 23rd.
Warne is aware of the competitiveness of the division, but is purely focused on getting the best of the group.
"We just have to try to attack the league with a smile and an enthusiasm," Warne told BBC Radio Sheffield.
Turning to Saturday, I think that the teams will battle out a 1-1 draw.

