It was six years ago, but Sunday January 10th 2016 signalled a cross roads for numerous players and staff at Swansea City. An odd date you may think ? Not if you are Jonjo Shelvey, Francesco Guidolin, Alan Curtis or even Franck Tabanou. The latter never played a league game for Swansea City but will be forever remembered for an FA Cup appearance for the swans.
For context these characters all surrounded the last time Swansea City played Oxford United. That Sunday date confirming to many the premier league years were maybe coming to an end for the swans. I know I personally felt that things were most certainly coming to a head at the club. It was the year that the club was sold to the majority ownership group as they are now referred to as, and a time when the swans, now an established premier league club with a major trophy under their belt were expected to improve year on year.
The League Cup of course is something else Oxford and Swansea have in common. We will come to that shortly.
2016 was such a definitive year for many other reasons as well. However, on that January early afternoon kick off in Oxford, the last time the U’s and the swans met, a defeat and a widely reported stand up row involving Jonjo with a Swansea City fan saw the end of Swansea’s FA Cup involvement. Oxford had won 3-2, the aforementioned Franck Tabanou was a few days from being loaned out to AS Saint-Étienne and in amongst all this Alan Curtis, once again caretaker manager, was picking up the pieces after the defeat at the Kassam Stadium.
Jonjo Shelvey reacts to Swansea City fans at Oxford
Tabanou hit out at the swans later that week stating "Tactically they are not at the top. They have their players, they will fight until the last minute. This is not the way I play. I might have been able to make more effort but I also expect an effort from them” That pretty much sorted his swans career out, he was overweight, not putting the effort in at the club and this game was his last for the swans. He only played three. Possibly three too many.
Alan Curtis had been confirmed as caretaker manager for the rest of the season, then within days Francesco Guidolin was announced as full time Swansea City manager after that FA Cup defeat. Tabanou was gone, and Shelvey was gone as well. He joined Newcastle United. Then chairman Huw Jenkins also saw that the writing was getting clearer on the wall, many changes were starting to be discussed that would map out the future of Swansea City completely. It’s hard to come up with a more defining week in Swansea City’s recent history.
The game itself was a signal to all that things were starting to run away with themselves for the swans. The U's were third in League Two and a number of their young players impressed against a Swansea team that surrendered possession too often and looked shaky at the back in the absence of skipper Ashley Williams. Kemar Roofe, now at Glasgow Rangers stole the show in a ten minute spell that secured Oxford United a win that was most certainly one of the shocks of the FA Cup that week.
Oxford manager Michael Appleton: "I've got to be delighted beating a Premier League side - but not just that, it's the way we did it. I think a few people fancied us beforehand and I did too but we also wanted to play the same way we've been doing it all season and play with no fear”
Swansea manager Alan Curtis: "We made changes and there was a certain amount of rustiness but I am disappointed. We were poor for the first hour of the game. The team we picked was strong enough to win, but all credit to Oxford. They were the better team and deserved to win”
Swans fans at the game six years ago
It won’t be that much of a surprise if Oxford do win tomorrow night, but it won’t help the pressure manager Russell Martin already finds himself under. And this week we hope doesn’t come up with as many player and managerial surprises as that week did. The game is one which will see numerous Swansea City changes on the pitch, but not too many we hope, the swans just don’t have the strength in depth to think they can get away with that. To look back now at the last time the clubs met, and to see what that week brought about at the club is pretty alarming. It surely was a tumultuous time.
And this season, with so much hope even a few days ago doesn’t need to be as edgy and concerning as the one back then. Both Swansea City and Oxford United have won the league cup. The swans in 2013 and the U’s in 1986. Both have tasted top flight football and tomorrow nights game will most certainly be fiercely contested. We will have more build up to this match later today and tomorrow on Swansea Independent.
The teams that day.
Oxford United
Slocombe, Baldock, Mullins, Wright, Skarz, Roofe, Sercombe, Lundstram, MacDonald, Taylor, Maguire. Subs: Hoban, Hylton, Buchel, Ruffels, O’Dowda, Dunkley, Evans.
Swansea City
Nordfeldt, Shephard, Amat, Bartley, Tabanou, Cork, Grimes, Emnes, Shelvey, Montero, Gomis. Subs: Eder, Tremmel, Kingsley, Barrow, James, Fulton, Rodon.
Referee: Kevin Friend (Leicestershire)