Joe Allen has his own target for 2010 as he looks to make up for lost time
The Swansea City midfielder faces Leicester at the Liberty this afternoon as the Championship reverses the opening day fixtures from last August.
Back then it was the sun at the Walkers Stadium and a new dawn for Swansea as Paulo Sousa made his debut as Swansea manager. That debut included picking Joe Allen in midfield with the Swans starting well and they led early doors thanks to an Ashley Williams header.
But 25 minutes in and one hamstring injury later for Allen and it fell away for the Swans and they lost the game 2-1. And since that moment it has been very much a case of stop start for Allen - a frustration that can be summed up by his last league start being cut short thanks to a farcical red card for albert Serran.
But Allen is ready to put all of that behind him as he explains “I’m ambitious and, despite being young, I still want to be in the starting XI
“So that’s now my target for the second half of the season.
“But, having said that, it’s no easy feat. I still probably have more of a part to play as a squad player.
“The injury was only part of the problem. That started it all off, but then, in this team, everyone is so good that once you are out it will never be easy to get back in.
“If anything, the hard work started when I did come back and when I was fully fit. Now, whenever I get a chance, I have to take it.
“With Brits, Prats, Jordi Lopez and now Andrea – who has come in and done great in that position – it’s hard to look at games and be disappointed I’m not starting.
“I don’t expect to start them either. I want to be and I’m training hard to get there, but I have to be realistic.
“It would be nice if things could go full circle for me,” he said with a wry smile.
“The injury at Leicester caused me problems throughout the first half of the season.
“But now there’s a chance for me against the same team, in the first league game of the new year, to start afresh and get my season going.
“We all had a clean slate in pre-season and everyone was competing for a spot in the starting XI for the season opener.
“To start that game was a big boost for me and things were really looking up at that stage of the season.
“With that in mind, it’s disappointing to be in January having only played as many games as I have.
“I’ve just got to be positive and hope the second half of the season can match what I was looking for at the start.
“Hopefully I’m back on track now and it was nice to be involved with some game-time in the cup.
“I just need to get more so that I can prove myself again.
“We know them inside out now and it will be a good test for us to try and be on the winning side this time,” he said.
“We have been disappointed in both the other games, not just because we lost, but because it’s a team we feel we can at least match.
“It was a bit like deja vu in the cup game, but now we have a chance to play them here which will be a lot tougher for them I think.
“The crowd will only help us and we should definitely be targeting all three points.
“Everyone knows this is a big game for us.
“They are our rivals for the play-off positions and it’s important we make the most of home advantage.”