The Swans will face a team in Wycombe Wanderers tonight with a number of doubtful and definite players out. Wycombe have started the season with two losses and a win scoring six and conceding six. And now they have injuries in abundance.
First off, Siriki Dembele, currently a Birmingham City player will crop up over the next forty eight hours at a club near you. We reported on him back on August 1st, and indeed as expected nobody was really interested in him at the price Birmingham City wanted. Speculation that Blackburn Rovers and the Swans were interested in Dembele was accurate, and potentially remains. However, it very much depends on what the Swans have said to him, and indeed Blackburn who are sitting on a big bag of money this summer. Far more than the Swans have. The thing in the Swans favour is they are a more attractive proposition possibly ? And indeed the commitment of head coach, Luke Williams to talk with him, and for him to understand what the Swans need.
He’s definitely going somewhere, and his exclusion from Birmingham City’s line up last night against Fulham wasn’t going unnoticed.
We can disclose the first issue, and that’s his salary, rumoured, and it is pretty much around £13,500 a week tends to put the Swans off at prices like that. And if it becomes or is permanent you can be rest assured there will be another big fee by Swansea City standards. If he wants the salary he is on now we just can’t see him coming to Swansea. Even if he’s on loan, without a deal being done. He has seen his salary decrease a lot since leaving Bournemouth. Will he want another step down ? Unless some remarkable negotiations have occurred, and anything is possible, it doesn’t add up.
We will leave this here. Tony Mowbray on Dembele. "I called him in for a one on one because I was a bit concerned in one of the early training sessions that he didn’t want to run. His first comment to me was that he liked to conserve energy for when he had the ball and could damage the opposition. I’m saying, that isn’t going to work, mate, and so we are going to play with ten men when you haven’t got it and then you come alive when we’ve won it ?”
Tonight’s opposition are Wycombe Wanderers, we’ve covered a bit on here already.
Injuries are not good for the Chairboys. Players ‘rumoured’ to be out for this game. Nathan Bishop (ankle surgery) Ryan Tafazolli (unspecified) Aaron Morley (cup-tied) Berryl Lubala (hamstring) David Wheeler (unspecified) Luke Leahy (knee) Brandon Hanlan (ACL) Sam Vokes (unspecified) That’s a flexible list and it could be more or a few could have made recoveries over the last two days. Either way that’s an injury crisis.
Alexo from gas room.org says on his club currently. We are a hybrid between now trying to pass and play it out from the back mixed with an ingrained mentality to lump it long if all else fails. It’s a bit early in the season to say, but most of us are reasonably happy...ish with our new recruitments. Humphrey's and Morley changed the game for us last week. Morley however is cup tied for this one. Kone up front has many of us hoping for a striker who will get well into double figures for us this season.... however he is still very green and unproven at our level. Personally I'm hoping for at least to be able to match last seasons tenth placed finish in league one. On the away support I guess circa 300 ? On the manager. Bloomfield is a promising young manager who is learning and improving all the time. I currently think he is doing a sterling job. Weaknesses : I feel our weakness is maybe not knowing who our true best starting eleven is yet and in what formation. However I expect our team will be swapped up quite a bit with our match against you. We have a mini injury crisis and I expect some of our top players will be rested for the league game against Blackpool shortly after we play you.
Cheers Alexo, appreciated.
The Swans are in the same position, a game tonight is a good opportunity to field some new faces, especially Nelson Abbey and Florian. They have completed a pre season and have been training with the club. Why not ? With this game and then Saturday away at West Bromwich Albion believe it or not it’s the international break and two weeks off from club football. Crazy.
Team news later and more from Luke Williams. Tonight’s game kicks off at 7:45pm at the Swansea.Com.