It was dark times with Brenda going, bringing Allen with him, Gylfi not joining despite the pressrelease from the club, Caulker not coming back and underperforming Sinclair being sold to the Premier League Champions. At first I thought it was bullsh**t. Just rumors. A name like Michael Laudrup. In Swansea City. Yeah, right! Despite this, I have to say I was a bit nervous when ML was appointed. Reading blogs from his previous clubs supporters made me a bit worried. He had not stayed at clubs for very long and it seemed like he had trouble with the board at all his previous clubs. On the other hand I was not worried about him being able to attract talent to south Wales. But how on earth could we know what kind of players ML had brought in. A relatively unknown Michu, completely unknown Chico and world stars as Pablo and de Guzman. Spice it all up with Ki, Bartley, Tiendalli (and Shechter) and what you get is a great mix! ML had various success at his previous clubs but so far this year has truly been a successtory. The team tactics is tuned towards the better. There are several strings to play and not just a plan A. I'm pretty sure that there would have been much more trouble if Brenda had stayed. Everybody saw the way Everton and Norwich played against us and it would have been the key to conquer us. Laudrup have done so much without really changing the game. The way he brought in Ben Davies and gave him time to adapt. Even with the arrival of Tiendalli Ben still got his matches. He really has grown as a player and it's fun to see him with his confidence these days. The only player brought in this January was Lamah, with Graham and Lita departing. Lita had to leave considering he has not played a single match for the Swans this season. Graham left for Sunderland, leaving Shechter and Moore as the only senior strikers in the team. It was a risk letting Graham leave without bringing in a replacement, but I believe it is a calculated one. With another half season without matches, Grahams value would have dropped. He clearly wanted to leave for some reason, leaving a major final for his "worst enemy". A weird choice and I think Laudrup was a bit surprised as well. Anyhow, I think the troops will be better of and the money better spent in the summer. I for one, am not concerned about the upcoming transferwindow. We might "have to" sell one or two players. Hack, maybe even four or five! Plenty of clubs will be interested. Ash, Chico, Michu, Vorm, Davies, Rangel, the list goes on and on. Who cares! We have Laudrup. We have Laudrup...
Laudrup has done fantastic considering the players that left at the end of last season, also losing Taylor early didnt help him but he has shown he has what it takes to become a great manager, its early days yet but the signs are looking good . I think we will see a step up in quality of player if we get euro football which may be enough to persuade ML and top players that Swansea is a decent club to ply your trade !
We should all care because that is point is critical I think. If we sell the players ML brought into build our club then he's not going to be too happy. I know I wouldn't be, and we need to guard against that fiercely - both players leaving and ML believing that our philosophy and competitive intent is all talk and no action. It is imperative that HJ, ML - heck the whole club come to that - establishes the understanding and sentiment that Swansea is the place to be. Players that leave us, with a couple of exceptions, have had a torrid time of it else where - almost a curse in some cases - and now that we're in the top half of the Prem there is a lot further to fall if you jump ship than if you stick around ... let's face it if you want to play top shelf then there are not too many other clubs to play for in Wales (actually none) and England (several), other than that you're going abroad. This season is one of consolidation given the upheavals of last summer. This summer there should be nothing to distract from squad building and preparation. Next season is the one that will tell us how realistic our chances are of really breaking the glass ceiling and getting into the top 6 (I figure we'll finish 8th +/- 1 this season) and challenge for everything we play for.
We all know that ML and HJ do not want to sell our best players, but sometimes there is a offer you can't refuse and you just have to sell, often because the player thinks the grass is greener. ML knows that Swans is not a major club and players will come and go like they do at all clubs. My point is that if we should lose player(s), then I am not concerned because I know ML will be capable of bringing in a even better player.
Well I agree with Yankee I wouldn't want to see palyers that I had brought in leave as it isn't like we need the money is it? In fact it seems the reverse with players agreeing extensions to their contracts. At the mo ( touch wood ) we look as if we are consolidating and long may it continue
I think ML has put a price even on Michu's head. Every where he has been he has been against buying expensive players, but with £25M he knows he can do a lot and you can all but guarantee that virtually every coach and manager in Denmark will be telling him if there is a bright spark in coming through the ranks they think he should sign, and given who he is... business goes out of the window. A Danish club would rather sell to him than anyone else because he is a God there. Saying that, with Europa league football the temptation to move away diminishes a little. With extra cash next year Swansea are in a better position to meet every players wage demand to keep them here. That extra income from Europa league might even pay for two new players on their own and being in Europe will entice even more players to seriously consider our club as a place to ply their trade. Look back in recent history and see what Europa League (or it's equivalent... UEFA Cup) did for other teams: Riquelme - joined Villareal from Barca after loan spell for £5 million and £40,000 per week Juan Sebastian Veron - Joined Sampadoria from Boca, wages £35,000 per week Ronaldo - joined PSV and wages of £25,000 per week There are so many examples to give, and we cannot guarantee players will not leave, but next season... provided we play in Europa.... players will prefer to join us than walk away from us!
I would love not to worry about players leaving but realistically every team that doesnt challenge for the title has to worry about this. On a plus with hopefully european football and being a established prem side with a steady manager we should have a better choice of players willing to come to us. A top ten finish with a cup win would be more than any Swans fan would hope for so if we manage that with a new manager and our planned summer deals scuppered then we can only look up for the next season. Imagine Swansea not being favourites to be relegated next season and being seen as more of a established prem club, isnt that our plan for the next few years anyway.
I think there's a very realisitic chance that we'll face bids for at least 4 players : One of our goalies, Chico, Ash and Michu. Also will have a fight to get de Guzman as other clubs will surely be interested. I think we find ourselves in a difficult position in that our style of play means that the team get recognition more than individuals, which leads to several players interesting the top clubs rather than just the odd player.
Well michu having a quiet spell is good news as to any summer transfer with him! Chico could be a target same with ash but unless you Are part of 3 or 4 european clubs every club is a selling club,Even utd buckled nd sold ronaldo! We may lose a couple but we Will sign a couple so onwards we move anyway. The ones we sell Will Get sold for good money and i beleive laudrup is good enough to replace with an equal if not better player
Oh no he's not ! .......................................................................................................................................going to let anyone go if he can help it! ( Naughty FFS )
You've just got to haven't you , I bet if you saw a sign saying 'wet paint' you'd have to touch wouldn't you. Well it's the naughty step for you my lad!
You are forgetting that some players WANT to stay here and play football. Last weekend saw Graham, Allen, Borini and Sinclair on the bench of their respective clubs.
I disagree. As much as we all love him here, we love Ajax even more and most Danish talents dream of going there because of their youth academy and because of the success there of the likes of Christian Eriksen and Viktor Fischer. It's gonna be hard for ML to compete with that. Plus Ajax does a lot of scouting in Denmark and has a lot of contacts in the danish clubs. Ajax probably knows more about the danish market than ML does. I think ML should stick to Spain as he's proved to know what he's doing there and as Spain's bad economy probably will continue to influence the price of the players. Sad but true. EDIT: Plus he's a God there too
