Curt Tips Joe For The Top....

That seven day period saw him named man of the match in a 2-0 Carling Cup win over Walsall at the Liberty Stadium before being awarded a 3 year contract at Swansea as a reward for his progression. Then, in his debut for the Under 21s he found himself on the end of a chance to give Wales a victory after their had trailed 3-1 in the first half.

And with people falling over themselves to heap praise on the youngster it was no surprise that Swansea and Wales legend Alan Curtis was amongst them. Talking to the Western Mail on the team's return to Wales, Curt said "He is a big talent and is already an accomplished player. I think he can make it to the top level and be a big player for Wales."

"He will have to work hard, but it speaks volumes that at just 17 he can play in the Under-21s and not look at all out of place."

Curt has worked with Allen for sometime - he was on the coaching staff when he first came into the club and he has been well aware of the talent, leaving the events of the last week as no real surprise

"He is a superb player," Curtis enthused. "He has been with the Swans for several years now and I have been aware of his talent for a long time.

"He was always going to be a good player and we were all aware that we had a considerable talent on our hands. As the years have gone by he has matured and continued to progress well."

Allen could well find himself a bit part player this season although Curtis believes that he has the ability and talent to force his way into the reckoning when the problems of a long season can hit home in squad football "I definitely think he is capable of playing regularly for Swansea this season, but it depends on how Roberto Martinez sees it," he said.

"The good thing is that Roberto knows he can stick Joe in and he will always get a good performance out of him.

"He likes to battle in the midfield, but he also has good ability when he gets on the ball. He is hard to play against and will keep getting better with more games.

"But all players need to keep improving and for Joe, that means working on getting into the box more often. He showed he could score goals in Sweden, but he needs to do it more often.

"When you meet Joe, you realise he is such a level-headed boy. He knows he has done well so far, but there is no danger of him getting carried away.

"He knows he isn't the complete player yet and he is willing to work on it. That's what gives him such potential."

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