The away defeats at Blackburn and Preston have done nothing but inspire swans manager Russell Martin to take all three points at Kenilworth Road tomorrow. It’s refreshing to hear that every game is targeted for a win, but in reality this game does have a draw written all over it.

The swans have faired well at Luton in recent times, but that doesn’t paint the whole picture, at home they are extremely difficult to break down and are fast and pacy on the break. Their manager Nathan Jones plays a simple but effective style which should not be underestimated. His one eyed assessment of his sides games are at times funny at best, but overall he is very positive about his sides performances.

Russell Martin on the other hand has a clear vision for this game, it has to be win every time, but not at all costs. After Millwall he said “We are becoming difficult to play against — that is four clean sheets in seven games - and we are getting there, the players believe and trust in what we want to do, and we are miles apart from where we were three or four weeks ago. The next bit is going to come. We are working hard, and the supporters I have come across are really receptive and supportive and the atmosphere was fantastic again tonight. There was a buzz, and I cannot wait to feel that when we are winning games and have a team to be proud of”

Korey Smith is at last available for selection for the swans and Rhys Williams will return in central defence. “Rhys was suffering slightly after getting a knock against Hull City so we felt it was best to protect him for one game instead of losing him for two or three” Martin said on Thursday. Wise move. Liam Walsh whose injury misinformation scuppered us here at Swansea Independent last week also made a very welcome return to the side against Millwall. His involvement was possibly the most positive thing Martin could take from the night. Walsh though was delighted “I’ve been looking forward to it since I found out I was in the squad on Tuesday, I've been waiting for my chance from the gaffer, he told me to keep patient and my time will come,” he said. “I’ve been working very hard and I’m grateful that I came on to make my league debut, it would have made it even better getting the three points. It’s been very frustrating, I’ve been dying to play. The way the gaffer has the lads playing football, it’s been looking really enjoyable from the sidelines.”

Martin was also pleased to announce an injury free squad but noted players were ‘tired’ “Everyone is fit, which is nice,” confirmed Martin. “Korey Smith is back, which is brilliant, so he’s back in the squad. Rhys Williams is back. Again, as I said on Thursday, that was more of a precaution than anything else. We’d rather not risk losing him for a few games to miss one, because he was struggling after Saturday. It was a decision we made with the medical team and agreed on.”

Despite the entire squad being healthy, playing three games in seven days may see Martin elect to rotate his squad for Saturday's clash at Kenilworth Road. “Not everyone is feeling 100% recovered from the Millwall game,” he said. “But we’ll assess that this morning. They recovered brilliantly yesterday; we’ve got a great medical team that has spent a lot of time with the guys, and we have brilliant facilities to help them recover, as well. Hopefully they all come in feeling good today, showing a bit of energy, and we’ll work out on the training pitch who’s ready to go tomorrow.”

The Swans squad are all 100% behind manager Russell Martin and that’s fantastic to hear. All we need now is a change of fortune in front of goal, an increase in pace and thinking and we are certain the wins will come. Hopefully on Saturday at Luton, but of course it’s an away game so must not lose also comes in to play.

The game kicks off at 3pm on Saturday 18th September 2021.

Photographs licensed from Reuters

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