The long awaited, highly anticipated and well ... This weekends games between Swansea City and Nottingham Forest see’s the return of two old SA1 ghosts, one Steve Cooper who guided the swans to two play offs in successive seasons and of course the golf buggy kid, the best free kick winner in white, Alan Tate.
Plenty has been written already this week of the two returning ex swans employees ( let’s not forget that’s what they were ) Even in certain quarters debates have sprung up as to what sort of reaction or should we say reception Steve Cooper will get on Saturday afternoon. The attendance will be around the 18,000 mark, there is interest in this fixture, not least the swans will be determined to put right their last two results, both losses when really they should have been wins. We know Steve Cooper left the club acrimoniously it was well reported on here, going back to June 3rd when we first reported Cooper in talks with Julian Winter over his contract. Although many doubted our sources at the time the picture of a lone Joel Piroe signing the pretend contract still wasn’t enough. Coopers absence from training was a clue, and when spotted a delighted melee congregated to shout their disapproval at our reporting.
The only people wrong were those who chose not to beleive.
With money all agreed Cooper left the club, and the swans destiny still plays out. The few again choosing to question some of the information these pages bring you every day. It’s funny we accurately broke the news of Birmingham City and Bristol City interest in Jake Bidwell earlier this week. One branch of the media chose to rubbish the report. The next day they reported exactly what we had reported, eliminating Bristol City but going with Birmingham. It does make us laugh at times.
However, this game is very important to both clubs, Cooper continues an impressive run of form since he took over at Forest, Russell Martin has seen some superb results defeating Cardiff and West Brom the highlights so far from his twenty one league games. The inconsistency of the season to date has frustrated those who cannot see clear and positive change in the way the swans play. To others it’s a breath of fresh air and the standard of play has painted a thousand words. In some cases even more.
It may be mid table for both clubs currently but Forest are the form team, sometimes frustrating their fans as much as Cooper did at Swansea, but he is getting the results. Their form guide points to a top four place currently. But then the swans have been close to that as well this season, what matters really is what matters on the day. And any given day in the Championship will be different. Play this game three times you will get different winners for sure, and maybe also a draw for good measure. That’s the nature of what we see and follow every time the swans take to the pitch.
Cooper of course has been asked about this weekends games, the focus now clearly on him. "We didn’t quite achieve what we ended up setting out to do. But I look back positively. I look back positively on all the jobs I’ve done, to be fair, even before Swansea. It helps you as a person, and it helps you as a professional; you try to take whatever you learnt into the next part of your journey. Swansea was a chapter of it, but so was the FA and stuff before that as well. The supporters, okay, I didn’t see loads of them all the time because of the pandemic, but the ones who I did have interaction with or who sent letters, were excellent with me. I appreciate that. However, I’m here now. Everyone has moved on. I was very fond of the players, very fond of the staff, and had some excellent relationships.
I’m just focused on the game. Championship games are ones you have to prepare for in different ways. We are treating this no differently”
Just another game for Cooper ? We think not.
In thirteen games Cooper has lost just one, that’s impressive, he has steadied the Forest decline, but some bells on it and their fans should be delighted with what they have seen ? Well no, not all of them, it was the same at Swansea, Cooper had a nigh on 45% win rate at the swans and still many moaned and were not happy with certain aspects of the play. And that’s happened to an extent at Forest, the results when Cooper manages you are always going to be good. The way he gets there not so. But can you ever please a football fan ?
Russell Martin too will fell the pressure this weekend. After his twenty one league games he is seeing a positive return in possession and performance but losses at home to Reading and Stoke were poor, away at Bournemouth disappointing and a failure to take the points last week at Middlesbrough extremely frustrating. Martin needs some consistency and it has to start this weekend, the game has a draw written all over it, or even a Forest win and Martin has to pull out all the stops to get the points. A more direct strategy is needed with games a week apart now defeat buries itself deep down and rots away.
More contract and transfer news as the weekend progresses, a bit of diligence goes a long way at this time of year. Being first isn’t our thing, being right is. And we know you appreciate that as well.